# HELP MY GOATS KEEP DYING!



## Mary Ellen Crase (Mar 16, 2018)

OK so after 2 weeks of loosing 4 goats I am feeling extremely frustrated!!

2 weeks ago my 2 year old Alpine buck suddenly got super skinny (he is naturally skinny though too so i didn't notice) they had left over feed every day so I know it wasnt that he starved and he died the next morning out of no where ...

3 days later one of my first time mama's gave birth 4 weeks early and the baby never had a chance... not to mention mama was dry as a bone and wasn't producing milk

5 days later we lost ANOTHER buckling that was just under a year old we played with him the night before and he was JUST FINE.. normal spunky attitude.. and then BAM the next morning DEAD!!

THEN ANOTHER mama had her baby 3 weeks early ... again DRY as a bone.. I gave the baby and mama a shot of boSe baby was limp and wouldn't stand and mama wasn't producing ANY milk.. so I milked 3 Oz of colostrum from another mama (at the suggestion of the vet) ... the baby drank it just fine.. baby never stood even after the bose and the colostrum... she refused to suck or drink anything else ...
baby survived 20 hours ... Ughhhhhh

My goats are fed alfalfa grass mix.
I use Purina goat mineral along with a Selenium / salt block (in the girl's pen) the boys have a normal salt/ mineral block.
I give my prego/ milking mama's 2 cups of sweet grain/corn daily.
I give my goats 2 ml's of CLD every 6 months. 

the vet is just like "it happens" ... I have NEVER lost this many goats so close to each other! 

I don't know what the heck is going on !! HELP ???


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## Robinsonfarm (Jul 17, 2015)

Have you had necropsies done on any of them? Losing that many goats in such a short time I would send at least one off to be tested. 
Run fecals on the others to test for cocidia and parasites. Multiple does having kids early is a sign of a deficiency or disease in the herd.
What has the weather been like in your area?


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## lottsagoats1 (Apr 12, 2014)

I'd have the herd, or at least the does and breeding bucks, cultured for infections.


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## catharina (Mar 17, 2016)

So very sorry to hear all of that! I'm sure you feel totally traumatized! Most people here don't give a salt block because then they don't eat as much of their minerals, but it doesn't seem like that alone would cause all of this. Have you used a FAMACHA chart to check for anemia? I do agree on having fecal tests & cultures. Good luck & let us know what happens!


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

Did you get a temp on any of them when they were first acting off?
Getting a temp is the first thing to do, to know how to treat.

Being skinny can be worms or cocci or both. 
A fecal would determine that, if you have a goat with weight loss. 
With cocci they do not always show scouring signs.

Left over feed is always a sign of illness, goats live to eat, and should be checked into, with a temp first. 
It could be pneumonia, infection, to an upset rumen.

No goat is naturally skinny, that means they are ill in some way. 
Cocci can do that, when left untreated, they cannot absorb any good nutrients anymore there after. The damage is done. 

Aborting doe may of had an aborting disease or was hit super hard.
4 weeks is the time frame of loss for chlamydia. 

I assume you have a worm and/or coocci issue going on. 
Can you get a fecal on the rest of your goats or the worse one?

With more than 1 doe, kidding early, I suspect chlamydia.  
It was way too early for the kid to survive.

Sometimes minerals can play a role in kidding issues too. The incorrect one or the goat not eating enough of it.

Alfalfa grass mix is good.
Purina goat mineral isn't the best.
It has mostly salt.
Blocks are hard for goats to get what they need out of it.

Be careful not to give too much grain the last month of pregnancy, the kids will grow too much within.

Milking mama's, it is OK to give more grain, but do it slowly. 
Cob is not the best for goats long term.

Not sure what CLD is?

Your vet isn't honest with you telling you all that, happens.
There is cause.


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

You really need a necropsy done. Sorry you lost so many.


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## SalteyLove (Jun 18, 2011)

I'm so sorry for your losses. 

What is CLD?

Could you try to post some photos of your goat herd to see if we can identify any issues visually (like mineral deficiencies).

I would go through each remaining goat, get a rectal temperature, check FAMACHA score, and collect a fecal sample. Send you fecal samples off to Midamerica Agricultural Research. 
I would also give each goat an injection of Fortified B-Complex for good measure as a booster while you figure this out.


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## mariarose (Oct 23, 2014)

Welcome to TGS. I hope you stick around. Lots here to read and learn.


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## fivemoremiles (Jan 19, 2010)

I have a rule If one goat dies it just happens. two goats ya got a problem and three goats die panic.
first you need a vet that knows goats
take any goat that is displaying signs similar to the ones that have died to the vet before they die so a blood work can be done. 
from your description we just don't have enough information to give much help.
from what you describe the goat that was fine in the night and dead in the morning i would suspect pneumonia.
from the aborts i would suspect endoscopic abortions. or poisons plants in the hay 
from the skinny doe i would suspect a liver aliment like liver flukes poisonous plants----any scours ? do your goats have a swamp in there pasture?


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## mariarose (Oct 23, 2014)

fivemoremiles said:


> you need a vet that knows goats


This may be the only vet option she has. My vets don't really know goats. But I know goats so between us we usually muddle through. We don't know if the vet actually saw them, or if he/she is trying to give long distance help like we are being asked for, we don't know if this vet has any kind of relationship with the member, or if he/she was called out of the blue with info like we got. I can say to my vet, "That does not sound right because...." and sometimes I get a different answer. Also, I know the pertinent information to give to the vet, like temps.


fivemoremiles said:


> any goat that is displaying signs similar to the ones that have died


That's the trouble, she hasn't seen the signs, she does not know what to look for. For her, all of it is coming out of the blue, so any and all of them are in danger, from what she can tell. And we can't tell her different, because we can't see her animal's behaviour. Since she is our eyes, we are blind.


fivemoremiles said:


> from your description we just don't have enough information to give much help.


Yep.

You've brought up some good possibilities. I suspect chlamydia, and the doeling that got colostrum may not have been warm enough to digest it. If she was too cold, it would have just sat there and rotted. Or she may have aspirated the milk, Or....

We don't know what the poster knows, or does not know, and we don't know the actual relationship with the vet or what he or she was also not told.

There are bad vets, I know. But this is too sketchy for me to condemn him/her out of hand.


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## Frosty1 (Jul 12, 2011)

I would definitely look into some disease or deficiency, especially as regards the mamas. A deficiency would also explain both kids dying seemingly out of the blue.

I wonder if the buck’s death is unrelated, though. My Nubian buck is “naturally skinny” in that he is particularly susceptible to coccidiosis. Whenever he started looking slim, I knew it was time to treat — it could be that yours was the same way, as coccidiosis does not have to present with scours.

So sorry you’ve lost so many!! It is heartbreaking every time.


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

How are things?


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