# Copper Bolus Dosage?



## Suntoo (Nov 14, 2013)

I finally ordered Copper Boluses in 2gm and 4gm.
But I've read that the correct dosage is 1gm per 22 pounds.
The instructions say simply to give a 4gm capsule to goats over 3 months and over 50 pounds!
My inclination is to follow the manufacturers instructions since they know what they make but I hate to under medicate.

My smallest is 5 months at 66#. She took a 2gm capsule. (She should have 3gm.)

My largest is about 1 1/2 years old at 120# and he only got a 4gm cap. (He should have 5-6gm.)

Is it enough copper?


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## NyGoatMom (Jan 26, 2013)

I give a 4g bolus to my full sized nubians....I could give more at a time but I just give it more often. I have one that gets it 3 times a year and the others are 2 times a year. I may bump them all up to 3 times...they also have loose minerals available...
Are your goats nice and shiny?


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## Trickyroo (Sep 26, 2012)

I believe its 1 gram for every 22 lbs of body weight


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## Little-Bits-N-Pieces (Apr 7, 2013)

Yep, it's 1g per 22lbs. My alpine does get between 5 and 8 grams (they vary in size) every 4 months here. While my bucks get 11 grams. 
You'll know if it isnt enough. The red will be lingering, fish tail won't quite be going away.
My kids get it from 4 months old and up, so they get a 4g bolus at 4 months.


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## Trickyroo (Sep 26, 2012)

Suntoo said:


> I finally ordered Copper Boluses in 2gm and 4gm.
> But I've read that the correct dosage is 1gm per 22 pounds.
> The instructions say simply to give a 4gm capsule to goats over 3 months and over 50 pounds!
> My inclination is to follow the manufacturers instructions since they know what they make but I hate to under medicate.
> ...


I think it would be ok. You could always break one down and give him another gram or two if you feel unsure. Try putting it in something you know he loves and will slurp up without hesitation.


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## NyGoatMom (Jan 26, 2013)

Hmmm....guess I'll increase mine too. I started slowly because I was afraid to OD them...


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## Trickyroo (Sep 26, 2012)

Suntoo , I'm sorry , just reread your post . I would tend to stick with the rule of thumb 1 gram for every 22 lbs of body weight. This way your being much more accurate in what your dosing. JMO.


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## Trickyroo (Sep 26, 2012)

when i was breaking them down on a gram scale , i was petrified about ODing them . I rather a bit under then too much , just how i see it.
But to toss a goat a 4 gram capsule and they are only 50 lbs , those directions scare me. I followed the dosing directions on the valbazen bottle and found out i have been under dosing them ! So, given the fact that there isn't much known about goats in the "product" world , i wouldn't necessarily take their word for what is the "right" dosage.


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## christinajh (Jan 24, 2013)

I've heard it's pretty hard to overdose them since it's slowly absorbed, so I'd stick with the 1 gram to 22#. I gave a full cow bolus to my new boer buck because he was pretty close to needing that much. He did fine. I'll be giving him another at 4 months just because he was that bad


Sent from my iPhone using Goat Forum


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## Trickyroo (Sep 26, 2012)

I totally forgot about that ! ^^^^ But i still would break it down , save the gram or two for another animal  Its good to know that if you do make a mistake , you can continue to breathe , its not a death sentence


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## Little-Bits-N-Pieces (Apr 7, 2013)

It's pretty hard to hurt them with it. There is someone with Saanens on here who did her doe twice, and she was fine.

Since my bucks are so close to the smaller calf bolus, they just get the entire thing, 1.5 grams more isn't going to hurt them.


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## Trickyroo (Sep 26, 2012)

Thanks Lacie


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## Suntoo (Nov 14, 2013)

NyGoatMom said:


> Are your goats nice and shiny?


LOL!
Not anymore!
That's why I ordered the copper.
Feed stores around here never even heard of a copper bolus. Thanks to this forum maybe my goats will look like they're supposed to again.
:book:


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## Suntoo (Nov 14, 2013)

Trickyroo said:


> Try putting it in something you know he loves and will slurp up without hesitation.


That's how I got 4 of them dosed....

the 5th one is a challenge....she can smell the copper cap! I don't know if she'll ever touch another strawberry!


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## Suntoo (Nov 14, 2013)

Thanks for all the help!
I got both 2 gram and 4 gram capsules so I can easily increase the dosages.

By the way;
I got a regular sized balling gun and a smaller "pet piller" recommended for the small caps. The pet piller is too small for the 2 gram caps.
And because I have no second set of hands, the balling gun hasn't been any help to me.
Only trickery has worked so far and even then...one doe is smarter than me.
onder:


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## Trickyroo (Sep 26, 2012)

I hear ya ^^^ I have one that refuses everything now. Im going to get her eventually


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## Suntoo (Nov 14, 2013)

Trickyroo said:


> I hear ya ^^^ I have one that refuses everything now. Im going to get her eventually


I finally got her! I'm not sure how much she actually swallowed, but she got most of what I gave her!
It was watermelon that finally did it.
:wink:


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## Trickyroo (Sep 26, 2012)

Suntoo said:


> I finally got her! I'm not sure how much she actually swallowed, but she got most of what I gave her!
> It was watermelon that finally did it.
> :wink:


Nice going Suntoo  :leap: 
Now you can come over and get my doe to take it , lol.


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## CritterCarnival (Sep 18, 2013)

I've found that if I open the caps and weight out the correct dose, then mix it in with mashed up over ripe banana, I can get even the most finicky eater to take it with ease.

Yes, I know you are suppose to give it to them in a capsule to take whole, but if they are going to fight, chew and split it open anyway, I don't see much difference. At least I know how much is going into them with the banana paste.


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## happybleats (Sep 12, 2010)

I learned here to give copper 1 cc per 60# using a syringe...it was much easier then capsuls which got stuck or they spit out...

cut the whole tip off a syringe.( i use a 6 cc size) Pour 1 cc per 60# in it and top it off with porbiotic paste ...drench it down..we follow with a drenching gun of water to wash it all down...I buy cow bolus and break them down...easy peasy : )


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## Trickyroo (Sep 26, 2012)

Oh yay ^^^ Im going to try that way  
I feel i may be victorious :wahoo:


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## Trickyroo (Sep 26, 2012)

I was victorious ! I finally got my "I'm not eating nuttin you give me doe" to take her bolus  I tried Cathy's method , it worked , somewhat. To get the rest down her i mashed it into banana and shoved it in her mouth before she knew what happened and it was a done deal  The look on her face was priceless , lol. She looked as if she was saying " I ate it , didn't i , your a bad person " , lol.
But now , she loves bananas ! She never liked then before . 
Thanks for all the great ideas


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## snubbie (Apr 13, 2014)

I just pried their mouths open and shoved it down their throats! Go in from the side, curve your fingers around those molars and push it as far as you can. Then hold their mouths closed and rub their necks under their chin. 

Maybe I'm just lucky or else experienced from the several hundreds, maybe a thousand pills I've given to dogs over the years!


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## Trickyroo (Sep 26, 2012)

snubbie said:


> I just pried their mouths open and shoved it down their throats! Go in from the side, curve your fingers around those molars and push it as far as you can. Then hold their mouths closed and rub their necks under their chin.
> 
> Maybe I'm just lucky or else experienced from the several hundreds, maybe a thousand pills I've given to dogs over the years!


Ive done the same ,^^^^^but trying o do that to a goat is a whole other story, at least for me it is. I cannot hold one of my goats to check eyelids , no less shove a pill down their throat , lolol. I wish it were that easy for me 
Trying to hold my Boer cross is like trying to hold a freight train :laugh:

Trickery is the only way this chick is going to get a bolus down their gullets


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## Little-Bits-N-Pieces (Apr 7, 2013)

Pfft! Well, when you've mastered how to shove a calf bolus down a massive tank with horns, I'll be interested in what you have to say, but until then, carry on with the struggle a boer cross :ROFL: :slapfloor: You have it easy! :lol:

For the bucks I draw some fruity yogurt up in a catheter tip syringe, pour the loose rods in, suck a little more yogurt up, shake it a little bit, then "drench" the copper to them. Much easier than loosing a hand. 

And I hate having to do my cows, I can't really drench them that well, nor do I have a balling gun big enough to hold the bolus, so I have to go about mid bicep deep in a cows mouth before its far back enough to drop it and they'll swallow it! 

But I am waaaayyy more afraid to reach in a goats mouth than a cows mouth. There is more room to work with in a cows mouth. A goats mouth is like a 2.5" wide razor tooth death trap for your fingers!


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## Trickyroo (Sep 26, 2012)

I can see Lacie hanging halfway out of a cows mouth and holding a cup of yogurt in the other saying "you'll like it , trust me" now give me my hand back..:slap floor:


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## Little-Bits-N-Pieces (Apr 7, 2013)

:slapfloor: You'll never understand the struggle :lol: :ROFL: Yogurt just makes a mess with cows, they're so drooly, then you get the slingers when they shake their head  I'd rather risk not having a hand at the end of the day :lol: Then I could have a hook


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## Trickyroo (Sep 26, 2012)

Its easier to pill anything without having to fight with it IMO.
I have to give my seizure dog meds four times a day. I couldnt imagine fighting with him daily , so i just use can dog food . Scoop some out on a spoon , put the pills right on top , he slurps it down , add a little more to wash it down , done deal  Now , if it were that easy with other animals. My Boer cross , who is a tank , will not entertain the thought of me slipping something in the side of her mouth and then standing still while i rubbed her neck……….


But , the yogurt , probios , banana works wonderfully  Some of mine i just fed it to with a handful of grain. But those were the smaller boluses. I did hand feed a large one though , but it only worked once 
But I did in fact get everyone done , lol. And , i have all my fingers


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## Trickyroo (Sep 26, 2012)

Oh geez ! Lacie with a hook , :slapfloor::GAAH:


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## Little-Bits-N-Pieces (Apr 7, 2013)

I have an OCD problem with them chewing them! I HAVE to get it down them whole, or I'm not happy! Whether I lose a finger or have them drink it with yogurt, they don't chew them. Which by the way they can be broken by chewing them, I have tested this myself!


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## Little-Bits-N-Pieces (Apr 7, 2013)

Trickyroo said:


> Oh geez ! Lacie with a hook , :slapfloor::GAAH:


Well, I'd never need to carry a rusty fork. Gotta think of the big picture  :greengrin:


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## Emzi00 (May 3, 2013)

Little-Bits-N-Pieces said:


> Well, I'd never need to carry a rusty fork. Gotta think of the big picture  :greengrin:


:slapfloor: :ROFL: :GAAH: ray:


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## jannerbanner (Apr 1, 2014)

christinajh said:


> I've heard it's pretty hard to overdose them since it's slowly absorbed, so I'd stick with the 1 gram to 22#. I gave a full cow bolus to my new boer buck because he was pretty close to needing that much. He did fine. I'll be giving him another at 4 months just because he was that bad
> 
> Did you give him 12.5 g or 25g?


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## jannerbanner (Apr 1, 2014)

Suntoo said:


> That's how I got 4 of them dosed....
> 
> the 5th one is a challenge....she can smell the copper cap! I don't know if she'll ever touch another strawberry!


My goats also learned to smell the copper and refuse their treats when it had the rods. Then I tried bolusing which was a complete fiasco of broken capsules and chewed rods. Now, I take the measured amount of rods and put it in mashed up banana. I put this in an old 80ml selenium/vit e tube and drench it slowly into the back of their mouth. The LOVE it and there is no chance of choking them with a capsule or having rods get chewed up and/or spit out and never knowing how much actually made it into the goat. 
janice


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## snubbie (Apr 13, 2014)

Trickyroo said:


> Ive done the same ,^^^^^but trying o do that to a goat is a whole other story, at least for me it is. I cannot hold one of my goats to check eyelids , no less shove a pill down their throat , lolol. I wish it were that easy for me
> Trying to hold my Boer cross is like trying to hold a freight train :laugh:
> 
> Trickery is the only way this chick is going to get a bolus down their gullets


 No really, it's easy.

Did I mention my guys are pets, about three months old and weigh around 35-40lbs.?

Oops, think I forgot to mention that. 
I do not know of these "tank-like" boers of which some of you speak!:laugh:


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## Trickyroo (Sep 26, 2012)

Oh , well , sure , giving a goat close to 200lbs a bolus that they *dont* want and are fighting tooth and nail verses a 40lb goat , who albeit , can be difficult , but not nearly as much , lol


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## Trickyroo (Sep 26, 2012)

Little-Bits-N-Pieces said:


> Well, I'd never need to carry a rusty fork. Gotta think of the big picture  :greengrin:


Lacie , you gave me a good laugh today , and i so needed one :crazy:


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## christinajh (Jan 24, 2013)

jannerbanner said:


> christinajh said:
> 
> 
> > I've heard it's pretty hard to overdose them since it's slowly absorbed, so I'd stick with the 1 gram to 22#. I gave a full cow bolus to my new boer buck because he was pretty close to needing that much. He did fine. I'll be giving him another at 4 months just because he was that bad
> ...


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## SugarBush Farms (Apr 19, 2012)

I give 1g. For every 25 lbs or around that. I've never heard of copper overdosing in a goat with the boluses. Because they are a slow release.

I've started putting the small capsules (I use 2g. Capsules broken down from the cattle size) into the mini donuts (like the little Debbie glazed ones) and give them to them. I have one doe I can't do that with and the babies, but it makes things a lot easier.


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## HoosierShadow (Apr 20, 2010)

I used calf bolus and only dosed a few times. Usually, I broke the bolus open, just divided it up, and put it in a peanut butter sandwich, and smushed it then broke it in pieces. 3 of our does will eat it like that, er uh, inhale it lol
I'm not sure they got enough though, but they are looking better 

2 other adults wouldn't touch it. One I tried to push a couple of peanut butter balls down her throat and didn't work out real great :/ 
I ran out of copper, so I ordered the 2gm kid boluses from Santa Cruz, and received them today.
We have some 6mo kids that I want to give some to, but I plan to underdose those kids they are getting 1 capsule each for now.

On the bottle it says 1 capsule per 50lbs. so I am thinking I need to get 2 capsule's into the 100lb. does that I plan to give some to?


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## Greybird (May 14, 2014)

So glad to find this thread! It's exactly the topic I wanted.

I just gave each of my kids a 2gm bolus and I estimate that they weigh between 45-55 lbs, so after reading through this I think the dosage was correct for now. 

I had good results by mashing up a 1/4" slice of banana with some Calf Manna and letting them sample that as a treat. When they wanted MORE they got it, licked the bowl clean, and I don't think they even noticed the copper particles that I had added. 
(And then Mr Hyde ate a couple of the empty gel caps, for ... diabolical goat reasons, I guess? :laugh

My question is how often should I repeat it? I've read everything from once a year to four times a year. Our well water has a very high iron content - so much so that we've given up on ever wearing white or having stainless toilet bowls - and I've read that a surplus of iron makes goats need more copper. I'm willing to give it to them, but I don't want them to OD on it.

They appear to be generally healthy and shiny but the tail hair on three of them started looking sparse and maybe a little thin on the ends. Not quite fishtailed, but probably heading in that direction. I also noticed that the darkest one has developed quite a bit a rusty brown shading on his back legs. 
I don't know for certain that they are deficient yet, but it seemed like it's almost a guarantee with our water so I didn't want to wait until things got worse.
I'm determined to do right by these goats if at all possible.


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## sevenpineshomestead (Nov 6, 2015)

I am thrilled to discover this post. I’ve been blousing my goats since like 2009, but I always worry about overdosing.....and ....underdosing......and if they chew it or spit it out and some remains on the dirty barn floor. I have noticed, after moving to a new piece of farmland 2 years ago, that they are just simply not AS healthy....and it irritates me terribly since I do everything 110%! BUT this post is addressing ALL of my worries and wonders (that I never have time to actually research!) They can take it in yogurt or bananas or Duncan Hines whipped white frosting!!! ALL-RIGHT! Did that tonight. I’m also glad to know that to me, it sounded very idiotic that any baby under 50 lbs, got a 2 gram, and anyone over, a 4 gram! I actually took that way out when we had first moved in and were still in CRAZY-mode, and did according to the label, but thought how it made no sense, and the next time, went back to buying the cow boluses, and dosing down into multiple sized capsules. Still wondering if a doe who is 100 lbs gets 4 grams, then why would a 120 or 125 lb buck get the same dose? I’m so EXCITED!! that I can give 1 gram for 22 lbs and be so much more accurate (for all the work it is!) that I made all my boluses tonight instead of watching TV. YippEE....bolusing is fun again! NOT! Thanks to you all for sharing your experiences. :goatkiss:


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