# Goat coughing



## Frosty1 (Jul 12, 2011)

Hi again guys! Haven't been on in a while, but I've been pretty busy. Anyways, I have one doe, possibly two, who are coughing occasionally. They didn't usually cough very much, I think, so I'm a little worried. It's a dry cough, doesn't sound rattly or anything, so I was wondering, could it just be allergies, or is it something different? Oh, and I don't know if this has anything to do with it, but they are both due to kid in March.  Thanks in advance!


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

Have you taken a temp?


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## Frosty1 (Jul 12, 2011)

No, I'm going to take one when I bring her in this evening though.


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## Guest (Jan 20, 2012)

Probably just a dry hay cough. Mine do this sometimes too. My vet was here awhile back when they were doing that and she said nothing to worry about. Doesn't seem to get any worse and I'm not sure the same ones are doing it. Sometimes a lot more of them will cough when they run a ways.


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

If it is occasionally.. it is normal.... especially a dry cough... :wink:


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## HoosierShadow (Apr 20, 2010)

I have 1 goat in particular that does this, very occassional, and usually if she's been in the barn with hay, or outside eating hay. Sometimes right after eating grain or drinking water. She's pregnant and due in a month. Doesn't seem to be an issue, but I'd make sure they aren't coughing a lot in one day. Could be allergies. I know right now where we are allergies are hitting heavy <I've been dealing with it for much of the week!>, so maybe it's allergies as you suggested.


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## Frosty1 (Jul 12, 2011)

Awesome! I'm glad it isn't anything bad. And yes, it's hard to find out which one or ones are doing it. Every time I look at them after I hear coughing they look at me like they're the most innocent creatures ever and would NEVER cough. Lol She seems fine in all other ways, except that she's way behind the others when they all run in, but that's probably cause she's humoungously pregnant. Lol


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## freedomstarfarm (Mar 25, 2011)

could be nothing, allergies, dust in the hay, cold (no temp or no discharge eyes or nose; probably not the problem then) or lungworms. 
Lungworms can be taken of by Ivermectin safe for pregnant does but must be dosed correctly not under and must be repeated in 7-10 days.


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## amylawrence (May 19, 2011)

I also have been keeping an eye on one of my does who has developed a dry cough over the past couple weeks. No temp. Due in 4 weeks. The cough seemed to start increasing this week and I could hear her coughing during the night, so i did dose her with ivomec yesterday. How to detemine the weight of a very pregnant (not to mention moody!) goat was the question. I estimated 150 pounds (big nubian) and gave 4 cc orally. Logan, only one repeat dose in 10 days, or two more?


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## freedomstarfarm (Mar 25, 2011)

3 total doses is best IMO each 7-10 days apart. 
I use the Ivermectin cattle injectable and if given orally I do 1cc per 20# or at least 1cc per 40# since you think she may be 150 I would give 5-8cc;s so up the dose for the next 2 doses. I pick my goats up and get on a scale but that sure wont work for your big girl.


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## Frosty1 (Jul 12, 2011)

So, for the three doses do you give 5-8 cc's every time? Should I treat her for lungworms just in case? Also, how much do you think a full size, heavily preggo doe weighs? There's absolutely NO way I could pick her up and put her on a scale either. LOL


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## Frosty1 (Jul 12, 2011)

Just bumping this up to the top.


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## freedomstarfarm (Mar 25, 2011)

If it were me and I had a bred doe that started this cough with no other symptoms and no feed changes no hay changes I would treat her with plain Ivermectin 3 times 7-10 days apart and I use the cattle injectable that if I give orally I dose at 1cc per 20# but some dose at 1cc per 40#. If she was a full size doe like a nubian and I was sure she weighed between 100 and 200 pounds I would do 5-8 cc's each time. 5cc's at per 20#'s would treat a 100 pound goat or 8cc's a 160 pound goat. So IMO that would be a good range to be in. Ivermectin is a fairly safe drug.


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## goathiker (Apr 14, 2011)

Lungworms are fairly easy to discover without a fecal. Just put a few berries in a clear container with some water. I use a small canning jar. Give it about an hour and a half. During this time the larvae will come out and you should be able to see them swimming around by holding the jar up to the light. They're about a 1/16th of an inch long.


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## Frosty1 (Jul 12, 2011)

Ok thanks guys! I think I'll give her the Ivermectin in the morning and then I'll see if I can get some berries from her later in the day. I have her and two other goats in the same stall so I wouldn't be able to know which berries were hers and which weren't lol.


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## freedomstarfarm (Mar 25, 2011)

goathiker said:


> Lungworms are fairly easy to discover without a fecal. Just put a few berries in a clear container with some water. I use a small canning jar. Give it about an hour and a half. During this time the larvae will come out and you should be able to see them swimming around by holding the jar up to the light. They're about a 1/16th of an inch long.


That is really neat! I will have to give that a try. Does it work only with lungworms? I assume fresh berries are very important?


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## amylawrence (May 19, 2011)

That is a cool tip to know! Every article I've read about lungworms talks about how difficult it is to detect them with a fecal exam and it requires a special method that still gives unreliable results. I like the simplicity (and cost) of putting berries in water!


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## freedomstarfarm (Mar 25, 2011)

amylawrence said:


> That is a cool tip to know! Every article I've read about lungworms talks about how difficult it is to detect them with a fecal exam and it requires a special method that still gives unreliable results. I like the simplicity (and cost) of putting berries in water!


Most I read also says that they are hard to pick up on a fecal so that would be great if detection is so easy.


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## goathiker (Apr 14, 2011)

Ah yes, the special baerman fecal. Oh, I forgot to say that the water should be warm, sorry. The Baerman fecal involves letting the larvae come out in warm water. Then they centrifuge some of the water and put the bottom 2 or 3 drops on a microscope slide that is chambered so that the cover slip doesn't crush the larvae. These larvae are big enough to see with the naked eye for young folks. I need a magnifying glass to see them well. It's only going to work when the worms are reproducing though and they are another one that overwinters hibernating in the animal. They only lay eggs when outside conditions ensure that the larvae will live. They don't make an animal cough unless they are actively reproducing. The rest of the time they are encapsulated. Except for when the disease has progressed so far that they have distroyed lung tissue and function.
As far as I know right now, these are the only worms that hatch before leaving the host body.


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## Frosty1 (Jul 12, 2011)

I gave the girls some Ivermectin this morning. Hopefully it will fix them up!  Thanks for all of the help!


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## Burns Branch Boers (Apr 11, 2011)

2 schools of thought here---to treat or not to treat? :shrug: 

my buckling of 9 months (Joker) developed a dry cough last month. I watched it for a few days and he acted fine..totally normal..but the cough got progressively a bit worse. I treated him w/5 days of PenG. He cleared right up and the cough totally went away :clap: 

Then...I went to my friends ranch and many of her goats had the same exact cough. I asked her if that worried her (she has a very healthy herd and has been breeding goats for many years) she waved it off saying they do this sometimes in the winter and they will be ok. She never treated one of them and they are all super healthy still. Dont know if the cough is totally gone from the herd yet, but last time I was there I did not notice anyone coughing. 

My daughters wether then started w/the same cough I had treated Joker for. By then I had ordered the Vet Rx and had it. I had heard good reviews and Vet Rx is all natural--so it wont hurt a bit! I treated Macho w/that and his cough went away!!

I would give your preggo girls the Vet Rx, as it can't hurt them, and I bet they will be fine :greengrin:


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

> Lungworms are fairly easy to discover without a fecal. Just put a few berries in a clear container with some water. I use a small canning jar. Give it about an hour and a half. During this time the larvae will come out and you should be able to see them swimming around by holding the jar up to the light. They're about a 1/16th of an inch long.


 great tip.. thank you..... :thumb:


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## Mandara Farm (Sep 12, 2010)

>>>Lungworms are fairly easy to discover without a fecal. Just put a few berries in a clear container with some water. I use a small canning jar. Give it about an hour and a half. During this time the larvae will come out and you should be able to see them swimming around by holding the jar up to the light. They're about a 1/16th of an inch long.

That is so gross -- and SO good to know! Thanks for posting!


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## amylawrence (May 19, 2011)

Frosty,how is your doe? Did you end up dosing with ivomec? My doe's cough decreased after the first dose and is practically gone after second dose. I bumped her up to about7 cc this time and will give the last dose next week. I didnt test berries but whether it was lungworm or not, I feel better knowing her cough is practically gone!


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## Frosty1 (Jul 12, 2011)

Thanks guys!  Yes, I did dose them with the ivermectin, and they seem to be much better!  I also put water in with two of them in the stall so they can drink over night, and I made sure all their collars are loose. (Tequila's was too tight, but all the rest seemed fine) So, I'm not really sure what the problem was, but I'm just glad they're doing so well! I've only heard like one cough in a long time!  Thanks again for everybody's help!!


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## jaycee (Aug 3, 2011)

That dry cough is the exact symptoms my girls had a month or so ago... it started with one and I just suspected hay dust, but when it spread to more over a couple of weeks and became more frequent, I asked about it here on the board and it was suggested they could have lungworms. 

I never did a fecal, but I did dose them with ivermectin because they are pregnant. I gave them 3 doses each 1 week apart and the coughs cleared up after the 1st dose, so I'm fairly certain lungworms were the cause.


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

Glad ..they are better.... :thumb: :greengrin:


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## Elizabeth (Jun 18, 2017)

how do i know if my goat has lung worms?


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## Suzanne_Tyler (Jul 19, 2014)

There is a test you can do. I'll see if I can find it for you.

Edit -

Ok, here you go:



happybleats said:


> .. [fecal tests] will not check for lung worm..you can do this ( according to goat hiker) by collecting a few berries and wrapping them tight in a square of gauze..floating them in a cup of water over night..Lung worms or larve will float in the water. ..


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## goathiker (Apr 14, 2011)

Actually they will be swimming in the top third of the jar.


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