# Minor Mastitis?



## Devin (Feb 6, 2011)

Bella got really chapped teats, kinda crusty, I think from a combo of weird up and down cold/warm temps and nursing babies. We've been treating the chapped part, but her udder is getting hot to touch. I've not delt with mastitis before, but I think she is developing it. What should I treat her with? Penicillin, Today or something else? I THINK I can get Today, but I KNOW I can get PenG.


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## Devin (Feb 6, 2011)

Babies are still on her, so it needs to be safe for them. Are both PenG and Today safe?


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## liz (Oct 5, 2007)

If you can diagnose without treating first it would be better.... A California Mastitis Test is inexpensive enough to be an invaluable neccesity. 
How long has she been fresh?
Are you milking her or just leaving kids 24/7 ?

She may just have a congested udder, if you are milking her try using a hot compress on her udder before you start and then massage her with a bit of peppermint oil mixed with bag balm, also...if there are any clots in her milk or if it comes from her teat in strings then she has mastitis.
Today is best used and left in the affected half for 10-12 hours...if her kids are on her it's best to tape that treated teat well so they can't suck the med out.


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## Devin (Feb 6, 2011)

Her babies are 4 weeks old. I am not milking at the moment becasue I didn't want to commit to it (having a baby in a few weeks)

Her udder is hot, I squirted just a little from each teat and it looked fine . . .

I don't want permanent damage by waiting to long to treat. the teats were pretty chapped/cracked.


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## Devin (Feb 6, 2011)

just went out and milked out just a little but. It looks fairly normal. No clots, no blood, no stingy stuff. *It does have a filmy look on the top.*

She also didn't give me much at all! the bucklings keep her fairly well empty, but her udder looks like I should have been able to get a couple cups out anyway, and I couldn't.


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## liz (Oct 5, 2007)

Milk what you can from her, get her temp too though there are certain types of mastitis that aren't systematic, it stays within the udder.

If you can get the help, I would try the hot compress and massage as you strip her out.... Chewable Vitamin C tabs are good to give too, it helps the immune system... I was giving my doe 1500 mgs a day as well as infusing her with Today...her kids were 7 weeks old though, I was also told to do Oxytetracycline injections along with the Today but I didn't and she cleared up fine. Her udder wasn't hot though...just hard and I was getting massive blood/milk clots from her right half...looked like chicken liver. 

I would start with getting her temp, Vit C and the Oxytet and see if you can get her kids on a bottle in the case that you'll need to infuse with Today.

**posted the same time**

Filmy like oily? I only had that happen after the Today infusions due to the med carrier being peanut oil......

If she feels full but not giving much it's because her mammary glands are on constant production, those boys are taking it as fast as she's making it leaving her glands swollen.... When does are raising their kids, the udder doesn't get full, causing back pressure on the glands to tell them to stop producing.
Try the compress, I use a dish towel in a pail of water thats hot to touch but not so hot that you can't leave your hands in it.


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## Devin (Feb 6, 2011)

Udder is not hard, and honestly it wasn't as hot just now as it was earlier, though warmer than it should be. I really don't know what to think . . . should I go ahead and treat her?


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## liz (Oct 5, 2007)

If it's possible, can you separate her boys from her for 2-3 hours? Just enough time to be able to get more than a few squirts.... I'm one that really hates to treat for anything without knowing for sure it needs to be treated. In my does case, only one side was affected and it was easy enough to infuse the Today and tape her up because the boys shared the un affected teat for the 3 infusions.

I have been where you are with being unsure as to what to do... the same doe I treated last year also had the same symptoms with the blood clots in 2011... I saw another doe hit her and thought that was the cause, I didn't treat her just kept her milked out and used the compresses and she was back to normal for the rest of her lactation. I had the CMT on order after that and with last years freshening, it was mastitis so I treated her and so far (knock on wood) she's almost 10 weeks fresh and all has been good.


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## Devin (Feb 6, 2011)

Sorry, just saw the rest of your post  so try just hot compresses? You don't think there is an issue yet? I'd say her udder seems 1/3 full, like there should be something in there but I couldn't get it. but that is possibly just the tissues being swollen from constant production?? they do eat about every 5 minutes lol! and they are fairly rough . . . she only lets them eat about 10 seconds at a time.


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## Devin (Feb 6, 2011)

Yes, I can seperate her out for a few hours. We've been letting her eat for an hour in the yard while the udder balm soaks in anyway. Everyone does fine. They attack her as soon as she enters the gate, but she seems willing for that to happen as she comes back all on her own lol!


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## liz (Oct 5, 2007)

At this point with 2 hungry, growing bucklings I'd say that her mammary glands are in over drive....boys can be rough on the udder too. Separate them and check her milk after that, the compress helps relieve swelling, as you massage her udder, you'll be able to notice if there are hard knots within it, very distinguishable too...if she has a hard knot then it could be a blocked up duct that can turn to mastitis.


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## Devin (Feb 6, 2011)

Thanks Liz, I will follow your advice and do those things and watch her closely. Little boys sure are rough, She is a 140-150 pound doe and sometimes they have her rear bouncing off the ground! Just kinda blows my mind that they can do that!


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## liz (Oct 5, 2007)

She's a big girl! And I bet that those boys at 3 weeks are getting pretty hefty themselves... my ND average a gain of 2lbs a week so I can only imagine what a standard breed's rate of gain is.
You should see my ND doe who goes 65lbs get her rear raised by two 22lb boys and a 18lb girl as they fought over who got the teat first! Her boys left and now she just deals with her 10 week old girl  No rear raising from her!


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## Devin (Feb 6, 2011)

Oh that poor thing lol! My goodness! Those boys! I sure enjoy my little guys, though, I call them my therapy. Who needs a therapist when those bouncing babies are there to make any day brighter lol!


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## mjs500doo (Nov 24, 2012)

I'd say babies are beating her up. If I ran across this issue, I would pull kids completely off of her for at least 8 hours a night. Doesn't sound like mastitis at all to me, and no need treating her if no need.


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## elchivito (Apr 18, 2010)

Time to start separating her overnight. She needs a break and will appreciate it. Warm pack her for a bit and put some Bag Balm on her. Mommas often favor their bucklings and will let them get away with murder. Milk her out in the morning before you give the boys back to her. It will encourage them to pay more attention to hay.


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## Devin (Feb 6, 2011)

she is doing great, we've been seperating her for 2 and 3 hr intervals a couple times a day to allow the bag balm to soak in and also let her out to graze, and allow the 2 new bottle babies (not her boys) play time in the pen without big mean momma to contend with . The heat has left her udder and she feels normal, and the bag balm is doing its job and she is healing. I feel much better about her now, and am not concerned about mastitis any longer. I think the heat was as Liz suggested, inflamed tissue from the constant demand without a break. On a good note, they are definately keeping her production up lol! They will start to be seperated at night fairly soon. I want good growth on them, all 3 of my bottle babies from last year did not grow as much as I want to see (not tiny, but not where I want them). I have 2 bottle baby nubians (and 2 boers) and 2 dam raised nubians this year. I am curious how they all will compare. So far I am really liking letting her be the parent, they are thick and heavy and SO HEALTHY! Not one worry about the babies this year so far.


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## Devin (Feb 6, 2011)

First night of seperation . . . so far so good. As long as all the lights outside are out and they don't see us then they are all quiet. 

Bella's teats are looking SO MUCH BETTER! Her udder did seem on the warm side tonight, but it went from the 40's to 80 today in temps so I think that had something to do with it. 

Can't wait to see how much she is giving in the morning.


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## Devin (Feb 6, 2011)

SO HAPPY with her udder on a 10 hr fill! I took a quart off without even trying, BARELY made a difference in her udder, but I wanted to let her babies have the majority so stopped there. Last year I got about a quart each milking (half gallon a day). I think we will be getting at least a gallon this year! She is a Nubian, and has great milk, it tastes so creamy and sweet. So happy about getting a look at what she will provide. 

Teats were nice and soft today  I think we have got the chapped/cracked issue under control!


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## mjs500doo (Nov 24, 2012)

Wonderful to hear!! Love the updates!!


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## Devin (Feb 6, 2011)

She has had a great looking udder every morning, nice and full, and she really isn't even getting that much food right now. only 3 cups of grain a day, hay and 1 hr of grazing on good days . . . We got some alfalfa for her and will slowly add that to her diet, I am curious if it will up her production even more or not . . .


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## mjs500doo (Nov 24, 2012)

It should up it slightly. Better quality hay always helps. Extra grains, higher protein.


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