# Please Help! Ruptured udder



## lilgoat20 (Mar 25, 2013)

I have an elderly nanny goat (14 yr old) that bagged up although she is not pregnant. She absolutely did not want me to touch her udder...it did not look infected so I left it alone. Now it has gotten so big over a approx. 3-4 month period that tonite we noticed a stream of clotted looking milk coming out of it from the side but not the teat area. 
There are no good goat vets in my area. She is old and feeble ...just would like some advice please...many thanks


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

She really needs to be milked out. I would also get Penicillin and give her shots twice a day at 1cc per 15 lbs.


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## lilgoat20 (Mar 25, 2013)

ksalvagno said:


> She really needs to be milked out. I would also get Penicillin and give her shots twice a day at 1cc per 15 lbs.


Thanks! I will try but she has never been milked and she goes crazy when I tried to. (Guess this really sounds wimpy but am not an experienced farm gal : ( 
At her age I am wondering if I should think about putting her down rather than putting her through a lot of stress...


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## ThreeHavens (Oct 20, 2011)

Is it putting her through pain? Do you have any pictures of the area? Poor old gal. Is there someone who has milked before that can help you? Milking some does can be a real challenge, I know that.


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## lilgoat20 (Mar 25, 2013)

ThreeHavens said:


> Is it putting her through pain? Do you have any pictures of the area? Poor old gal. Is there someone who has milked before that can help you? Milking some does can be a real challenge, I know that.


I sure wish I had someone to help me milk her but I don't have any goat friends out here. I will try to get a pic up tomorrow ....she pitches such a fit that I am afraid she would just give up. Her udders are so droopy they drag the ground and she has trouble walking & keeping up with the other goats. She is a Pygmy . I love her and want to do whatever I can for her yet I haven't had one this old ever before ...I want to do what is humane...thanks so much for your help...I will try again to milk her tomorrow & see if I can locate some penicillin .


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## ThreeHavens (Oct 20, 2011)

If her udder is dragging on the ground, it needs to be held up or removed. If she doesn't have mastitis, she will if it is draggin ... there is actually a goatie bra they make to hold udders up :laugh: I think it is called an udder sling.

Is her udder hard and lumpy?

Sorry you are going through this  Are you sure she isn't pregnant?


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## SCRMG (Oct 24, 2012)

I can't give you any advice on her udder, but I can tell you that I have had to milk some pretty wild goats that were quite adamant that I should not be handling them there... sometimes I swear my goats think I'm the local pervert  ... I usually start by tying them up short (make sure that the tie will not tighten up on them, because this will make them panic), and slowly move to the udder. It takes patience, but I have found that once I start, they calm down almost immediately. I think they recognize and appreciate the relief. I don't have a milk stand, so most of the time I am sitting on the ground. I usually try to keep a knee in front if them, and preferably back them into a corner against a wall of fence so that my body is blocking their only exits. It's not fullproof, and I've been pushed over a few times, and stepped on... but I've been able to milk my worst goats this way. Like I said before, once you start and they feel the relief, they do calm down.

What are you feeding her? I would probably cut out or reduce anything that encourages milk production. That's more of a long term thing though.

Good luck with your goat.


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## xymenah (Jul 1, 2011)

If she's really crazy you can tie her face to the fence. To make a simple rope halter make a loop that can slip over her muzzle high enough that is not pressing on her nasal passage then take the end of the rope around behind her ears and through the other side of the loop on her muzzle. Then loop a rope around her mid section and tie that onto the fence and hold on for dear life. I've had a couple of rodeos. I'd swear they were dying with all the screaming and thrashing they were doing. Once she feels the relief she will probably calm down a bit but if not keep trying. You will get it.


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## happybleats (Sep 12, 2010)

scrmg has sound advice there on everything,.......expect to get wet lol..Patients and gentleness and dont go for the udder right off...work yourself there...hum to her..brush her then slowly begin your decent..she will jump..scream, pull and kick..but be more stubborn than she is and as stated...she may calm down with the relief..as for if you should put her down...this is a decision only you can make...you must look at her quality of life and if she is suffering, in pain...or sickly,....Whatever decision you make ...it will be the right one. Trust your love for her. Hugs


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## mjs500doo (Nov 24, 2012)

lilgoat20 said:


> I have an elderly nanny goat (14 yr old) that bagged up although she is not pregnant. She absolutely did not want me to touch her udder...it did not look infected so I left it alone. Now it has gotten so big over a approx. 3-4 month period that tonite we noticed a stream of clotted looking milk coming out of it from the side but not the teat area.
> There are no good goat vets in my area. She is old and feeble ...just would like some advice please...many thanks


So she was dry? Or in milk?

Sounds like you're talking about an abscess.

If so, go ahead and squeeze all the infection out of the poor girl. Make sure to take a sample of the fluid though too. Test for CL. Once you have the infection out, clean it out with saline. Once cleaned, pour iodine in the open wound. Fly spray if bugs are out. Please have a helper!


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## rdmtnranch (Mar 4, 2013)

I agree with mjs500doo. At her age I would worry about some sort of abcess or is there a chance of cancer? I am not really familiar with udders, but if it was me I would be wondering about those kinds of things.


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## Di (Jan 29, 2008)

You know, it's tough when "crap" happens. Here's a sweet old girl that you love, and now she's suffering through a traumatic life threatening illness. Only you can assess the quality of life she has going forward. We all want to think we would "sacrifice everything" for those we love. But, you are right to wonder if it is "ethical" to consider her suffering as part of the equation. Imho, it is.

I went through this recently (well, last year actually, it seems like yesterday) with an "old dog". Faithful companion/protector of the yard, for 15 years. I felt it was time to help him cross "the rainbow bridge". He is waiting for me, and will be there to welcome me when the time comes.

What ever you decide, it's OK. We stand by your decision, and pray for you in your time of pain. :grouphug:


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## lilgoat20 (Mar 25, 2013)

SCRMG said:


> I can't give you any advice on her udder, but I can tell you that I have had to milk some pretty wild goats that were quite adamant that I should not be handling them there... sometimes I swear my goats think I'm the local pervert  ... I usually start by tying them up short (make sure that the tie will not tighten up on them, because this will make them panic), and slowly move to the udder. It takes patience, but I have found that once I start, they calm down almost immediately. I think they recognize and appreciate the relief. I don't have a milk stand, so most of the time I am sitting on the ground. I usually try to keep a knee in front if them, and preferably back them into a corner against a wall of fence so that my body is blocking their only exits. It's not fullproof, and I've been pushed over a few times, and stepped on... but I've been able to milk my worst goats this way. Like I said before, once you start and they feel the relief, they do calm down.
> 
> What are you feeding her? I would probably cut out or reduce anything that encourages milk production. That's more of a long term thing though.
> 
> Good luck with your goat.


Thanks for the advice! I don't have a milk stand either ...to be honest I have not milked any of my goats so me & the goat are both not liking it ....I have a lot to learn.
Anyway thanks so much for taking the time to help me.


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## lilgoat20 (Mar 25, 2013)

happybleats said:


> scrmg has sound advice there on everything,.......expect to get wet lol..Patients and gentleness and dont go for the udder right off...work yourself there...hum to her..brush her then slowly begin your decent..she will jump..scream, pull and kick..but be more stubborn than she is and as stated...she may calm down with the relief..as for if you should put her down...this is a decision only you can make...you must look at her quality of life and if she is suffering, in pain...or sickly,....Whatever decision you make ...it will be the right one. Trust your love for her. Hugs


Thanks for the encouragement!


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## lilgoat20 (Mar 25, 2013)

Di said:


> You know, it's tough when "crap" happens. Here's a sweet old girl that you love, and now she's suffering through a traumatic life threatening illness. Only you can assess the quality of life she has going forward. We all want to think we would "sacrifice everything" for those we love. But, you are right to wonder if it is "ethical" to consider her suffering as part of the equation. Imho, it is.
> 
> I went through this recently (well, last year actually, it seems like yesterday) with an "old dog". Faithful companion/protector of the yard, for 15 years. I felt it was time to help him cross "the rainbow bridge". He is waiting for me, and will be there to welcome me when the time comes.
> 
> What ever you decide, it's OK. We stand by your decision, and pray for you in your time of pain. :grouphug:


When I got home from work today and saw all the helpful posts and encouragement from this site I was blown away by the kindness and caring of this community! Thanks everyone for your help!! I wish I had known about this site before. So far things have turned out better than I expected for now. My husband was able to get off work early and get Azala to the vet. Thank goodness the one there today was an older retired one that is usually not there. He was able to express a bowl full of watery yellowish fluid. (It took 3 people to do that). He said she had a fistula that probably won't close. Gave her a penicillin shot that will last for 5 days and another one to give Friday. Said to keep the stuff expressed out of her udder. It is not coming out of the teat but a small hole about an inch or two from the teat. I was surprised he said she actually looked pretty good for an old gal. After expressing, her udders didn't end up so close to the ground. I don't know what caused her to "bag up" ....vet didn't know either. She is too old for surgery so hoping this will work for her. I don't know a lot about feed ...no one has ever advised me much about it....have been giving 1c / day of a mix of purina goat chow,cracked corn and rolled oats. Hay and open pasture
Purina goat mineral free choice and baking soda.. I don't have a clue what kind of hay I have....a man cuts it for us and leaves enough for us then takes the rest for his cattle. Any suggestions re feeding?


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## happybleats (Sep 12, 2010)

so glad you got a vet who was caring and knowledgeable : ) I bet your girl feels a lot better already...and I'm sure you do too 
I raise standard size dairy goats and have no idea how much a mini should eat : ) Plus we feed for milk production...sounds like you did well on your own though ..with mineral and baking soda : ) feed and hay : ) all basic needs....I am not familure with Purina brands so I have no comment on it worth...
There are alot of mini breed owners here..Im sure they will chime in


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

Glad your girl is doing better. I would just omit the corn. The rest sounds fine.


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## lilgoat20 (Mar 25, 2013)

ksalvagno said:


> Glad your girl is doing better. I would just omit the corn. The rest sounds fine.


Thanks!


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