Goat Health Care: some ruminations on goats

Gift of the Old One

2011-11-28T15:35:00.000-08:00

This is a heartwarming tale that is often passed among goat owners around the holidays:

The young couple had made their usual hurried,
pre-Christmas visit to the little farm where dwelt
their elderly parents with their small herd of
goats. The farm had been named Lone Pine Farm
because of the huge pine that topped the hill behind
the farm, and through the years it had become a
talisman to the old man and his wife, and a landmark
in the countryside.

The old folks no longer showed their goats, for the
years had taken their toll, but they sold a little milk,
and a few kids each year, and the goats were their
reason for joy in the morning and contentment at day's
end.

Crossly, as they prepared to leave, the young couple
confronted the old folks. "Why do you not at least dispose
of 'The Old One'?" She is no longer of use to you. It's been
years since you've had either kids or milk from her. You
should cut corners and save where you can. Why do you
keep her anyway?" The old man looked down as his
worn boot scuffed at the barn floor and his arm stole
defensively about the Old One's neck as he drew her to him
and rubbed her gently behind the ears. He replied softly,
"We keep her because of love. Only because of love."

Baffled and irritated, the young folks wished the old man
and his wife a Merry Christmas and headed back toward
the city as darkness stole through the valley.

So it was, that because of the leave-taking, no one noticed
the insulation smouldering on the frayed wires in the old
barn. None saw the first spark fall. None but the "Old One."

In a matter of minutes, the whole barn was ablaze and the
hungry flames were licking at the loft full of hay. With a
cry of horror and despair, the old man shouted to his wife
to call for help as he raced to the barn to save their beloved
goats. But the flames were roaring now, and the blazing
heat drove him back. He sank sobbing to the ground,
helpless before the fire's fury.

By the time the fire department arrived, only smoking,
glowing ruins were left, and the old man and his wife.
They thanked those who had come to their aid, and the
old man turned to his wife, resting her white head upon
his shoulders as he clumsily dried her tears with a frayed
red bandana. Brokenly he whispered, "We have lost much,
but God has spared our home on this eve of Christmas.
Let us, therefore, climb the hill to the old pine where we
have sought comfort in times of despair. We will look down
upon our home and give thanks that it has been spared."

And so, he took her by the hand and helped her up the
snowy hill as he brushed aside his own tears with the back
of his hand. As they stepped over the little knoll at the
crest of the hill, they looked up and gasped in amazement
at the incredible beauty before them. Seemingly, every
glorious, brilliant star in the heavens was caught up in
the glittering, snow-frosted branches of their beloved pine,
and it was aglow with heavenly candles. And poised on its
topmost bough, a crystal crescent moon glistened like
spun glass. Never had a mere mortal created a Christmas
tree such as this. Suddenly, the old man gave a cry of
wonder and incredible joy as he pulled his wife forward.
There, beneath the tree, was their Christmas gift.

Bedded down about the "Old One," close to the trunk of the
tree, was the entire herd, safe. At the first hint of smoke,
she had pushed the door ajar with her muzzle and had led
the goats through it. Slowly and with great dignity, never
looking back, she had led them up the hill, stepping daintily
through the snow. The kids were frightened and dashed
about. The skittish yearlings looked back at the crackling,
hungry flames, and tucked their tails under them as they
licked their lips and hopped like rabbits. The milkers
pressed uneasily against the "Old One" as she moved
calmly up the hill and to safety beneath the pine. And now,
she lay among them and gazed at the faces of those she
loved. Her body was brittle with years, but the golden eyes
were filled with devotion as she offered her gift--
because of love.

Only because of love.

Hot weather and goats

2011-07-29T10:14:00.000-07:00

With record-breaking heat across the US this summer, farmers have had to go to extra lengths to protect their animals. Thousands of cattle have been reported dead throughout the central US. Many goat owners are reporting that their goats have high body temperatures and symptoms of dehydration. So what can be done to keep your goats healthy in these conditions?

A goat's normal temperature can range from as low as 101.5 to as high as 105. It's good to take a goat's baseline temperature several times on normal days and on a hot day. That will give you a better idea of what is normal for that goat.

If the outdoor temperature gets too high, you can cool your goats down with a hose or sprayer. Start on the legs rather than drenching them with cold water all at once. Some people have found that their goats really like this and will line up to be cooled down. Other goats, like people, hate water and getting wet.

Always keep plenty of cool, clean drinking water available. You need to encourage drinking, to avoid dehydration, so if they don't seem to be interested in the water you can try adding some grape juice concentrate or electrolytes to make it taste better. Some goats also like a little apple cider vinegar in their water.

Make sure they have a shaded area to rest in during the heat of the day. This usually means access to the barn or a loafing area, or some large trees that get them out of the sun. Put a fan in the barn or loafing area for goats during the hottest time of the day. This will circulate the air and help them keep cooler.

Pages 4-5 of Goat Health Care tells how to evaluate your goats' health. You can check a goat for dehydration "by pinching the skin on the neck in front of the shoulder, using your thumb and forefinger. Note whether the skin snaps back to its normal position quickly or responds slowly and remains 'tented.' A slow return to normal can indicate that the goat is dehydrated."

If your goat is dehydrated, which can happen rather quickly, it is essential to get fluids into her. Getting her to drink is he best option. You can have some luck with injecting sterile water or lactated ringers solution subcutaneously, but a severely dehydrated goat (particularly one with diarrhea, too) will need an IV to survive.

I had a goat that needed an IV one time and the vet was kind enough to hook it up and show me how to change the bag. This allowed me to give her two bags of lactated ringers solution, solving the problem.

If you are home during the day, you can regularly check on your goats, but if you have to leave make sure that you leave plenty of water and have a shady area that all the goats can get to.

Q Fever found in Northwest

2011-06-24T14:55:00.000-07:00

The Seattle PI reported on an outbreak of Q fever in Washington and Montana. This disease affects both humans, goats and other animals. Symptoms, which are like flu in humans, take about 20 days to occur after exposure and are particularly a problem for people with heart disease. If the disease becomes chronic, it must be treated with antibiotics. There is a vaccine recommended for people living in Australia.

To learn more about Q fever in goats, precautions against it, and treatment, read an excerpt from Goat Health Care.

Study shows healthful effects of goat milk

2011-05-22T09:52:00.000-07:00

The research group AGR 206 at the University of Granada Department of Physiology and Institute of Nutrition and Food Technology "Jose Matáix", coordinated by professor Margarita Sánchez Campos, have proven that goat milk has nutritional characteristics beneficial to health.

The regular consumption of goat milk by individuals with iron deficiency anemia improves their recovery, since it enhances the nutritional use of iron and enhances the regeneration of hemoglobin; this means that this type of milk minimizes calcium and iron interactions. Conversely, this type of milk protects DNA stability, even in cases of iron overload caused by prolonged treatments with this mineral to treat anemia. Read rest of article here.

Floppy Kid Syndrome

2011-05-01T10:34:00.000-07:00

With goat kids still being born, this is the time of year that goat breeders may have to deal with Floppy Kid Syndrome (FKS). Here is an excerpt from page 85 of Goat Health Care that tells you how to recognize FKS and an easy, harmless treatment to reverse mild cases:

Floppy kid syndrome (FKS) is a sudden onset, in an otherwise healthy kid, of extreme weakness and inability to move the legs, associated with metabolic acidosis (increase in overall acid in the body) in which no specific organ systems are abnormally involved. No gastrointestinal or respiratory clinical signs, such as diarrhea, dehydration, or difficulty breathing, are seen. It usually occurs late in the kidding season, which is the time to be most alert to it.

FKS was first documented in 1987. Currently the cause is unknown and further research is needed. There is no difference in incidence between dam-raised and bottle-raised kids, or those given pasteurized or unpasteurized milk. It can spread rapidly among young kids. Unfortunately, in some cases, a number of kids die before the goat breeder determines what is going on.

Gastrointestinal disease is strongly suspected to be the cause for this syndrome since it is the most common cause of metabolic acidosis in goat kids. Early untreated cases, where death occurred, should be necropsied to help in determining the cause.

Affected kids are normal at birth and then develop sudden profound muscle weakness at 3 to 10 days of age. Kids are often reluctant to nurse, but can swallow. Biochemical findings include metabolic acidosis, decrease in bicarbonate, normal to increased chloride and occasional hypokalemia (low potassium). No gastrointestinal or respiratory dysfunction is apparent (i.e., diarrhea, dehydration, or breathing difficulties).

Diagnosis is made based on supportive clinical and laboratory findings. Any disease that can lead to a profoundly weak or acidotic kid, such as white muscle disease or enterotoxemia can be mistaken for this syndrome.

The best treatment depends on early detection of the problem. Less severe cases can be treated by giving the kid baking soda as soon as possible. The recommended dose is ½ tsp in cold water given orally. If a kid is unable to nurse or drink a bottle, he or she may have to be fed by stomach tube. You should see improvement within 2 hours, if the kid actually has FKS. In severe cases, intravenous fluid and bicarbonate administration will be required.

According to the literature, there is no association between treatment with antibiotics or vitamin/mineral supplements and recovery. In fact, in some cases kids recover with no treatment at all. In some cases kids may relapse or take up to a month to recover their neuromuscular function.

Goat Sales Contract

2011-04-22T10:18:00.000-07:00

"The first step to keeping goats healthy is to start with disease-free, thriving goats.... Goat buyers should ask whether the goats being purchased have been tested for any diseases and/or whether their dam has, as well. Ask about overall herd health, how the goats' health care is managed and what kinds of veterinary problems they have had. Find out the breeder's philosophy on goat care.... Ask a lot of questions."

From the Introduction, Goat Health Care

Mystic Acres Oberian Mini Dairy Goats soon to be ready for sale

An enthusiastic newbie gets her first goats, only to have them develop abscesses, that turn out to be caseous lymphadenitis (CLA), a month later. She is irate, believing that the seller knowingly took advantage of her lack of knowledge. She asks around on some goat lists and is told that the seller should take back the diseased goats and give her money back. But there is no written agreement and this possibility hadn’t even been discussed.

Depending on the circumstances, an ethical breeder would take the goats back and refund the buyer. But if the seller refused—the buyer would likely have trouble getting her money back, would be stuck with sick and contagious goats, and might even decide that the universe is aligned against her dream of raising goats.

One way to help ensure that the goats you're getting are healthy is to have a contract that protects your rights and documents what you and the seller are agreeing to. If you just buy or sell a goat with a handshake and an oral agreement, one or both of you may think you have agreed to something you haven't.

A written contract is a legally binding agreement that can help protect both parties and prevent misunderstandings. Having a contract in writing becomes even more important when you are purchasing valuable or registered animals.

Some sellers have contracts they are already using, but it may fall to a buyer to write the contract if she wants one. If a seller refuses to sign a contract, be suspicious. Ask why. If it's because they don't want to have to do the work, here is a link to a Goat Sales Contract written in Word, which you can tailor to your situation.

One caveat: A contract won't prevent you from getting attached to the goat(s) you purchased. I once sold a goat that I guaranteed to be fertile, only to learn later that s/he was a hermaphrodite. The buyer was already attached to the goat (and I didn't particularly want a hermaphrodite in my working herd), so I gave her the replacement and let her keep the original. Think about this and other possibilities when writing your contract.

Shipping Goats to another state

2011-04-16T11:28:00.000-07:00

In my opinion, buying goats locally is the best way to go. You don't have to worry about them getting severely stressed from a long ride in a vehicle or a plane, you can check them, their surroundings and their herd mates out before buying them, and if, for some reason, they have to be returned you will have an easy time doing so.

However, sometimes you may need (or just really want) to buy a goat from out-of-state. Maybe finding a buck who is not related is impossible in your area, or you want to improve your herd with a special animal or two. Learning the requirements for importing into or exporting out of any state is only a click away with the USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) Import and Export web page.This helpful site has links to regulations in all states and Guam, as well as international requirements.

How to tell if your goat is going to kid

2011-03-25T09:49:00.000-07:00

This excerpt from Goat Health Care that tells you when your goat is going to kid:

How do you know what to look for? The first thing is a softening of the tail ligaments. This is 100% effective, in my experience. If you check the doe long before she reaches this stage, you will know what you are feeling. I have been mistaken though, even recently, in a doe with very widely spaced ligaments.

Visualize a V on top of the goat’s rump stretching to the tail, with the point at the tail. These are the tail ligaments, and when they go completely mushy the doe will kid within 24 and, often, within 12 hours. This is the best sign that she is entering the first stage of labor. You can sometimes tell that this has occurred if the goat seems to have lost her ability to hold the tail up. (You can find a diagram of the ligaments at the Fiasco Farm site, as well as lots of other helpful kidding information.)

Also look at the udder. The udder will begin to develop and fill. In some does this will begin to occur months in advance, in others it happens in the last 3-4 weeks, and in other cases not until right before kidding. Checking regularly toward the end of pregnancy is helpful, if the doe is agreeable. Otherwise, just look at it closely for changes; it often become taut and shiny.

You may also begin to see some discharge and the shape of the doe’s body may change as the babies begin to move into position for birth. Watch for behavior changes, such as pawing at the ground, loss of appetite, more talking, personality changes (e.g., the goat doesn’t want you to leave), changing position frequently and looking uncomfortable, licking herself, breathing more heavily or grinding teeth.

Although some goats will isolate themselves, I have often observed fighting with other does, and actually had to separate the mother for safety. Each doe is different and may show different signs that she is going to kid soon.

According to David MacKenzie, in Goat Husbandry, as long as your can see the kid(s) as a bulge on the right side and see movement, the goat is unlikely to kid within the next 12 hours. I have not tried this method.

CAEV can be detected in seminal fluid

2011-02-17T06:51:00.000-08:00

A recent online article reported that for his PhD thesis veterinary surgeon Hugo Ramírez Álvarez showed that goat seminal fluid can be used to detect antibodies to caprine arthritis encephalitis virus (CAEV). His study had four purposes:

to characterize the genetic type of the lentivirus present in a mixed flock of sheep and goats born in Mexico
to study the virus in different organs/tissues of sheep from Castille & León (Spain) affected by a visna (OPPV) outbreak, to determine what extent the type of virus is responsible for the clinical symptoms described in this outbreak
to evaluate the effectiveness of the commercial ELISA tests (techniques for detecting the presence of antibodies, especially blood samples) and those designed in this research with short chains of proteins (peptides), and
to diagnose the infection through lentivirus based on seminal fluid antibodies.

The study did not address transmission of the disease through breeding.

Goat Garden in the Philippines

2010-12-30T06:39:00.000-08:00

A recent article in the Manila Bulletin covered a goat operation in the Philippines, Alaminos Goat Farm, that developed a salad garden as a more economical and sustainable way to feed their animals. They found that the plant indigofera helped to improve the milk yields of their goats. The plant contains almost 25% protein, is about 85% digestible and contains 2% calcium, making it a very nutritious plant.

According to the article, "research work done by Ngo van Man, Nguyen van Hao & Vuon minh Tri of the Animal Nutrition Department, University of Agriculture and Forestry in Ho Chi Min City Vietnam. . . [found that] indigofera’s plant growth rate as well as its biomass yields are much higher compared to most of the plants included in the research. In selecting the tree legumes to be studied, they chose drought resistant species that will perform on poor soils. The soil was fertilized with goat manure and organic fertilizer during the study."

According to the farmers, indigofera must be given to goats when they are young, to get them used to eating it. To be most digestible and palatable, it must be cut every 30 days and fed to them, as well.

They don't say which of the 70 or so varieties of indigofera they use, however. Some varieties of the plant are also used as a dye (indigo) and a pain-reliever.

(Goats above are in Bali, eating a plant that resembles indigofera.)

Review of Raising Goats for Dummies

2010-12-19T09:53:00.000-08:00

If are looking for a good Christmas (or anytime) present for a goat-obsessed friend, search no more. Raising Goats for Dummies is an excellent book packed with information on goats. And lest you think I am just tooting my own horn, here is a review of the book.

I wrote this book to help current and potential goat owners understand what it really takes to be a good goatkeeper, based on 12 years of trial and error learning on my own goat herd.

(Left: ARMCH Mystic Acres Hermione Granger)

Kidding Kit

2010-11-14T13:04:00.000-08:00

We are in the heart of breeding season (some of you may already be done), so it's not too early to start thinking about putting together a kidding kit. Once you have it done, you can rest easy, and you won't have to run around trying to find things when the blessed event occurs.

You'll need a container to keep everything in, but it doesn't have to be anything fancy - in fact, you can just use a box. Here are some items that you should have available at kidding:

7% iodine for dipping cords
A plastic film can or prescription bottle to put iodine in for easy dipping
A flashlight (one of those lights you wear on your head will free your hands)
Dental floss, to tie a cord if you have to cut it
Sterilized surgical scissors for cutting cords
Bulb suction
Old towels for cleaning kids
Betadine surgical scrub for washing hands
Disposable exam gloves
K-Y jelly
Feeding syringe and tube for weak kids
Empty feed bags to put under kidding goats (easy clean-up)
Empty pop bottles and Pritchard teat, if kids have to be bottle-fed

- Raising Goats for Dummies, p 215-216

Breeding Season is almost upon us

2010-08-20T09:20:00.000-07:00

The temperature dropped to 48 degrees F. here in the coast range of Oregon last night. It's this kind of unusual low temperature that tells the goats that fall is coming and it's time to get bred again. How do I know this? I just have to walk by the buck pen and that familiar smell wafts into my nostrils. The girls haven't quite figured it out, but they will soon enough.

In response to this annual event, here are some tips for dealing with your bucks, from Goat Health Care:

Deworm your buck(s) and give a supplemental Bo-Se shot
Trim hooves and do a general check of the buck's condition
Consider providing some supplemental grain and warm water to bucks during breeding season; sometimes they are so worked up they forget to eat, so they need extra energy
Some bucks will get urine scald on the muzzle, or less frequently, other parts of the body. A coating of petroleum jelly, herbal ointment or zinc oxide will help healing and provide a barrier to further urine
Some bucks will get overly aggressive with other bucks, or even the owner, during breeding season, even injuring them. Keep a close eye on them during breeding season and separate them, if necessary.

Check for goat safety hazards on your farm

2010-07-18T17:30:00.001-07:00

In the past few months I have heard of several incidents of goats breaking their front legs. In all cases, the break was caused by a play structure that had been put in the pasture for kids to play on.

Knowing that your carelessness caused your goat to get injured is hard to deal with. So take the time now to investigate your barn and pasture for safety hazards. Some common ones that can lead to broken legs are:

Wood pallets. If you are using wood pallets for your goats to jump and rest on, make sure to add a piece of plywood to the top to cover the slats.
Wooden spools. Goat owners get these from telephone companies and other businesses. Goats love to jump on them, but they have holes on the top that a kid's leg can go through, causing injury. These also need to have plywood covering the holes in the top.
Play structures. Play structures and playhouses can also be a favorite of goat kids. In a recent case, a farmer had one goat break a front leg and another break both front legs before discovering that the problem was a child's wooden cabin that had recently been added to the pasture. Before putting out one of these structures, check it out to make sure there aren't any cracks, holes or other areas where a goat's leg might get caught and fix the problems. Or consider using Little Tyke plastic play structures, which are a lot safer and can often be found at garage sales.

Raising Goats for Dummies covers making your goat area safe before you get goats, as well as most other subjects that new or veteran goat owners need to know. You can read reviews of the book at amazon.com.

Manuscript-eating Goat

2010-07-08T10:23:00.000-07:00

No, goats don't eat tin cans! But they do it the paper labels on them. I have had goats eat their certificates and ribbons from a goat show, and part of a page from a paperback book.

Follow this link for funny story that demonstrates why you need to keep your important papers in a place goats can't reach.

New Zealand Proposal to ban tethering of goats

2010-06-06T20:53:00.000-07:00

I was happy to read about a proposal by a group in New Zealand to ban the inhumane practice of tethering goats. This is an issue that needs to come to the attention of the public and to be banned throughout the world. Goats deserve to be treated humanely and not put in harm's way.

Idiot tethers goat with fatal result

2010-05-28T16:52:00.000-07:00

The killing of a tethered goat in Forest Grove, Oregon, was reported in that local paper. A judgment regarding the inhumanity of tethering goats was not mentioned. Instead, it was reported that the bear will be killed if it comes back, because of its crime of killing livestock.

Please, people, DO NOT tether your goats! Tethered goats are bait for predators--including bears, cougars, and even domestic dogs. They can become tangled, hang themselves or suffer other mishaps. This goat should not have been tethered and the bear doesn't deserve to die.

A responsible goat owner will make sure that goats have fencing and an appropriate and safe shelter, and if they live in an isolated area, a guardian animal for protection. Tethering is cruel and inhumane and so is leaving a goat without a herd to interact with. The owner should be fined for doing this in the first place.

Goat Health Care Freeby for the Day

2010-04-07T08:02:00.000-07:00

In order to provide good goat health care, it's important to track problems and routine treatments. I have created a Goat Health Record form for this purpose and just added it to my website so goat owners can download a pdf for their own use. You can use it for tracking kidding, injections, hoof trimming, or any other health-related activity and keep one for each goat in a notebook in the barn.

You can also use it to compare for patterns (e.g., what time of day or night did a doe previously kid?) or to remind yourself that a certain goat seems prone to overeating and getting bloat. I know I sometimes forget from year to year that a goat was sick, once she recovers.

Happy Goating!

Raising Goats for Dummies

2010-04-04T19:28:00.000-07:00

It's finally on store shelves and even at goathealthcare.com! Raising Goats for Dummies is a fantastic resource for goat owners. It covers all the basics for any kind of goat and also has information on milking, clicker training, cart training, clipping fiber goats and tanning goat hides.

If you are looking for just a few basic books for raising goats, we currently have a sale of both books for $40, with a $5.00 after purchase rebate for Raising Goats for Dummies if you buy it by the end of the month.

If you are thinking about getting goats, read this book first. It will teach you about all the different goats and help you decide what breed you want, as well as help you get your farm or urban setting prepared for your goats. Goat Health Care takes it a step further, with drug dosages for goats, herbal remedies, troubleshooting health problems and even dealing with the death of a goat.

Raising Goats for Dummies

2009-11-08T07:34:00.000-08:00

I have finished writing Raising Goats for Dummies and am working on the edits now! The book will be out in February. It's a great book for anyone who is new to goats. It tells you how to choose your goats, what you need to take care of them, basic ailments, goat behavior and even how to tan a hide, process fleece into yarn, milk a goat and turn it into cheese and become more self-sustaining with goats.

Between the "Dummies" book and Goat Health Care you have most all the reference materials you need for taking care of your goats. Both cover all types of goats.

Little Goat (owners) Beats Big Business

2009-10-02T13:45:00.000-07:00

Here's a story about Jamaican goat owners who had been promised forage for their goats as part of an exchange that let Alcoa mine their land. Alcoa decided to cut and run - probably figuring the little guys wouldn't/couldn't do anything about it. For their unethical actions they now will pay. Hooray! One for the little guy!

Three Tasty Treats for a Goat Garden

2009-06-21T18:43:00.000-07:00

It’s not too late to plan a garden for your goats. The goats will even help you grow it with their composted manure! Three essentials for the goat garden are pumpkins , sunflowers, and carrots.

Goats can eat the pumpkin plant and also the seeds, which are full of protein, iron, phosphorus and B vitamins. You can simply crack them open and put them around the pasture for goats. They will store well for 2-3 months for a winter supply.

Sunflowers are a favorite of goats and chickens. When the seeds are still soft, you can take the whole plant down and put it in the pasture. The goats will eat the stem, leaves and the tasty flower. Another option is to dry the seeds and add them to grain or use them as a treat. Sunflowers contain phosphorus, iron, zinc, magnesium, vitamins A,D, and E, lecithin and lots of protein. The seeds contain are also rich in vitamin E and B vitamins.

Goats love carrots. Carrots are full of vitamin A. They are also known to help control expel worms, fight acid in the stomach and aid in liver function. The juice is believed to have anti-cancer activity. Finally, carrots provide good roughage for goats.

Mother Nature Got Their Goat

2009-06-17T16:10:00.000-07:00

A news story in the Chicago Sun Times reminded me of the phrase "got your goat," which allegedly refers to someone stealing the goat friend of a racehorse, causing it to lose the race:

The quintessential old goat: Oscar, the Arlington Park racetrack goat known for his calming effect on skittish horses, died peacefully in the arms of his owner, Dee Poulos, last Thursday.

Goat gab: Oscar, who loved children and Tostitos tortilla chips with a hint of lime, was 15.

A goat note: The day before he died, Oscar visited each horse in the barn. "He'd never done anything like that before," said Poulos. "We figured out later that he was just making his farewell tour of the barn to say 'See you later, guys.'"

The Saga of Blondie

2009-06-06T13:43:00.000-07:00

I recently started watching the television show House and was astonished by the way that the doctors on the show use the “shotgun” approach to medicine. They make what they consider the most likely diagnosis and then begin to treat it, then change the diagnosis and treatment as tests come in or if the treatment is not working or is making the patient worse. I found myself in a similar situation (sans the high-tech) with my goat, Blondie, last week.

Blondie, a two year old Oberian doe who is feeding 3 two-month-old kids during the day, and me in the morning, developed “the scours” (diarrhea) and was not acting her normal self. I suspected parasites and treated her with kaolin pectin and banamine (a painkiller) and gave her some roughage—salal leaves. I examined her feces under the microscope and found no parasite eggs. She improved and was chewing her cud that afternoon.

The next morning when I got to the barn Blondie had severe diarrhea—all over the place. I feared enterotoxemia at this point (even though she was current on that vaccination), so I gave her 12 cc CDT antitoxin, more kaolin pectin, electrolytes, more roughage (adding blackberry leaves), banamine, slippery elm, and free choice baking soda. I wondered whether I had made a mistake on the fecal, so I gave her Valbazen (dewormer) just in case. By evening she had seriously slowed her eating and drinking.

I called a goat friend, Teri, who reminded me that my book Goat Health Care mentions that vitamin B is good for digestive problems. They had used it on their goats and it had really helped. So I gave a B injection.

By the next morning Blondie had no diarrhea that I could see (not pooping at all!) and had stopped eating and drinking. Nothing appealed to her. I gave her more banamine, syringed in some Red Cell, another shot of vitamin. More electrolytes. Some probiotics. Still no response.

By noon she looked thin as a rail, with sunken eyes. Her gums were grey and she was severely dehydrated. She was slightly foaming at the mouth.

Blondie is my most valuable milk goat and now she was wasting away. I contemplated subcutaneous water injections as well as syringing electrolytes, but quickly realized that that kind of torture might not even win the battle. So I call the vet and asked him to come out and put in an IV. Fortunately he was able to arrive within a half hour. (I learned that it’s best for a goat to get sick right after a holiday because they leave time open in the schedule.)

He put a catheter for an IV into Blondie’s neck. She got a liter of Ringers Lactate, with added CMPK (calcium, magnesium, phosphorus and potassium) and vitamin B. Then he syringed some probiotics with yucca into her. When the IV was done he taped up her neck and showed me how to give more fluids, if needed. I gave her the second liter that night. He said I could give some penicillin if I wanted.

Day four she had diarrhea again, but not as bad. I started her on penicillin after talking to the vet about whether it might be bacterial. I continued the probiotics and kaolin pectin. Also cut fir branches, salal, blackberry leaves and rose. On the vet’s recommendation I let her out to browse. That evening I tried some straw for roughage and she couldn’t get enough. She had become active and vocal.

The next day I finally saw a cud and the diarrhea was abating. She gradually got back to normal over the next few days, her milk production got back to where it was, and she looks healthy.

We still don’t know what triggered it. The vet believes it may have been a mushroom or something else she ate in the field. No other goats got sick.

I am almost happy to have her wake me in the morning now, yelling that she wants to be milked again (i.e., she wants some grain).

Rhubarb Almond Coffee Cake

2009-05-24T10:36:00.000-07:00

With my rhubarb plant growing like crazy after the rain and sun, and this beautiful weather that has been keeping me in the garden, I had to make a rhubarby treat. Try this!

Rhubarb Almond Coffee Cake Cake
• 1-1/2 cups packed brown sugar
• 2/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla or almond extract
• 2-1/2 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup goat milk
• 1-1/2 cups chopped rhubarb
• 1/2 cup sliced almonds

Topping
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1-1/2 tablespoon melted butter
• 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
• 1/3 cup sliced almonds

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease two 9 inch baking pans.
2. In a large bowl, beat brown sugar, oil, egg and vanilla together until smooth. Combine flour, salt and baking soda: add to sugar mixture alternately with milk. Beat until smooth. Stir in rhubarb and almonds. Pour into prepared pans.
3. In a small bowl, combine white sugar and butter or margarine. Stir in almonds. Sprinkle topping over batter.
4. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, or until done.

Now sit down, make yourself a cup of coffee or tea and enjoy!

Homemade Electrolytes

2009-05-17T09:37:00.000-07:00

If you have a goat kid that is dehydrated or needs to have a temporary alternative to milk due to scours, or an adult doe with ketosis, but have no commercial electrolyte powder available, try this homemade electrolyte solution:

1 tsp salt
3/4 tsp Lite Salt
1 tsp baking soda
4 oz corn syrup

Add warm water to make 4 pints and mix all ingredients well. Give a standard-sized dairy goat one pint, a mini dairy goat 1/2 to 3/4 pint, and a nigerian dwarf or pygmy 1/2 to 1 cup of the solution 3 or 4 times a day (every 6 hours). Have the goat drink this mixture or use a feeding tube, if necessary.

Intentional Community: Goats and People with Developmental Disabilities

2009-05-13T06:32:00.000-07:00

I found an article today about an intentional community in Israel that includes two of my favorite kinds of beings: goats and people with developmental disabilities:

People born with mental deficiencies, or those afflicted later in life, are usually handed the short end of the stick. Facilities to accommodate needs and to help one cope in society are improving, but they fail to give those in need the advantages that “normal” people just take for granted. But not at Kishorit, a new village built on the ruins of a decaying kibbutz, in Israel.

A new model for treating the mentally disabled based on the Israeli commune idea has emerged over the last decade from the ruins of a crumbling kibbutz.

Called Kishorit, the village in northern Israel has become a utopia for about 150 people with varying degrees of mental handicap, who have all found a home for life.

Some have autism, Asperger’s, or schizophrenia, but as much as they can, they are all steering their own careers, social time, family life, and destiny. They don’t focus on what disability they have, but on what they can do.

Members run and operate a TV station, and create films, they’ve built the largest organic goat farm in Israel, possibly the entire Middle East....

To read more about it, see Kishorit.

Goat Predators: Men

2009-05-04T07:36:00.000-07:00

I used to believe that the worst predators against goats were packs of dogs. I am starting to question that, as I read the news about goats every day. Reading the news has led me to believe that the worst goat predators are actually teenage boys and young men. Nearly every week I read about another goat being strangled, decapitated, shot, tortured, sexually assaulted (yes, that’s right) or killed in some other way. This appears to happen about 10 times as often as a dog attack on a goat.

Here is a small sample from the past month:

No dog attacks on goats were reported during this time.

This is how budding serial killers get their start: with defenseless animals. After they have mastered that they move on to children and then adults.

I suppose I shouldn't be surprised at this violence directed toward goats, since the US military is using LIVE goats as stand-ins for prisoners, maiming and then killing them. Great role models.

The Straight Poop: Goat Feces as an Indicator of Health

2009-05-03T13:14:00.000-07:00

One of the simplest ways to evaluate the health of a goat is to observe its feces. This can give clues to whether the goat has a digestive upset or perhaps a parasite problem.

Newborn goats’ first feces are called meconium. They are dark-colored and sticky. During a difficult birth they may be expelled inside the amniotic sac, but normally you will see them after the first feeding with colostrum and for up to a day or so after birth.

Once the kid starts drinking milk, the feces become yellow. This is normal. They will stay that color until the kid starts eating hay or grain. The kids feces should be formed, but may be slightly soft.

When a kid begins to eat hay and grain, you will start to see a change in the color of the feces to brown. As the rumen develops you will begin to see small pellets, like those of adult goats and rabbits.

Adult goat feces should be firm “berries” that are brown-colored. They may be a greenish color if the goat has a diet high in alfalfa. Goats that eat a lot of grain, such as those that are milking, can have feces that are more clumped than usual. This is not a problem.

Diarrhea, in goats, is often referred to as “scours.” Scours can be caused by a sudden change in diet—for example, lush green pasture or adding grain. They also can be caused by parasites, such as various worms or coccidia (a protozoa); bacteria, overeating, or enterotoxemia (an overgrowth of clostridium perfringens in the gut.

The first step to take when a goat develops mild diarrhea is to give it kaolin pectin or pepto bismol, or slippery elm powder (to soothe the gut) and probiotics (to ensure that it has enough good bacteria to counterbalance the bad). If that doesn’t work, take the goat’s temperature and look for other symptoms.

In kids, coccidiosis is a very common condition. It can be easily treated with Di-methox or another drug aimed at these virulent critters. An overload of coccidia can be determined by looking at the feces under a microscope to determine whether a large number of eggs are being released. The same is true for other intestinal parasites; although tapeworms can be detected by looking at the poop—they appear as white segments, much like grains of rice. These and other parasites can be treated with one of the many dewormers on the market.

Besides color and form, another indicator of sickness in a goat is blood in the feces. Old blood causes black feces and is caused by bleeding higher in the digestive tract. Bright red blood is caused by bleeding in the intestine. Blood in the feces is an indicator to call a veterinarian.

This kind of observation is one that should be done on a daily basis; like other indicators, evaluating a goat’s poop can go a long way in ensuring that a goat is healthy.

You can read more about coccidiosis and enterotoxemia in Goat Health Care.

Deworming Goats

2009-04-28T09:22:00.000-07:00

I am a volunteer expert on the subject of goats on a question website. A few days ago a goat owner asked: “Can you tell me when to worm and what to use for does who have been bred and those who have already kidded?”

My answer: Ideally, you would collect the goat berries and send them to a lab for fecal testing to see whether they even have parasites to the degree that they need to be dewormed.

If you can't do that, you can deworm the day after they kid or if they show signs of parasites. The wormer depends on your area, what there is resistance to, what the goats have gotten in the past, etc.

I often use Safeguard, which is safe for pregnant moms, inexpensive and they don't mind the taste. All wormers except Moxidectin should be given orally, even when they say injectable.

Valbazen should not be given during the first 3 months of pregnancy because it can cause birth defects. If you are using the milk you also need to be aware of the milk withdrawal times for each, too. (My book has all that info) If you decide on a dewormer and need to know about milk withdrawal, let me know and I can give you that info (my italics; note that I offered to give her the info from my book).

Sorry, this is so much information and it may be hard to decide what to give. I bought a microscope so I could do my own fecal exams, and I tend to deworm less than a lot of other people. I hope this helps!

The reader’s response: This is not much of an answer and feel it is more an ad for your book. Thanks anyway, I look further on the net.
*************
I think that the real issue the questioner had was that I suggested she only treat goats that actually have worms! What a concept. Much like the resistance to antibiotics that we are seeing today (70% of all antibiotics are used in food animals), widespread resistance to dewormers has become a real problem.

So what’s stopping people from appropriately treating their goats—is it time? Or is it cost? Or is it laziness? I think that the time spent collecting poop (you don’t even have to catch the goat), mixing solution and doing the lab work is probably a trade-off with the time spent catching goats and giving them medication.

If the issue is money, consider this: A good microscope for this work costs as little as $84; supplies may run up to $20 more. You can make solution from sugar or Epsom salts, both inexpensive and available. OR, the cost to send samples to WADDL (veterinary lab) is only about $33 for one sample and $12 (in Washington) or $18 (out of state) for additional. If you are treating all animals for parasites anyway, a group test (berries from various goats in thee herd) would cost only $33. And how much does dewormer cost?

Actual costs will vary by dewormer. For example, fenbendazole, which kills stomach, intestinal and lung-worms is about $10 for 10 doses. The hidden cost is increasing resistance by giving it repeatedly. Rather expensive Dectomax, 100 ml, is broad-spectrum and $85 or more. It is safe in pregnant animals but has a long milk withholding time. One bottle is equivalent to the cost of a microscope, and microscopes don’t have a expiration dates.

Ivomec injectable, 50 ml, should be given orally and has about 25 doses per $38 bottle, or more than the cost of a group test. Safe-Guard liquid dewormer, which many will not use due to resistance, is inexpensive at about $21 per bottle, has from 40 to 100 doses, depending on the size of the goat.

Anyone who is serious about goats should make the investment in their health: If you are concerned that they may have an overload of parasites, get them tested and treat those with problems. And remember, goats should have some parasites in a healthy digestive system. Only when they get out of control is there a problem. Trying to keep all of the worms dead all of the time is asking for trouble.

Finally, while a person could choose to drink milk from or eat a goat with a drug residue, it is a violation of federal law to sell a goat with drug residues in it, when you know that it may be food, or to sell milk that has residues. So be aware of withdrawal times.

More News on Cottonseed in Animal Feed

2009-04-26T12:43:00.000-07:00

Goat Health Care covers feeding goats to keep them healthy and includes a section entitled "Say No to Cottonseed in Goat Feed." The major reason given is that it can kill livestock guardian dogs that may happen to eat it. There are also concerns about negative effects on young goats. Now a new study shows further problems with cottonseed fed to young calves.

Dairy Herd Management magazine reports:

A University of California-Davis study recently found that feeding gossypol, a derivative of the cottonseed plant, can negatively impact embryo development in virgin heifers.The study randomly assigned 50 postpubertal heifers to one of three diets which differed in dietary free gossypol (FG) content:

Control diet: 0 mg of FG/kg of BW

Moderate diet: 17.8 mg of FG/kg of BW

High diet: 36.8 mg of FG/kg of BW

Heifers were fed treatment diets for 70 days before superovulation and embryo collection. Heifers were flushed five days after induction of ovulation.

Researchers found that the higher gossypol concentrations increased the number of low-quality embryos produced. Embryos collected from heifers in the high diet had the fewest number of live cells and had cells of smaller diameter. Higher dietary gossypol compromised in vitro development and increased the number of degenerated embryos

.
Cottonseed meal may seem like a cheap way to feed goats in these hard economic times, but if the above holds true for goats, it may actually cost more in the long run. So just say no!

Celebrate the Spring Bounty of Goat Milk and Eggs

2009-04-26T12:16:00.000-07:00

This popover recipe makes for an easy breakfast using eggs and goat milk.

POPOVERS

4 large eggs
2 cups goat milk
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Grease popover or muffin pan and dust with flour so the batter will have something to climb.

In a large bowl beat eggs slightly with a wire whisk. Add milk, flour and salt and beat until smooth. Do not over-beat.

Fill muffin cups 1/2 to 3/4 full. Bake for 20 minutes and then lower temperature to 350 degrees. Bake until they are well-browned and crusty, about 10 minutes longer. (If they are not browned, they will collapse.) Avoid opening the oven until the last 5 minutes to prevent them from deflating. Remove from oven and serve immediately.

This makes 16 regular sized popovers or 6 large ones.

From Ruminations #39, 2003

Acini de Pepe with Spinach, Feta and Garlic

2009-04-07T15:39:00.001-07:00

Goats are in milk again, and it's time to start making cheese. Feta is one of the easiest, and a favorite, so here's a great side dish that uses both feta and that early-sprouting spinach for those with a winter garden or greenhouse. Make it as garlicky as you like. Enjoy!

½ lb acini di pepe or orzo pasta (1¼ cups)

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons butter

3 cloves garlic, minced (1 tablespoon) (or to taste)

¼ teaspoon dried hot red pepper flakes

3 green onions, chopped

¾ lb fresh spinach, chopped

½ cup crumbled feta cheese

Cook pasta in an uncovered 4- to 6-quart pot of boiling salted water, stirring occasionally, until al dente. Drain well. Transfer to a bowl and keep warm, covered.

While pasta is boiling, heat oil and butter in a heavy skillet over medium high until hot but not smoking. Sauté garlic, red pepper flakes and green onions, stirring occasionally, until garlic is golden, about 2 minutes. Add spinach and cook, stirring until completely wilted.

Toss pasta with spinach mixture and feta until combined. Season with salt and pepper.

Makes 6 servings.

New Test for Scrapie in Goats

2009-04-04T10:49:00.000-07:00

Considered a "minor" species, goats have long gotten short shrift when it comes to disease research. That is gradually changing, no doubt because goat meat is catching on as a food in this country. The Agriculture News Service reports on a new test for scrapie in goats, as well as research findings regarding genetic resistance and susceptibility.

Scrapie is a transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (related to "mad cow" disease and chronic wasting disease in deer). While it is a horrible disease, and can take two to five years after infection to show clinical signs, it is not exactly a big problem in US goats. Only 21 goats had ever been diagnosed with scrapie, as of the beginning of 2009. Not exactly an epidemic, unlike caprine arthritis encephalitis virus (or CAEV, the goat form of HIV).

I really wish that USDA would put their money into researching genetic resistance of CAEV in goats. CAEV was first discovered in 1974 and in the 1980s more than 80% of goats were found to be infected. Since then, despite the failure of management programs to eradicate it in US goats, that figure has changed to between 10% and 30% infected.

You can find more on scrapie and CAEV in Goat Health Care.

Goat Stories

2009-04-02T11:24:00.000-07:00

The New York Times yesterday ran an article by Henry Alford entitled "How I Learned to Love Goat Meat." Apparently he was either unaware of a male goat in Oneshila, Namibia, that had started chasing children, or he likes eating caprine meat so much that he was willing to risk the wrath of New York goats.

According to one of the street vendors at the Namibian market, the goat went crazy after it found out that people are selling goat meat there. “I also used to sell goat meat, but now I stick to cow meat. I’ve been telling my fellow street vendors to follow suit so that we don’t make the goat angrier than it already is, but they have so far refused.”

So far, no one has called the police on the goat. Unfortunately, a meat goat that escaped the slaughterhouse in Minnesota DID have the police called on her. Despite reports that she wasn't aggressive, the cowardly St. Paul police shot her with a high-powered shotgun and then left without even cleaning up the blood. She was the 3rd goat shot by them in the past year.

Chupacabra Strikes in Low Pass!

2009-04-01T10:23:00.000-07:00

Caprine keepers in Low Pass, Burp Hollow and other communities in the Oregon coast range have long had to be concerned about cougars, coyotes, bears and domestic dogs attacking their animals. Many have livestock guardian dogs, donkeys or llamas to protect the animals; others just make sure the goats are locked up safely each night.

On Mystic Acres Farm last night the livestock guardian dog, Marley, was chained up because he had started jumping fences. This left him in a place where he could warn off predators in the lower barn, but he no longer had access to the upper barn, where eight new goat kids, their mothers and two yearlings live.

When owner Cheryl Smith went to the upper barn on the morning of April 1, she was confronted by a horrible sight. Several of the goats were lying in the barn, looking almost as flat as a pancake. Their gums and eyes were completely white and their bodies were much lighter than they had been the night before. Having read about the Chupacabra previously, she took one of the goats to Oregon State University College of Veterinary Medicine, where a pathologist confirmed her suspicions: All of the blood had been sucked from the goats!

Whether it had been lurking previously, or just reached the area last night is unknown, but for the first time in Oregon history a Chupacabra is believed to have attacked goats.

Chupacabras are normally found in Mexico, the southwest US or Puerto Rico and survive by biting the neck and the sucking the blood from livestock, particularly goats. The Chupacabra can fly or leap very high. It also is very smart and has the ability to become undetectable. Descriptions of the Chupacabra vary widely with reports that it is either hairless or short-haired, or has coarse black hair; that it looks like a cross between a coyote and a pit bull, or it looks half-human-half vampire beast, or it looks like a cross between a “Grey” extraterrestrial and a dinosaur. The size of this one was estimate to be small because of the small fang-marks and the lack of footprints.

Smith says that she will not be chaining her dog up at night again. She wants to get word out in the community to be on the lookout for this horrid creature. Her final words of advice for those without guardian animals is: Lock your goats up at night!

Happy April 1^st!

CAEV Test with Milk Sample

2009-03-29T11:32:00.000-07:00

A study published in the February 2009 issue of Small Ruminant Research compared the ELISA method of diagnosing caprine arthritis encephalitis virus (CAEV) using samples of milk whey and the usual blood samples. Samples of each were taken from 66 lactating dairy goats whose infection status for CAEV was already known. All of the goats whose blood samples tested positive for CAEV also had positive tests using the milk samples; the same was true for those with negative tests.

The researchers concluded that using ELISA on milk whey samples is an appropriate method for diagnosing CAEV, and it may be even better because the test is non-invasive (no need to draw blood) and may be less expensive.

Any goat keeper can learn to draw blood from his or her goats (you can find detailed instructions in Goat Health Care), but for those who are milking their goats, wouldn't it be nice to just save a sample and send it in to the lab for annual testing?

Urban Goats

2009-03-27T15:32:00.000-07:00

It may be the economy, but something is driving more and more cities to change their codes to allow chickens and (small, female) goats in people's backyards. Seattle has done so, and now some people in Forest Grove (outside of Portland) are trying to get a similar change.

According to the Oregonian, Stephanie Vasquez has presented the mayor with a city policy that would allow people to get permits to raise chickens, domesticated fowl (like ducks) and small goats if they live on lots that meet minimum size and meet other requirements. She points out numerous benefits including eggs and milk, lawn mowing and fertilizer production, among others.

Hooray for urban farming! The only other benefit she forgot to mention, of course, is that kids love kids!

Baby Goat Dies

2009-03-23T19:31:00.000-07:00

We lost the kid in the prior picture this morning. I found her with her mother about 7:00 this morning standing all hunched up, with a low temperature and thick, clear mucus coming out of her mouth. I brought her in the house, warmed her and treated her for floppy kid syndrome, pneumonia and pain, but she died but 8:00. I buried her out in the goat cemetery behind the property.

She died of aspiration pneumonia caused by her breech birth. Because she didn't have trouble getting started breathing, I didn't realize that anything was wrong. Irene Ramsay of New Zealand tells me that all breech kids should be swung after birth to get any excess amniotic fluid out of their lungs, just in case they aspirate. This is particularly important when there is a problem with the birth, as there was in this case.

Others on the WSU goat list shared that they had also experienced this problem, and usually lost the kids. Pat Stewart, the current publisher of Ruminations magazine tells me that they call this condition in dogs "water pups." It is usually fatal in a short time; in this case the baby died after 44 hours.

New Kids at Mystic Acres

2009-03-21T14:09:00.000-07:00

When I got home late last night from the neighborhood get-together, I checked my goat, Celtic Kid, to make sure she wasn’t ready to kid. (Her due date was March 23rd and she was as big as a house.) Her ligaments were softened – a sure sign of kidding in the next 24 hours, so I put her in the kidding pen that we had prepared with fresh straw. I turned on the baby monitor and went to bed.

Celtie is a noisy goat in labor and prefers me there, if possible. That means that I didn’t sleep, but instead tossed and turned as I listened to her on the monitor. At 6:00 am I finally gave up the pretense of sleep and set up the surveillance camera and television. That began about 6 hours of walking back and forth to the barn, doing chores, spending time with Celtie, and getting all the preparations (iodine, towels, lubricant, etc.).

Around 10:00 am I started thinking that something wasn’t right. Celtie seemed to be in hard labor, but she kept getting up and moving around. Nothing was coming. By 11:00 I took it seriously and by 11:30 she was willing to let me examine her. This was not an easy task. A kid was still in her uterus, coming tail first and stuck. I had to pull down and straighten the kid’s legs for delivery, which was painful to Celtie. But she was relieved when the baby (a doe) finally came out.

Not long after she started trying to push out another kid, only to have one large leg hanging out and not moving any farther. When I checked on the kid, I found the other leg in the correct position, but a GIANT head stuck. I knew I couldn’t just pull him out without damage to one or the other of them. Then I remembered reading about posterior human babies and how they rotate when they come out, so I gently rotated the legs a little bit and pulled a bit while she pushed. The monster finally came out – a beautiful, red and black buck – Mystic Acres new herdsire! He is just what I had hoped for.

The third kid (I had expected four or five) was another small girl who came out under Celtie’s power, wrapped like a little package in the amniotic sac.

Babies all got their colostrum and Celtie is doing well with one kid (other two being hand-raised on goat milk). Because of the intervention, I gave her a uterine infusion of 5 ml LA-200 and 15 ml sterile water, as recommended in the medication section of Goat Health Care.

And now it’s time for me to take a nap!

Don't Make Dairy Goats Wear Eartags (or Stop NAIS)

2009-03-18T19:00:00.000-07:00

If you are not aware of the National Animal Identification System (NAIS), it’s time to learn about it so you can join the chorus to save small farms (and dairy goats.) A hearing on it today makes it appear more likely that it will become a mandatory program, harming farmers, spending unnecessary US dollars and enriching the coffers of Digital Angel, a maker of RFID tags. The large dairy organizations, as well as the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA), are in support of the program. And why not? They can afford a system for animal tracking that will have a disproportionate financial impact on small farmers.

I am wondering whether we small farmer opponents may strategically have missed the boat, however. (That’s assuming that we had any chance against the big boys.) Rather than focusing our comments on and objections to the program as a whole, perhaps we should instead have made a concerted effort to get our legislators to write in an exemption for small farms (we can haggle over how that is defined).

This one-size-fits-all program that is being pushed through may end up having the opposite effect of what its proponents claim it will have: When those with only a few animals go underground, feeling that their rights are being violated and fearing that the government may kill the stock of their animals and their neighbors’, we will have even less of a tracking system than we do now.

One thing is for sure: The attorneys are guaranteed to stay in business if this passes. More than one lawsuit will be spawned as a result of its overreaching impact and violation of rights.

For a discussion of today’s testimony and links to the complete testimony, see La Vida Locavore.

Goat Stanchion - An Essential Piece of Equipment

2009-03-17T14:47:00.000-07:00

Whether you have two goats or 20, a stanchion is one of the best pieces of equipment you can buy. A stanchion is a device that locks the head of a goat in place so that you can milk it or perform routine care such as hoof trimming, injections or clipping. Ideally it is attached to a stand so that the goat is elevated, making such work easier, and have an attached container for feeding grain or other food to distract the goat.

Often called a milk stand, this stand with stanchion can be made from wood, PVC or metal. Milk stands can be purchased from a goat supply company or used (on rare occasion), or they can be homemade. Free-standing stanchions can also be purchased and used to make a milk stand. If you are handy, making one is the best way to go and directions are available on the Internet.

Goat keepers have made milk stands in a variety of ways. They can be made to break down and be light enough to make travel to a goat show or fair easy. They can incorporate storage, they can be different heights or even adjustable for the various sizes of goats.

Goats soon learn to eagerly jump onto the stand—not because they like being there, but because they want the food that is being offered. Even recalcitrant goats can be trained to get on the stand if taken to it and allowed to eat quietly a few times.

To see an example of a nice stanchion, made with pallets and scrap wood, click here.

New Goat Health Care Book

2009-03-15T12:10:00.000-07:00

This blog will be an adjunct to Goat Health Care, my new book on keeping goats healthy. I have raised miniature dairy goats in the coast range of Oregon for more than 10 years, and I learn something new about goats and goat care at least every week. My book is the one that I wished I had had when I first got into goats.

I plan to use this venue to share health care news related to goats, as well as some of my personal goat care experience, with the intent of educating and entertaining the reader.