# Just Disbudded Buckling. Did I Do "Figure Eight" Right?



## mistydaiz (Jan 28, 2011)

We just disbudded our one-week-old Alpine buckling. 
We disbudded a little late because the weather outside was terrible the past week, and it just stopped raining yesterday.

We've disbudded our kids bfore last year, so we aren't new to this.
But I am starting to get a little worried...

While we were disbudding the buck, we held the hot iron on the bud for about 2 long seconds, the most. Then we would lift the iron and look for a copper ring. We did see the ring, and next we were trying to get the cap off. It took a few burns (using the edge of the iron against the side of the cap, to get it off), and then the cap came off. There was a tiny bleeding, so we put the iron over the bud area again, to burn the bleeding. That was just for a moment. And the bleeding did stop.

We did the same thing for the other horn bud.

After those two horn buds, we burned two more copper rings, to make overlapping firgure eights. We didn't keep the iron on long, it was real quick.
After all the burnings were done, we sprayed the whole area with BlueKote and applied a cool pack gently, just touching the top of his head for a few seconds.

We did the figure eights like this (pic is from another post from "ptgoats45") :










But now, I am getting worried, and thinking we overheated the buckling's head, just because of how he's acting.

After all the burns, we carried him away and gave him his bottle. He drank it up normally, then after that, he would just stand there, kinda weak.

A half hour later, he is grinding his teeth every now and then, and he'll sort of jerk his head back and shake it a little.
And he is wanting to be by himself and will just stand there in a corner.

Here are some pics of how he's acting, and of his burns...





































I just want someone to tell me he's fine, that he's just getting over his disbudding.
And not that his brain is overheated! 

We disbudded his sister, and she was a lot quicker. She is acting fine, and not like him. Maybe she's in a little pain, but she is not acting like him, or shaking her head.

 ray:


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## SandStoneStable Farm (Dec 8, 2010)

*Re: Just Disbudded Buckling. Acting Weird And Grinding Teeth*

Is he doing any better now?


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## mistydaiz (Jan 28, 2011)

*Another Question About His Disbudding*

Thanks for replying 

He is acting normally now, he eagerly took his bottle like always 

He just gave me a good scare, I'm hoping it was just me getting worried, and not anything else...but I think he's all right now.

But I have another question now, sorry...
Did we disbud him right? What are the chances he wil get scurs, considering we disbudded late, even though we gave it a good burn?

Is the figure eight in the right place?
For the figure eight, we just burned to a copper ring, we weren't sure if there is any "cap" to take off...


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## RunAround (Feb 17, 2008)

Actually you could of held the iron on a touch longer so he doesn't ooze so much. I like a dry burn so as not to attract flies and what not. Sounds to me like he acted like a normal kid after getting burned


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## Natural Beauty Farm (Mar 18, 2011)

Scent glands are BEHIND horn buds, not in front. Sorry it looks like you burned the wrong direction, or am I looking at the picture wrong? The second ring should have been between buds, and back the direction of ears/back of head.

If it is wrong, don't burn again. Just learn from it.

The brain is closer towards the eyes, soft spot. If you burned in front, just keep an eye on him for a few days.


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## ptgoats45 (Nov 28, 2011)

Burning in front is correct, she wasn't trying to get the scent glands. When you do a swiss type buckling in front you burn that "ridge" that grows diagonal off of the horn. If you don't they are more likely to get scurs that will grow out right where those ridges are. All of the Alpine breeders I have talked to do their kids this way.

It looks like you did it right. I think some kids just react a little different from the disbudding than others. Their head probably feels funny and they don't know why. I would keep an eye on him though and if he has any more draining I would try to keep it dried off. I have had good luck putting some "Wonder Dust" on their heads. It is made for horses, but works well to stop bleeding on wounds or slight drainage on a disbud. I think the draining usually comes from around the burn where the skin next to where you burnt got hot, much like if you burned your skin or got a blister it would drain a little.


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## freedomstarfarm (Mar 25, 2011)

One thing you can do to help them a bit is do one ring on one side then the ring on the other then go back to the other side. It will allow the side to cool bait between burns. I don't do a figure 8 like that but I have ND's so maybe it is different.


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## mistydaiz (Jan 28, 2011)

Thanks!
Freedomstarfarm, yes, that's how we did it, did one ring on one side, did the other side, then went back and did the figure eight on the first side, and then did a figure eight on the second side. I'm not sure if I explained it right..
My friend did say that if it bleeds or oozes, we didn't burn long enough, so I remembered that, and when I saw a little bleeding, we burned it again quickly.
It's not oozing anymore, but I'll keep an eye on them.

No, we weren't trying to burn the scent glands, I wouldn't want to anyway, since I think that interferes with does' heat cycles and ability or ease of breeding. Without the buck's scent, the doe might not want to breed...just my opinion, nothing more 
We were just burning the ridges in front of the horn buds.


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