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Medication Discussion |
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Medication Discussion |
Suzanne W. Gasparotto
ONION CREEK RANCH
13400 Old San Antonio Rd.
Buda, Tx 78610
phone/fax 512/282-6073
This article will cover a variety of subjects which keep coming up, making it clear to this
writer that goat producers lack essential information on the topics.
Cydectin - A Texas breeder has reported that she has lost five kids and two older does and
expects to lose at least three more goats to what she believes is Cydectin poisoning. She
used Cydectin in pour-on form according to label directions. The goats which she had
necropsied showed nerve damage. Prior to death, the kids were walking with high and loose
steps, one was nearly blind, and the others had weak hindquarters and quivered all over
their entire bodies. Two bucks who survived completely lost all their body hair, and when it
grew back, the skin was scabby and bumpy.
While conclusive proof that Cydectin was the complete cause of this problem is not yet
available, this producer fully believes it is. And she is not the only person reporting health
problems with goats after using Cydectin. This points out the importance of not using medications off-label. Cydectin is not approved
for use on goats, therefore the manufacturer has no liability whatsoever when a producer
uses it off-label.
Many medications that producers have to use on goats are not approved for goats.
However, some can be used effectively and appropriately if they are used under veterinary
supervision. This is absolutely critical. Do not use medications off-label or extra-label on
goats on an experimental basis.
Valbazen - This de-wormer should never be used on pregnant does. It can cause abortions
at certain points in the preganancy. Don't take chances; don't use it on pregnant does.
LA 200 (or any equivalent oxytetracycline product) - Do not use these products on
pregnant does or on kids under six and preferably under 12 months old. LA 200 can cause
abortions. Some people don't believe that, so they also need to know that LA 200 (or
equivalent) interferes with proper teeth and bone formation, both in utero and while the kid
is growing. Pediatricians do not give oxytetracycline to human kids for the same reasons.
Copper, Selenium, and other essential minerals - Goats must have copper in trace amounts
in their diets. For example, copper deficency cause abortions. Much of the United States is
selenium deficient; find out if your area has this problem and give your goats Bo-Se or
other selenium additives, as suggested by your vet or feed company.
Feed companies hire nutritionists and other scientists who study feed requirements of the
species for which they manufacture feed. Few of us are smarter than these researchers.
Unless you absolutely have no other alternative, don't become a feed mixer. Chances are,
they know more than you do, particularly since nutritional requirements vary from region to
region.
Loose minerals work better with goats than mineral blocks. Goats tend to chew rather than
lick mineral blocks. This is hard on their teeth. And don't worry if they eat it sometimes and
ignore it at other times. Their bodies know what they need. Leave the loose minerals out,
free choice, and even week-old babies will eat them. Goats on browse tend to eat more
loose minerals than pen-fed goats. Apparently the sack feed has adequate mineral mixture in
it.
Milk Fever - This is a misleading term, because "fever" is not involved and also because
cattle people sometimes call mastitis by this name.
In goats, milk fever is hypocalcemia . . . inadequate absorption of calcium immediately
prior to kidding. Symptoms include sudden loss of appetite, mild bloat or constipation,
unsteady gait, and low body temperature. Intravenous administration of calcium is the
treatment of choice in severe cases. Producers can try CMPK oral drench or MFO Milk
Fever Oral drench; these products contain calcium, magnesium, phosphorus and
potassium in controlled dosage and are available through co-ops, feed stores, and mail order
houses such as Valley Vet or Caprine Supply.
The symptoms are so general that they can be mistaken for ruminal acidosis or even
pregnancy toxemia. Do not treat these problems by feeding alfalfa hay to does immediately
prior to kidding. It is high in calcium, but it will cause further problems.
Pregnancy Toxemia & Ketosis - These two conditions cause similar problems, but they
occur at different times in relation to kidding date.
Pregnancy Toxemia generally occurs within the two-week time frame immediately prior to
kidding. Too much protein and not enough roughage causes pregnancy toxemia. When a
doe is within two weeks of kidding, her body is full of kids, thereby reducing the size of her
rumen. If she is fed a very high-protein diet, she does not have enough room left to
accomodate the roughage she needs to stimulate her rumen. Goats must have roughage to
induce rumen activity or they cannot digest their food.
Ketosis usually occurs immediately after kidding and results from inadequate protein in the
dam's diet. When her body begins to draw upon its own protein reserves to grow her babies
inside her, ketones are produced which begin to kill her.
Some producers practice a method of feeding called flushing for several weeks prior to
kidding. They feed the does extra rations of products such as shell corn to "fatten" them up
a bit, thinking that this produces multiple births. Research indicates that the number of
fetuses is determined much earlier , at time of conception. Flushing is really correctly done
before does are bred to bring them into better condition. This procedure is NOT
recommended unless your meat goats are being made to survive on browse/pasture/forage,
in which instance it is possible that fetuses can die from lack of nutrition or from pulling
their dam down so much as her body struggles to feed them in utero that both she and the
fetuses don't survive. Feeding extra rations immediately prior to kidding will likely cause
Pregnancy Toxemia (see above).
Goat Medicine is the authorative book on goats. Written by Dr. Mary C. Smith and Dr.
David M. Sherman, this 620 page book can be purchased over the Internet from
AlpineHaus for about $75.00, or your local bookstore can order it for you. The ISBN
number is 0-8121-1478-7. Although written for professionals and hence a bit technical, it is
an invaluable addition to your goat library. If you own no other book on goats, this is the
one to have.
Directory of Goat Vets Across the United States - Recognizing that many folks live in areas
where finding vets who know anything about goats is difficult, the owner of the Cybergoat
site on the Internet has begun a listing of knowledgeable goat vets nationwide. Go to
www.cybergoat.com for this information. If you have a good goat vet that you think should
be added to this list, send that information to the Webmaster, Donna Palmer. The usual
disclaimers apply.
Diatomaceous Earth - This product is a "hot" issue nowadays. Producers are using it as a
de-wormer, although several studies have been done on using it for de-worming goats and
sheep without positive results. Nevertheless, producers who believe in DE believe in DE
with an almost religious fervor.
DE appears to be effective in fly control, but its efficacy in controlling internal parasites
such as worms is not scientifically proven yet. Supporters believe that DE kills the tiny
worms by cutting them up inside the goat. This writer has yet to hear a realistic answer as
to why it would not also hurt the goat's internal organs.
I truly hope that DE (and other products) can be proven under controlled testing to be
effective against worms while at the same time not harmful to the goats upon whom it is
being used. At this point, however, I would not recommend giving up the chemical
de-wormers and fecal counts. Further study is needed on this subject.
De-Worming Programs and Problems - This writer honestly believes that most producers'
problems with worm control derives from the lack of a consistent and regimented
de-worming program and the failure to do regular fecal counts on their animals. In between
fecal counts, use the layman's best method of checking for worms; pull the lower eyelid
down and look at the color of the inside of the lower lid. It should be bright red to bright
pink. Light pink means worms, and white coloring means anemia. This is much more
effective that checking gum color. Of course, it is not a substitute for fecal egg counts.
Goats cannot be de-wormed and then put back into the same pen or pasture without a high
risk of re-infestation. Pastures must be rotated and pens must be kept clean of feces or
re-infestation is certain. A goat sloughs off feces-containing worms for about 48 hours after
de-worming medication is administered. The life cycle of a stomach worm is three weeks,
and pregnant and nursing does are particularly susceptible to worm infestation.
Waiting for a worm problem to appear and then chasing it dooms the producer to continual
problems with worms. Proper Management and Nutrition - This is a pet peeve of this
writer. If a producer cannot afford to properly house and feed his goats, then he can't
afford to own them. Many of us are raising goats in small pastures or pens. This is an
invitation for disaster. Over-crowding causes all sorts of caprine health problems.
"Cleanliness is next to godliness" in these circumstances. It also determines whether your
goats survive and thrive, or whether they do poorly and die.
Identifying Goats - Male goats are called bucks (not "billies"); female goats are does (not
"nannies"). And castrated boys are wethers.
Internet Goat Discussion Groups - If you are not on the Internet, you need to get on it. This
is being said by a person who heartily resisted it until the summer of 1998. The Internet is a
wonderful place to learn more about goats. Join a meat-goat discussion group, where other
producers and animal health professionals discuss goat-related issues daily.
This writer established an Internet meat-goat discussion group at Thanksgiving 1998. It is
called ChevonTalk, is a free but closed list (you have to sign up and disclose who you are),
and can be joined by going here and filling out the ChevonTalk form. Or contact me
directly to be added to ChevonTalk.
Any of the Articles pages, upon which many of my previous columns are posted and can be
downloaded and printed out for your reference. Organizations are encouraged to re-print
them so long as they are reprinted in full (so nothing is taken out of context . . . . liability
issues, of course) and the writer gets credit for the article being reprinted.