# Tail is down and I'm not sure why



## Thomas Poleno (Aug 1, 2017)

Hello, one of my three Nigerian Dwarf goats who is a female has had her tail down for a lot of the day today. I'm thinking the reason this happened is because we had construction workers at our house today working pretty close to the goat area and it may have stressed her out with the noise. I'm not sure if this is what caused it though because they have been gone for hours and her tail is still down. It goes up, but once it is up she wags her tail and then it goes back down again and this happens over and over again. Does this mean anything? She has been eating, pooping (from what I have seen they aren't clumpy), and chewing cud. Why is her tail down? Thanks for the help in advance.


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## Thomas Poleno (Aug 1, 2017)

Can anyone help?


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## Mandee (Jul 15, 2017)

I'll try to help you as best as I can I do believe this can be normal but check the lower eyelid and make sure it is nice and pink not pale. If the lower eyelid is pale pink you should make sure she does not have a high worm load. Hope someone else can give you more information.


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## Thomas Poleno (Aug 1, 2017)

Mandee said:


> I'll try to help you as best as I can I do believe this can be normal but check the lower eyelid and make sure it is nice and pink not pale. If the lower eyelid is pale pink you should make sure she does not have a high worm load. Hope someone else can give you more information.


I checked and it is nice and pink, so I don't think she has worms. Also I've spend the last 30 mins with her and her tail has been up almost the entire time. Sometimes she stills wags it and it goes down for a minute or so. Do you have any idea why she is doing this? Could there be something in her butt area that could be irritating her? I'll see how she is doing tomorrow and if her tail is down I'll deworm her. Thanks for the reply.


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## Mandee (Jul 15, 2017)

Ya know I have a weather that's is the same way. I thought he had a problem took him to the vet and nothing was wrong. I would not worry to much just keep an eye on her.


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## Thomas Poleno (Aug 1, 2017)

Mandee said:


> Ya know I have a weather that's is the same way. I thought he had a problem took him to the vet and nothing was wrong. I would not worry to much just keep an eye on her.


Thank you for your input. I'll keep an eye on her. Not sure why she keeps wagging her tail though.


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## Mandee (Jul 15, 2017)

Sorry I couldn't be more help if I find anything else it could be ill let you know or maybe in the mean time someone with more experience will be able to give you more information.


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## Thomas Poleno (Aug 1, 2017)

Mandee said:


> Sorry I couldn't be more help if I find anything else it could be ill let you know or maybe in the mean time someone with more experience will be able to give you more information.


You've helped me plenty. Ill deworm her tomorrow if she is still doing it, and ill take her to the vet if that still doesn't fix it. Thank you for your time.


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## Mandee (Jul 15, 2017)

I would check her temp as well. And what is the temp where you are located? I also was reading that wagging tail could mean she is aggravated or chilly.


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

She could be in heat. Sounds like normal goat stuff.


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## Thomas Poleno (Aug 1, 2017)

Mandee said:


> I would check her temp as well. And what is the temp where you are located? I also was reading that wagging tail could mean she is aggravated or chilly.


I live in San Diego, California, so the temp is not too cold I don't think.


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## Thomas Poleno (Aug 1, 2017)

ksalvagno said:


> She could be in heat. Sounds like normal goat stuff.


Thank you for your input! That could definitely be what it is.


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## Suzanne_Tyler (Jul 19, 2014)

She's probably just stressed out from the construction workers. A couple of my goats will do that when something is out of the ordinary.


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

Any flies or gnats around?


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## ShireRidgeFarm (Sep 24, 2015)

Sounds like she's in heat to me as well.

To be honest, I don't really pay attention to what my goats do with their tails. I know some places say their tail behavior is a way to tell if their sick, and sometimes that's true, but for the most part I've found their tails to be more of an indication of their current mood than their current health. If they are sick their mood is not going to be happy, so in that way their tail can indicate sickness, but there are plenty of other - normal - things that can make a goat unhappy (maybe they are hot, another goat is being annoying, there is a change in their environment, etc.) that is in no way making them sick.


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## foggywayfarm (10 mo ago)

Mandee said:


> I would check her temp as well. And what is the temp where you are located? I also was reading that wagging tail could mean she is aggravated or chilly.


This Is correct...could be wagging bc cold or chilly and also could be in heat. Behavior is normal UNLESS accompanied by "hunching" and shivering. You said FAMACHA is great so your probably right she was disturbed by the noisy workers she is not acting like her usual self. Keep an close eye on her and check temp. Call Vet and ask a few basic questions!


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

This is a very old thread.


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