AboutGoatlady Expertise Specializing in New Goat Owner understanding of goat physiology, goat anatomy, goat care and herd management. *I am not a veterinarian, any advice and information should be verified by your veterinarian before administering to your goats.
(! During times of severe weather in the Midwest, I may experience a delay in internet service due to the interference of the satellite reception - but will answer your questions as soon as service is restored. !)
Note: Keep in mind, the goat expert is volunteering her time to help other goat owners, she also runs her farm with her own herd of 100 goats and may not be at her computer at all hours. Questions are answered as soon as she can possibly read and answer them, usually within 24 hours.
Experience 18 years experience of raising goats and herd management. Active hands on experience with goat herd and research with various Caprine University Research and Extension Centers nationwide. 15 years dedicated to helping other goat breeders/owners with goat anatomy, goat disease and goat health care issues via phone, published goat care articles and internet interaction. The information I have to offer is not only from personal experience and years of research updated often as new information is made available to me, but supported by many Veterinary Research colleges and all medications and information I have to offer on how the medications work and what dosages "I" use, is information I have acquired by discussing directly with the company's veterinarians and staff research experts.
Organizations 5 year active member of International Veterinary Information Service
Publications United Caprine News, Homesteaders Magazine, Columnist for Goat Magazine, Owner and Author of GoatPedia™
Education/Credentials Graduate Programs in Medicine, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Stanford University
Question QUESTION: i have a pygmy who just had 2 babies 5 days ago, when should i worm the mother and when is the best time to worm the babies. i generally use worm pellets but im new at this also so if there is a better choice just tell me. the mom has dropped weight a bit, ive been feeding about 1 1/2 cup grain 2x day, how is this/
ANSWER: *HI Julie,
I always tell people to use this rule of thumb- 1.Deworm the day after kidding always- because the hormones in the doe who just kids sends signals to the parasite larvae sitting dormant in the body to multiply and they do in the hundreds of thousands literally.
This is called Periparturient rise or postparturient rise. It is associated with the changes in the circulating levels of the hormone prolactin which occur in the goat during pregnancy and a decrease in immunoglσbulin secreted at the gut mucosal surface due to the transfer of immunoglobulin in the plasma to the mammary epithelium followed by it's secretion in milk.
* 1.Deworm the day after kidding always
* 2.Deworm the day after you bring a new goat home
* 3.Deworm after you have castrated, disbudded or an injury has occurred
* 4. Deworm any goat during a stressful situation- illness, moving kids away from moms, putting bucklings into a new pen, etc. Stress allows parasites to multiply in huge numbers in the body.
* 5. Deworm the entire herd at the beginning of Spring and at the beginning of Fall using the 10dayx10dayx10day method and then as needed per goat between these scheduled treatments.
using an effective dewormer such as Ivomec PLUS injectable dewormer for cattle.
Ivomec PLUS and Valbazen are my choices of anthelmintics (dewormers) - both get liver fluke as well as the nasty stomach worms that cause anemia. Valbazen is not safe for pregnant does or those who "may" be pregnant as it causes birth abnormalities. But Valbazen is a great dewormer for kids because they are more likely to have tapeworms which the Ivomec or Ivomec Plus does not kill. And Valbazen is great for open (not pregnant) does and wethers and bucks.
All does drop a bit of weight after kidding but deworming is of the utmost importance after kidding. The pelleted dewormers are not very effective.
goatlady
Goat-Link.com
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: so its ok to wait to worm babies after they are weaned or no? also what type of grain and when should it be introduced to them
Answer *HI Julie,
When baby goats are between 3-6 weeks old check them for worms, watch their weight, coat slickness, and inner eyelid membrane color. I use Valbazen for the kids (1cc/10lbs orally) because it also kills tapeworms which kids are more apt to get than adults. http://goat-link.com/content/view/201/143/
If a kid begins to look thin, coat becomes shaggy looking or seems to stop growing well and or the inner eyelid membranes are light pink, .....deworm. Also watch for the pudding type poop that has a very strong odor which is a sign of coccidiosis. http://goat-link.com/content/view/145/155/
Weanling kids are most apt to get cocci as well since this is a stressful time in their lives. Deworming anytime before a month old will do little good but start checking them at a month to 6 weeks old. Wouldn't hurt to get fecals done on the kids at this age so you know how they are doing .
Calf Manna (found at most feed stores) is great for kids as it is full of nutrition - a tsp of this added to a couple TBSP of sweet feed 14% grain is plenty for kids who are a couple months old. Do not over do the calf manna, just a tsp for you g kids and about a TBSP for older kids, (Even adults don't need more than 1/4cup daily)
Feeding Baby Goats Grain or Goat Feed
Remember that concentrated feeds such as sweet feed, COB, goat chow, or any pelleted concentrated feed is difficult for a baby goat to digest because the rumen is not yet fully developed and will not be fully functional for the first 6 months of life. If you must feed grain or sweet feed below is a chart to use as reference but must be adjusted accordingly. If you baby goats begin to have scours - cut back. Personally I feed my baby goats their bottles or allow them to be dam raised until weaned which is usually around 4-6 months of age and they are offered and eat fresh high quality hay, which they will begin to pick and chew sometimes as early as a few days old. This picking at and chewing the hay begins to develop the rumen for future digestion. Adding too much sweet feed or concentrated feed such as pellets or goat chow can throw a baby goat into digestive upset.
goatlady
Goat-Link.com
Goat WEIGHT (in lbs) / GRAIN (or goat feed)
5 / 1/2 oz
7 / 1oz
10 / 2 oz
15 / 2 oz
20 / 3 oz
25 / 3 oz
30 / 4 oz
40 / 5 oz
50 / 6 oz
