# Consequences of Moldy Hay?



## Abra (Aug 11, 2012)

I realized this afternoon that my son put some hay in the goat's feeder that looked a bit off. I asked him where he got it from, and he walked me to the stack of hay bales. The hay he gave them was moldy!
I ran back to the goats and took whatever was left in the feeder out, but they already ate most of it!
I'm really worried.... Are they going to be OK?


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## keren (Oct 26, 2008)

mouldy hay can cause abortions and neurological issues. it can give stomach upsets and recently I have had some guinea pigs die, post mortem results showed it was from mould on the hay, they just lost their appetite, got lethargic, and eventually were drooling and died. 

having said all of that, lots of people feed mouldy hay ( "cow" or "goat" quality hay) to their animals all the time without problems, so I reckon yours will be ok with it happening just the one time


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

Oh no...that is awful....  

Make sure.. they have good.. non moldy hay for them to eat...with fresh water....

I would give a fortified vit B complex shot....to prevent thiamine deficiency and keep polio away.... 

Give baking soda..

give probiotic paste

give Milk of Magnesia give every 6 to 8 hours for a while...

watch for scours ..

You can give activated Charcoal if you want to...to be on the safe side...or if they start acting sicker.... it is up to you....

glad you removed the bad hay right away... :hug: ray:


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## Steph (May 7, 2009)

Mold can cause a goat to bloat. Baking soda will help prevent bloat. If they look bloaty you can make balls of baking soda by adding some water and feeding it to the goats.


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## KW Farms (Jun 21, 2008)

Pam really covered it. :thumb: Hopefully you can get them started on stuff now and they'll be ok. :hug: I've had it happen before and mine were alright...but just take steps now to be safe.


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## sweetgoats (Oct 18, 2007)

How much hay did they get? 

If they were eating a lot yes Pam hit it all.

Watch for them to act off, start star gazing and circling.


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## HoosierShadow (Apr 20, 2010)

We had a bale earlier this year that was somewhat moldy and when my husband fed late one evening he didn't realize he grabbed from that bale <I was taking the mold out and using the bale as bedding>.
Next day one of our pregnant does was doing a lot of stretching, and really uncomfortable, and acting off, I remember her temp was low as well and she was shivering.
I gave her a shot of thaimine, probios and put a sweatshirt on her and gave her good hay, and she bounced back within a few hours. Scared the life out of me, but at first I didn't know what it was until I saw the hay she had left and that someone had taken some from the bad bale.
Sadly, accidents happen.

Hopefully your goats will be just fine


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## Jessica84 (Oct 27, 2011)

Just watch them and try not to freak out too bad. When I first got goats I had the whole 'goats eat everything' idea and they were fed moldy hay. Nothing ever came of it but I did stop that when I found out they can not have it.


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## Abra (Aug 11, 2012)

Phew, nothing to report on the moldy hay, The girls all seem to be fine....
But had something else traumatic happen when we were taking our birds to the fair today.
I am heart-broken....

(Made a separate post about it in the "rainbow bridge" section in case anyone is curious....)


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

:hug: 


Glad the goats are OK.... :hug:


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## KW Farms (Jun 21, 2008)

:hug: Good to hear they are doing well today!


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## churchofyahweh (Sep 23, 2013)

I know this is late, I was just reading some old threads. I raise my Goats and Sheep all natural, no vaccinations, no shots, no wormer, no chemicals. At first I had a few problems but Goats are strong. We have bred any strength that there was out of them. My goats eat moldy hay from time to time, I buy round bales when I am not around to feed them. Sometimes they bloat, but most of the time now they don't. I've never lost one. I raise all natural, drug free kosher meats, I use them for milk, butter, cheese, yogurt, soap and meat and my animals are all fat, fleshy and healthy. I am not saying you will never loose one this way, but when I started I planned on loosing some. Only the strong survive and by doing so, only the strong will breed. I have milking goats that are just as fat and muscled as my boer's. The African Boer goat can eat plastic bags and beer bottles and get along just fine; the American Boer goat needs her nails done before she faints. think about it, we cause are own problems. The need of vaccinations and medications is created by the need for vaccinations and medications. It works for me. I'm just saying just because your goat spent 15 minutes in a moldy bale she probably won't eat, is no reason to panic and buy $200 of vet supplies.


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## churchofyahweh (Sep 23, 2013)

I mean no disrespect to anyone, just noticed there was only one sided answers. All of the answers I read are accurate and they will help, but they don't cure the problem, they take care of it.


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## Kenny Battistelli (Nov 29, 2020)

I stumbled upon this thread after researching mold and goats. I fed my goats moldy bread once without knowing the harmful effects. They were obviously fine because I didn't know that moldy bread was bad for them to eat until recently. Are there any lasting negative effects of mold consumption or problems that could arise? This was months and months ago.


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## MellonFriend (Aug 8, 2017)

Kenny Battistelli said:


> I stumbled upon this thread after researching mold and goats. I fed my goats moldy bread once without knowing the harmful effects. They were obviously fine because I didn't know that moldy bread was bad for them to eat until recently. Are there any lasting negative effects of mold consumption or problems that could arise? This was months and months ago.


If it was that long ago, I would not worry about it one bit.


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## happybleats (Sep 12, 2010)

No long lasting effects. Mold will either make them sick fairly quickly or not at all... its been a while so I would not be concern.


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## Kenny Battistelli (Nov 29, 2020)

Thank you @happybleats @MellonFriend !! I thought so but wasn't sure.


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

Just try not feeding any feed with mold, not worth the risk.


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## Goats Rock (Jun 20, 2011)

Back when penicillin was first discovered- (from mold on bread), many of the guys in the Service back in Korea- (Korean War) carried moldy bread in their pockets to eat, trying to keep healthy! My dad swore it prevented him from the diseases that plagued solders. True? I really don't know.....

But, a bit of mold on bread would probably not hurt a goat, a whole lot- might- but it would be soon after eating, like hours, not days or weeks. Avoiding all mold is probably the best bet!


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## TCOLVIN (Sep 22, 2014)

Mine must be very spoilt. If you put out moldy hay, they will wait on you to change it out. I buy round rolls and re-bale it using a straw baler and any thing that don’t look right get put to the side. Even the part that sets on the ground, if it gets wet and mouldy gets tossed. That’s the reason when I buy 30 round bales, if I can I set all on pallets in a row to keep them off the ground. More work? Yes, but it helps in the long run to control other problems. I don’t put out a whole roll for them to destroy. I feed in two large hay racks daily.


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

Goats are much different than people. 
A small amount can start polio issues or death depending on the goat. 
I rather not knowingly feed anything with mold on it period.


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