Maybe someone was worried that she had eaten something poisonous? Today the large belly goat is not well, standing up against the shed wall, hoofing the ground, she had the shed bedding all hoofed up. Avg 1-2 liters/day. If his belly is huge and firm like a drum, then you can give him an ounce of cooking oil, such as olive oil, sunflower, etc. There is also a published study showing that there was no difference between goats that were given Molly’s and goats that were given nothing. If there is something stuck in the goat’s throat, a small amount of oil may help lubricate it, so the goat can swallow it. Do u have a suggestion She also urinate and poops normal. Her belly, both sides is hard. How much dewormer did you give her? Keep in mind that bloat is just a symptom, not a disease, and bloat goes away fairly quickly or the goat is dead. They always have baking soda available for feed bloat. As soon as she’s acting normal, you can let her out on pasture again. How much does the goat weigh? Here is more info — 1) pot belly when the animal is very thin due to too much low-quality forage and not enough nutrition (they fill-up on junk and don't get what they need because they are full and/or there is no higher-quality forage around); and 2) pot belly when the animal is wormy. (She is chewing her food before swallowing). If his left side is big, he may have hay belly. Thank you again! If your vet didn’t know about long-acting dewormers, I’m concerned he or she may have used the incorrect dosage also. A bacterial infection could be treated with antibiotics, and not much can be done for viral infections. You can tell the difference between a hay belly and bloat because if you press on the left abdomen (over the rumen) of a goat with a hay belly, you can mash it in as if you were mashing in cookie dough. One of my other goats tested positive for coccidia and another parasite, so he was treated also. Not all parasites cause anemia. He is mildly dehydrated on/off and has irregular tiny hard dark poop pellets half his normal size (always had uniformly big round well-digested pellets and LOTS of ’em.) I’m wary when they tell me his fecal test turned up “totally fine”. Thanks Allison. It is hard to find a vet that’s up to date on goat parasites because so much research has been done in the past 10 years, and if they don’t see a lot of goats in their practice, they spend all of their continuing ed time on dogs and cats. I’m glad to hear you find my website helpful. He exhibited all of the behaviors of bloat. This was common advice back in the 1970s. I just gave her 10 cc of olive oil with about 1/2 tsp baking soda. If a goat’s belly has looked unusually large for several days, it is probably a hay belly, which is most likely caused by parasites. I fed him 2/3 table spoon of cooked wheat porridge after that he got his normal routine milk feed Poop which was finally getting back to normal the day I took him to the vet, started coming out tiny again. As for a zinc deficiency, that would also be possible if he didn’t have a good mineral available free choice, or if you are feeding him something else high in calcium. It could be anything from dental problems to cancer. And when is she allowed to eat? https://thriftyhomesteader.com/zinc-deficiency-goats/. Diet and lifestyle also play a role. I’m sure that was very scary! I do hope your goat is fine. The company got approval more than 20 years ago with the cattle dosage. I have no idea what she got into, but I’m thinking hay and they didn’t have any baking soda in their dish this morning :\ Thank you so much for sharing all your knowledge! Is it better to massage his neck upward, or down, not at all? Well, I just home from work and things have stopped. Was told I can supplement diet with Purina processed grain kibble and pelleted alfalfa. There are so many things that can go wrong in a goat’s digestive system. I do hope you have not been feeding him meat and dairy products. He seems to be in perfect health and is dewormed regularly. He nearly lost his voice completely. If he is getting poisoned regularly, then you need to figure out what’s happening and eliminate it. I have seen many people post online, “My goat has been bloated for several days,” which is impossible. (I know that sounds crazy, to dissect a pet but I feel it’s my job to find out what happened.) The position of the goat may also cause bloat. The textbook answer for choke bloat is exactly what you’ve done to attempt to get it to go down the throat. The primordial pouch develops from 6 months, which coincidentally is the same time many cats are spayed or neutered. This is the time of year that you see disease from m-worm. The GasX works a lot faster and it is much safer. If you only have a few goats, some people will buy the horse dewormer — ivermectin. Have you had a fecal done? I’ve given him nori brushed with coconut oil which he loved. Any ideas? Please help my best friend wether who got sick this spring with bloat. The "typical" coccidia treatment that I give my goat kids is 1cc/5# of DiMethox 12.5% the first day and then 1cc / 10# days 2 - 5 and I do this at 3, 6 and 9 weeks old. The closest thing I have found on your website is your reference to “choke bloat”. i have a 6 month old nubian and his belly is really big!my goat looks bloated... he has been at my house for 3 days now, he gets like 1/4 scoop of 12% sweet feed, and a handful of hay a day. This is why it’s a good idea to have baking soda available free choice in a separate dish at all times if you feed grain. They released air from his rumen and put a tube in. He’s currently on cocci meds, but I have 2 other goats on cocci meds and they don’t have froth. Are her eyelids dark pink, light pink, or white? Thank you! Especially with diarrhea, this sounds like it could be something infectious. She was also nursing 2 babies and has gone dry. I know he is not truly bloated since he is burping. For weeks, he has now had a loss of enthusiasm for food and water, less energy, much pickier eater, every time I think he is making a comeback, he vomits about a tablespoon or two of wet olive green cud every few days or once a week. Grain and green grass is the only thing you want to limit with a goat that has bloat. It would be good to have blood work and other diagnostics done to see if his system is working properly overall. But I’m thinking that you’d probably give up and go to a vet before you reached that level. Hi- our 14 year old Pygmy goat named Cindy who has been healthy her whole life (and only has her sister Jenny for a buddy) became ill yesterday. It seemed to work as it got rid of the boating and he started burping. Her sister is normal. I gave him some cooking oil just in case. The mineral oil helps break down the gas bubbles that causes the bloat. I’m so sorry you lost your little guy. I say “mild” because again she should be dead by now if it was a severe case. If a goat can swallow, it can be given liquids orally with a drenching syringe. My goat has been bloated for several day. First we noticed he was “screaming” while trying to use the bathroom. https://thriftyhomesteader.com/m-worm-nightmare-for-goat-sheep-and/ A couple bites of something new is probably okay, but if he eats too much of something new, it could cause a digestive upset. He started burping but still is bloated. How long have you had him? Some homemade goat yogurt might be beneficial or commercial probiotics to help get things heading in the right direction a little faster. we gave her olive oil and baking soda, massaged her tummy, gave her another dose of olive oil and baking soda. I could get an vet appointment and the Er vet dr. Doesn’t treat goats. They do not need the calcium in the alfalfa, so it binds with zinc, causing deficiency. They forage during the day and get Timothy hay in the evening and a bit of grain in the morning. Your email address will not be published. It will probably be lying down in a corner somewhere hiding. Is this normal? Her symptoms progressed to near complete paralysis and I had to put her down after 72 hours. The rumen is a giant fermentation vat that does not stop fermenting after the goat is dead, so you will see a very big abdomen and lots of gas in the goat’s digestive system within a few hours after they die. Are there other things high in calcium? On sunday we treated her with an injection of c&d. Start with only a few hours of pasture a day after giving them hay in the barn before letting them out so that they don’t gorge themselves on the pasture. Took him to the vets and they gave him antibiotics and shots of vitamin b. It’s been about two weeks and his belly has gone down, eating and drinking fine. Her belly was tight. My 3 month he goat firstly discharging mucous in both eyes and nose and later having fast earth beat and staggering while walking. — to see if this sounds like what you’re seeing. A goat with a good barrel will have an ideal weight (do the rib test) and will not be bloated – they’re lower belly is just sort of wider. I’ve done before and after fecals and seen no difference. I’m going to go give her some safeguard! As for the other food … it really depends on the amount you feed him. And no grain. At this point, the surviving worms are probably resistant to the Safeguard, so it won’t work very well. For this reason, you should administer the oil very slowly until you are sure the goat can swallow, so that you don’t accidentally force oil into the goat’s lungs. I checked all the labels, and it looks like some stuff I’ve been giving him to help knock down the cocci, has calcium in it. Baking soda should only be available free choice. https://thriftyhomesteader.com/deworming-goats/ Vaccinate with CD/T Toxoid when the goat is old enough. Which may be why they didn’t take his vitals at the physical exam? If she is still alive, I’d check her eyelids. Lordosis is an excessive inward curvature of the spine. He eats and drinks like normal also. If you like to use natural things, copper oxide and sericea lespedeza are two things that have a lot of published research behind them. Voracious appetite: check! Just keep an eye on him. My goat got into horses grain!!! If he is acting normal, eating and drinking, etc, then he’s fine for now. His rumen health has become so sensitive. We have only 3 acres, it’s spruce, scrub willow and other moose country browse. MERRY XMAS AND HELP! From what I’ve read, trying to push down the chunk is usually the best option. My teacher and i thought at first it was water belly but then 2 days later it was firm. I have an 11 month old Nigerian Dwarf buck with a very large, hard belly. Is he spitting out his cud? https://thriftyhomesteader.com/deworming-goats/. At this point I’d suspect meningeal worm, as the symptoms are very similar and can be hard to tell apart. I will investigate the possibility of cancer. Added electrolytes. If you can’t reach a vet quickly, a less risky option to release the gas is to insert a 14-gauge or 16-gauge needle into the rumen. What symptoms have you seen that makes you think it is frothy bloat? Eating pelletized feed or grain, especially grain that is finely ground, requires very little chewing, which means the goat will produce very little bicarbonate. Goats produce their own thiamine in their rumen, so deficiency is one of the most common things that happens when a goat gets too much grain. Thiamine alone is by prescription because it is quite a high dose, but B-complex is over the counter. What do you suggest? He’s on browse & pasture. There are two major causes of goat bloat. Goats tend to be very good about self medicating with baking soda IF they need it. Our goats got into the grain on Thursday evening and on Friday one of our goats seemed lethargic, we got her up and I thought she was OK. Saturday morning she was very bad. He doesn’t feel bloated, and he doesn’t seem to be struggling to breathe or anything. I have read your articles and replies to posts, found them extremely knowledgeable and helpful. A vet came out last summer to look at crusty patches on her back which she said probably reaction to bad outbreak of lice, recommended Ultra boss which I did. This is a quiz for those who are curious to find what style of belly you have. You should not be forcing him to eat it. Is this what bloat is? I’m going to say it’s not bloat since he would be dead by now, but I’ve also checked his mucous membrane for color and he’s pink from what I can tell. Hi! After7 hours expired Thoughts? I have raised all my kids on it without problems, but do what makes you comfortable. P7 you have me sitting on the edge of my bed (I have my laptop in the bedroom with me lol) I am severely sleep deprived at this moment after bringing a 9 day old emergency buckling home so here I am catching up on posts and here I am reading about your doe, 4 of ours are due any day and i'm more excited about yours lol. When the spine curves inwards, it forces the lower belly to stick out. If they are 7 weeks old and have never had a treatment, I'd start it now and do at least 2 "rounds" (start the 2nd round 2 weeks after the first round is completed). Safeguard is a very safe dewormer. If she is back to pooping pebbles, it sounds like she is on the mend. hi! Clumpy poop is a classic sign of a worm overload. I picked up Safeguard for goats today. This causes the goat to eat constantly, which causes their belly to be quite large. Here is more information about preventing parasite problems in goats: https://thriftyhomesteader.com/internal-parasite-in-goats-preventing/ The answer is often found in lab work. I’d suggest offering her some and seeing if she’s interested in it. Any experience with a goat that gorged on dog food? Because nothing on the internet ever dies, there has been a resurgence of an old home remedy for bloat, which is to give liquid laundry detergent (specifically Tide) to a goat with bloat. There should at least a few, but they don’t need to be treated unless the goat is being negatively affected. Thank you! Please re-read the article above. I have dewormed her and that didn’t help. They gave him grain and treats to draw blood and his rumen suffered for a few days. Any chance you are close to a veterinary teaching hospital at a university? Her poo is a bit clumped together and I don’t see her chewing cud. Do goats need long stem hay to keep their rumen working, even if chewing their cud is problematic? I’m glad to hear she’s better today. What was the dosage? Although some vets don’t know a lot about goats, some are just not very good communicators, so maybe “nothing” meant nothing that needs to be treated. He gets things like banana peels, strawberries, bread crust, apples, and sometimes vegetables like okra and green beens. In this case, you may be able to feel the obstruction in the throat. Ty. No, no, nothing like that. If so, there’s not much you can do about that. Any goat that’s been dead for more than a few hours will be bloated. It's very solid not mushy to the touch. I gave him more pepto but today he will not even stand up. Her rumen is soft, it’s the lower belly that feels bloated, and she just wants to stand in one spot and not move. Although some people recommend putting a stomach tube into a goat to administer the oil, there is no benefit to doing this, and it is in fact much more dangerous than simply drenching a goat because of the risk that an inexperienced person could put the tube into the goat’s lung and kill it. Does he have the symptoms of bloat? Bloat would kill him within a couple of hours if that’s it. I have her the dosage for 75 pounds of 1.7 ml. A goat with bloat will die within hours if not treated. The goat may continually get up and then lay back down. You pay the same price when you purchase through affiliate links as you would if you went directly to Amazon, and our site earns a small commission, so by shopping through our links, you are helping to support our blog so that we can continue to provide you with free content. It is possible that either you did not give enough of the dewormer or the worms are resistant to the dewormer that you used. Unsubscribe at any time. (1) John Matthews, Diseases of the Goat, 4th edition, (Sussex, UK: Wiley-Blackwell, 2016), 252. Goats are not born with worms, although they do acquire them fairly early in life, and they always have them, so when someone says there were no worms in a fecal, it’s not that reassuring. Hello, my nigerian doe looked bloated but after reading your article I believe she has hay belly. Not try and bring it up? You don’t necessarily need to do a fecal if her eyelids are pale. If you want to know what caused the death, you need to get a real necropsy. The belly is not usually the first thing you will notice when a goat has a real case of bloat. She isn’t chewing her cud well. Her temp was 105 for about 24 hours. Complete the 12 questions to get a result to see what belly you own. Hello, do you happen to have any advise on treating pneumonia in goats & what over the counter medication can be used? I’d suggest using a dewormer first though. Once we got him to his feet we noticed he was very boated so we gave him baking soda and the oil. Thank you for the reply! (2) Sandra G. Solaiman, Goat Science and Production, (Ames, Iowa: Blackwell, 2010), 168. When the goat can’t belch and gas builds up, she can die. Long-acting dewormers are not recommended for goats because they stay in the system at a VERY low level for a long time, meaning that lots of worms get exposed to the dewormer at a low level, so rather than being killed, they develop immunity to the dewormer, so it no longer works. You may have water retention meaning that maybe your belly appears to be big because of water not fats Maybe a combination of these reasons And many other reasons but if you want to get rid of belly fat try to track your calories and macros and eat in a caloric deficit about 10–20% below maintenance I have two cats: Tippy and Misha. My 3 month old male goat has been sick for several days. If your goat has had a big belly for awhile, it could be that she’s “starving” because she is either anemic or the worms are consuming all of the nutrients in her digestive tract. Which dewormer was used exactly? Her stool has gone back to round balls and she is drinking a little water, but still is laying down most of the day and her ears are still droopy. Should we dose oil again? And those rumens can get BIG. It does not work at the dose on the label, and since goats are a minor species in the US, the company won’t attempt to get FDA approval for a new label. 06.04.2019 by thriftyhomesteader // 81 Comments. I have to drive two hours to get to one, but they have great diagnostics and knowledgeable vets. Noel is still alive! High dose PCN q6-8h. I do mean alot! Some regimens add ivermectin but not all. Strange to see all that empty air filled intestines. When you say he won’t drink, are you talking about water or milk? That’s the best way I can explain it. https://thriftyhomesteader.com/dewormer-resistance-in-goats/. She still eat and drinks. Molly’s does not actually kill worms. Grace (our Nigerian) had a couple runny poops and a little frothy look when she was chewing. I drenched her with baking soda and gave some vitamins. This sound more like worms than anything. However, once you get it to its feet, you will probably notice that its abdomen looks bigger than usual. I’m new to goats and I’m a little worried – the left side of him is hard/tight feeling when I try to push on it and looks bigger than his right side. If this is a wether, and you have been feeding him grain, that would put him at high risk of urinary stones. he even got his voice back. After drenching, the goat should be encouraged to walk around, or the rumen can be massaged to help the goat release the gas. I gave him probiotics in his water. In the meantime, she can eat hay. I’m traveling right now so don’t have access to all of my resources in my home library. Physically, they couldn’t be more different. Grass hay, no alfalfa. A goats belly is SUPPOSED to be round..its kinda like the perfect vegitation digestion factory....there Rumen( digestive tract) is always moving....they burp quite often to … I have never had her weighed but estimate about 75-100 pounds. I am so sorry to hear this! I use the brand safe-guard dewormer for goats. For bloat, they usually just release the air. As the uterus grows, the intestines can be pushed behind it, making your belly look very round and ‘all baby’. The rumen is a very complex fermentation vat that is easily upset. If she’s an adult, it’s probably worms. I worked them again and have probis yesterday. Unfortunately we only have one clinic with two vets, both are nice just very over worked. We call it "good condition". They also had us give her milk of magnesia and charcoal mixed with the olive oil……. Finally later in the day when the vet couldn’t come out we decided to poke her rumen, her belly went down, but she did not seem to improve at all. This goat’s guard hair is falling out too, another poor health indication. Some goats eat so much that they are literally stuffing their rumen (which is on their left side). If he has his body stretched out like they do when they pee and you see no pee or only drops of pee, you need to call a vet ASAP because a blockage could kill him. Other worms are microscopic or as small as tiny little hairs, which you probably would not notice unless it was so severe that it looked like hair was growing inside the stomach. The "big bag" udder photos are does that have kidded before. If his belly is really big, but his spine doesn’t have much meat on it, then he could have a problem with intestinal parasites. by this morning she is much smaller, passed a lot of gas. Different types of worms do different things, but ultimately they both cause goats to have little energy and poor body condition. Vet says, to avoid hay to avoid. Here is more information about using dewormers: They just eat the contents of the intestines, so don’t really hurt goats. It’s not something that goes through your herd like this. It may mean the fecal was done incorrectly. His teeth are fine—chews cud 20-40x before swallowing. There could be many reasons. If they are dark pink or red, it could be a different type of roundworm that consumes the contents of the goat’s stomach, making it unavailable for the goat to actually get nutrients from.