Below is a combination of my kid raising over 7 years ago and what I do now in 2017, now that I have a new kid Josie born.
Starting out with Cae (Caprine Arthritic Encephalitis) and CL (Caseous Lymphaditis) negative goats goes a long way in having goats with minimal health problems. My goats are from negative herds and were tested October 22, 2010 as negative for CAE from Biotracking.
Since we live in a sunshine deprived climate here in Portland I supplement the goats with vitamin D. I have noticed a difference in their health from the previous winter when I didn't supplement. I give the full size goats about 3000 iu of D about once or twice a week. I mix the D powder in some instant pudding to make a paste to easily administer with a dosing syringe. Vitamin D is crucial in calcium absorption which is very important in milk production. I am going to get around to A & D injectable for next winter.
To keep milk production up in the wintertime and manage their extended lactation, the milkers get to wear a coat during cold weather, actually when the temps get in the 40's I consider putting coats on the milkers. It can depend on the wind chill also. We get the Columbia Gorge winds here. Milk production stays steady and no one shivers in the cold with coats or sheet type blankets. I feel that if milk production goes down, in cold weather temperatures, then that signals to me that they are unable to eat enough to keep warm and produce at the same time. So the first thing their body does is cut production, to utilize the amount they are used to eating, to keep their body warm. This happens with temperature fluctuations. If they are used to eating a certain amount and the temperature is steady then all is well. If over night the temperature takes a sudden dive downward, say from 50F to 35F, then they havn't had time to acclimate their eating to that. When temperatures look to be steady for awhile with temperatures 45f or above then no coat is used. Bottom line this makes economic sense for me, with milk and cheese making all winter long.
Goats are naturally browsers and like to feed with their heads up eating brush. They don't naturally want to graze like a sheep if brush is available. If one has a large pasture for grazing rotation a worm burden is reduced but I have smaller grazing areas so I have to be diligent with deworming despite the pasture management I try to do.
Update- my deworming experiment is reducing the deworming I do. See Parasites page.
Worms can be a real problem in goats and they can lose condition, making body weight go down and milk production to be poor. It can also be deadly. I have a microscope and have checked for worm eggs but depending on the time of year eggs may not show on a fecal so I have been using Muscle Testing to manage my goats and it is working out good.
My goats are doing so much better since I have dewormed for Liverfluke when needed. Liverfluke eggs may not show up on a fecal so this is done preventatively in wintertime. UPDATE- I just muscle test for it now. In some parts of the country Liverflukes during spring time can only be kept at bay since the saturation of Liverflukes on the pastures is so high. IvomecPlus kill's Liverfluke and with ivermectin it kills lung worm also. I have used IvomecPlus for a total of 3-4 doses about 10 days apart in the beginning with these goats but now once or twice in spring and fall. I muscle test for inflammation in the bile duct which equals Liverflukes so kill them out before egg laying. The last deworm in fall 2015 only 2 goats out of 8 needed deworm for Liverfluke, a first. I hope I'm making progress in eliminating the Liverflukes, but only time will tell. Weather conditions will affect this outcome each year.
I only trust chemical worming to work on Liverflukes and since this is a problem in my area I'm not taking chances. I also heard of someone losing a goat about a mile from me from Liverflukes, so Liverfluke is alive and well here in Portland with all the slugs we have. Hopefully my ducks will take care of most the slugs around my place, in time (Update- the ducks didn't work out). I use 1cc per 33 lbs. of body weight when using IvomecPlus.
Worms and eggs may not show up at all in winter time when the worms aren't laying eggs. They wait till warmer weather triggers them to multiply. If they layed eggs in winter the eggs would not survive. So examining a fecal sample in winter time may show a clean observation. This is misleading. So that is where "Prevention" worming is prudent.
The FAMACHA eye membrane diagnosis is useful in parasite diagnosis. Information, videos and an eye chart can be obtained here http://web.uri.edu/sheepngoat/famacha/
Milk withdrawal after worming is here. http://www2.luresext.edu/goats/training/GoatDewormerChart.pdf
UPDATE- 9/9/2017 This is my management and I still use the same single dewormers now for 9 years but the latest method is to use two different class dewormers at the same time.
I give Quest horse wormer (moxidectin) given at the rate of 1cc per 100 lbs. so a very small amount is given to a small kid. This can then be put in a syringe to measure out the partial cc's better. Valbazen won't get the same worms but some people use it if they are bottle feeding and the kids are not with adults. Since my kids are with adults they get the Quest. All dewormers are given orally in goats, not injected or poured on. This prevention worming, given to kids every 3 weeks, a one time dose, after the five day Corid dosing for Coccidiosis prevention. I am very careful to not overdose or underdose. This is information that I follow at DairyGoatInfo.com. Update- this was what I did with my first kids and it worked out good but Josie got my updated management below.
Update- 9/9/2017. Since I do Muscle Testing I only had to give Josie my new kid 3 Coccidia treatments with Corid and I think it was 3 Quest dewormer treatments and she is nearly 5 mos. old. as of this update. So I didn't need to do the every 3 week prevention with her. BUT, every time I see a kid on the internet going down and others dying I can see how prevention every 3 weeks would have been the best. It is also recommended now to give B-1 injections during treatment to make sure the depletion of it from Corid prevents Polio. Corid still works well here on my place. But doesn't work for all farms.
When I started out with these goats I followed the management outline at Dairy Goat Info http://dairygoatinfo.com/index.php/topic,2077.0.html This is the basic management I used but I had to learn what works in my part of the country. The theme of goatkeeping there is 'Prevention'. Not waiting until a problem arises, but avoiding problems before they have a chance to develop. Take for instance Coccidiosis in kids, it can damage their intestinal tract, scarring it, decreasing nutrient absorption. This is where you see stunted goats. Coccidiosis along with worm "Prevention" is practiced to kill worms before they cause damage to the intestinal tract, can lead to stunting the baby goat and possible future production as an adult. So following the life cycle of the coccidia prevention with Corid was given every 3 weeks when I first started out with goat kids.
I live in a wet climate so Coccidia can really flourish at times. So Kids generally have a high need for prevention.
Once a baby goat has sucked on it's mothers teat it has become contaminated with Coccidia. Then 2-3 weeks later the Coccidia has matured to the point of damaging the baby. Diarrhea may occur, but then again it may not. It is still doing the damage. Corid is the best ''prevention'' product as it stops the least harmful stage of the coccidia from moving to the harmful stage by blocking it's ability to mature. It has been said that Corid does not cause thiamin deficiency in a healthy goat, just inside the coccidia. My kids had no thiamin deficiency issues but there is conflicting information on this. I won't take chances so I will give fortified b's injectable Sub-Q if I muscle test it as necessary. Corid given orally will feed the Coccidia so will defeat the purpose of the B-1 treatment. Update- I haven't given Josie the B-1 but I don't recommend not giving it. Also again Corid may not work in some places but still works great here for prevention.
The Corid mimics thiamin, it is absorbed by the Coccidia giving it a thiamin deficiency which kills it by starvation. Prevention is done for about 6 mos., EVERY 3 WEEKS , maybe longer, depending on the time of year and the weather conditions and the barn and barnyard saturation of Coccidia. Corid is used at the rate of 6.25cc per 25 lbs. EACH PREVENTION CYCLE IS GIVEN FOR FIVE DAYS, ONCE A DAY. I mix it in some type of syrup, about 1 syrup to 2 Corid. The Corid is used full strength in the syrup, not diluted in water.
I really think that prevention of Coccidiosis has been recommended because of the carnage seen. Young goatlings dying or stunted for lack of knowledge about what was making them sick. In the real world fecals aren't done enough so coccidia problems are seen all the time. Looking back I did prevention and didn't fecal and they thrived. I haven't lost any goats except one I brought in not related to my present goats and it ended up having a genetic disorder. So I still have the original goats for the past 9 years as of spring 2017, less 4 I sold early on. So I may have given Corid and dewormer when they didn't need it, at times, but it was better than taking the chance and letting them go without it. I have had goats a total of 14 years. 5 years were pre internet when knowledge was hard to come by.
Repition for emphasis- Although I didn't have problems with Corid causing a thiamine deficiency in my kids in 2010 I see it's recommended on the goat forums to give B-1 since there has been evidence that it can cause polio from a B-1 deficiency in goats.
As of 7/23/2017 My kid Josie only needed two treatments with Corid starting at 12 days old and then about 18 days later. The weather dried up and she didn't need any more treatments and she is 3 mos. old as of this writing. It's been 7 years since I had a baby goat since I do the extended lactation.
Allowing the harmless stage of Coccidia to remain, which Corid does, helps to build immunity in the goatling. If there is an overgrowth of Coccidia and diarrhea occurs then Di-methox is used, which will wipe out all stages of Coccidia fast. This is called "treatment" instead of "prevention". Prevention worked well for my kids in 2010. They didn't get any diarrhea while growing up and had excellent growth.
My first wether out of Moonbeam was 93 1/2 lbs at 5 1/2 months old using prevention management. I weighed him on a scale. He got mothers milk and grain to build his rumen. He was half Nigerian Dwarf and half LaMancha.
I have been fortunate that I've never had a goat with pneumona or diarrhea.
DISCLAIMER- My management may not work in your part of the country since coccidia and worm resistance is becoming a problem so it is necessary to find out what works in your area through fecal examination and FAMACHA observations.
Since we live in a sunshine deprived climate here in Portland I supplement the goats with vitamin D. I have noticed a difference in their health from the previous winter when I didn't supplement. I give the full size goats about 3000 iu of D about once or twice a week. I mix the D powder in some instant pudding to make a paste to easily administer with a dosing syringe. Vitamin D is crucial in calcium absorption which is very important in milk production. I am going to get around to A & D injectable for next winter.
To keep milk production up in the wintertime and manage their extended lactation, the milkers get to wear a coat during cold weather, actually when the temps get in the 40's I consider putting coats on the milkers. It can depend on the wind chill also. We get the Columbia Gorge winds here. Milk production stays steady and no one shivers in the cold with coats or sheet type blankets. I feel that if milk production goes down, in cold weather temperatures, then that signals to me that they are unable to eat enough to keep warm and produce at the same time. So the first thing their body does is cut production, to utilize the amount they are used to eating, to keep their body warm. This happens with temperature fluctuations. If they are used to eating a certain amount and the temperature is steady then all is well. If over night the temperature takes a sudden dive downward, say from 50F to 35F, then they havn't had time to acclimate their eating to that. When temperatures look to be steady for awhile with temperatures 45f or above then no coat is used. Bottom line this makes economic sense for me, with milk and cheese making all winter long.
Goats are naturally browsers and like to feed with their heads up eating brush. They don't naturally want to graze like a sheep if brush is available. If one has a large pasture for grazing rotation a worm burden is reduced but I have smaller grazing areas so I have to be diligent with deworming despite the pasture management I try to do.
Update- my deworming experiment is reducing the deworming I do. See Parasites page.
Worms can be a real problem in goats and they can lose condition, making body weight go down and milk production to be poor. It can also be deadly. I have a microscope and have checked for worm eggs but depending on the time of year eggs may not show on a fecal so I have been using Muscle Testing to manage my goats and it is working out good.
My goats are doing so much better since I have dewormed for Liverfluke when needed. Liverfluke eggs may not show up on a fecal so this is done preventatively in wintertime. UPDATE- I just muscle test for it now. In some parts of the country Liverflukes during spring time can only be kept at bay since the saturation of Liverflukes on the pastures is so high. IvomecPlus kill's Liverfluke and with ivermectin it kills lung worm also. I have used IvomecPlus for a total of 3-4 doses about 10 days apart in the beginning with these goats but now once or twice in spring and fall. I muscle test for inflammation in the bile duct which equals Liverflukes so kill them out before egg laying. The last deworm in fall 2015 only 2 goats out of 8 needed deworm for Liverfluke, a first. I hope I'm making progress in eliminating the Liverflukes, but only time will tell. Weather conditions will affect this outcome each year.
I only trust chemical worming to work on Liverflukes and since this is a problem in my area I'm not taking chances. I also heard of someone losing a goat about a mile from me from Liverflukes, so Liverfluke is alive and well here in Portland with all the slugs we have. Hopefully my ducks will take care of most the slugs around my place, in time (Update- the ducks didn't work out). I use 1cc per 33 lbs. of body weight when using IvomecPlus.
Worms and eggs may not show up at all in winter time when the worms aren't laying eggs. They wait till warmer weather triggers them to multiply. If they layed eggs in winter the eggs would not survive. So examining a fecal sample in winter time may show a clean observation. This is misleading. So that is where "Prevention" worming is prudent.
The FAMACHA eye membrane diagnosis is useful in parasite diagnosis. Information, videos and an eye chart can be obtained here http://web.uri.edu/sheepngoat/famacha/
Milk withdrawal after worming is here. http://www2.luresext.edu/goats/training/GoatDewormerChart.pdf
UPDATE- 9/9/2017 This is my management and I still use the same single dewormers now for 9 years but the latest method is to use two different class dewormers at the same time.
I give Quest horse wormer (moxidectin) given at the rate of 1cc per 100 lbs. so a very small amount is given to a small kid. This can then be put in a syringe to measure out the partial cc's better. Valbazen won't get the same worms but some people use it if they are bottle feeding and the kids are not with adults. Since my kids are with adults they get the Quest. All dewormers are given orally in goats, not injected or poured on. This prevention worming, given to kids every 3 weeks, a one time dose, after the five day Corid dosing for Coccidiosis prevention. I am very careful to not overdose or underdose. This is information that I follow at DairyGoatInfo.com. Update- this was what I did with my first kids and it worked out good but Josie got my updated management below.
Update- 9/9/2017. Since I do Muscle Testing I only had to give Josie my new kid 3 Coccidia treatments with Corid and I think it was 3 Quest dewormer treatments and she is nearly 5 mos. old. as of this update. So I didn't need to do the every 3 week prevention with her. BUT, every time I see a kid on the internet going down and others dying I can see how prevention every 3 weeks would have been the best. It is also recommended now to give B-1 injections during treatment to make sure the depletion of it from Corid prevents Polio. Corid still works well here on my place. But doesn't work for all farms.
When I started out with these goats I followed the management outline at Dairy Goat Info http://dairygoatinfo.com/index.php/topic,2077.0.html This is the basic management I used but I had to learn what works in my part of the country. The theme of goatkeeping there is 'Prevention'. Not waiting until a problem arises, but avoiding problems before they have a chance to develop. Take for instance Coccidiosis in kids, it can damage their intestinal tract, scarring it, decreasing nutrient absorption. This is where you see stunted goats. Coccidiosis along with worm "Prevention" is practiced to kill worms before they cause damage to the intestinal tract, can lead to stunting the baby goat and possible future production as an adult. So following the life cycle of the coccidia prevention with Corid was given every 3 weeks when I first started out with goat kids.
I live in a wet climate so Coccidia can really flourish at times. So Kids generally have a high need for prevention.
Once a baby goat has sucked on it's mothers teat it has become contaminated with Coccidia. Then 2-3 weeks later the Coccidia has matured to the point of damaging the baby. Diarrhea may occur, but then again it may not. It is still doing the damage. Corid is the best ''prevention'' product as it stops the least harmful stage of the coccidia from moving to the harmful stage by blocking it's ability to mature. It has been said that Corid does not cause thiamin deficiency in a healthy goat, just inside the coccidia. My kids had no thiamin deficiency issues but there is conflicting information on this. I won't take chances so I will give fortified b's injectable Sub-Q if I muscle test it as necessary. Corid given orally will feed the Coccidia so will defeat the purpose of the B-1 treatment. Update- I haven't given Josie the B-1 but I don't recommend not giving it. Also again Corid may not work in some places but still works great here for prevention.
The Corid mimics thiamin, it is absorbed by the Coccidia giving it a thiamin deficiency which kills it by starvation. Prevention is done for about 6 mos., EVERY 3 WEEKS , maybe longer, depending on the time of year and the weather conditions and the barn and barnyard saturation of Coccidia. Corid is used at the rate of 6.25cc per 25 lbs. EACH PREVENTION CYCLE IS GIVEN FOR FIVE DAYS, ONCE A DAY. I mix it in some type of syrup, about 1 syrup to 2 Corid. The Corid is used full strength in the syrup, not diluted in water.
I really think that prevention of Coccidiosis has been recommended because of the carnage seen. Young goatlings dying or stunted for lack of knowledge about what was making them sick. In the real world fecals aren't done enough so coccidia problems are seen all the time. Looking back I did prevention and didn't fecal and they thrived. I haven't lost any goats except one I brought in not related to my present goats and it ended up having a genetic disorder. So I still have the original goats for the past 9 years as of spring 2017, less 4 I sold early on. So I may have given Corid and dewormer when they didn't need it, at times, but it was better than taking the chance and letting them go without it. I have had goats a total of 14 years. 5 years were pre internet when knowledge was hard to come by.
Repition for emphasis- Although I didn't have problems with Corid causing a thiamine deficiency in my kids in 2010 I see it's recommended on the goat forums to give B-1 since there has been evidence that it can cause polio from a B-1 deficiency in goats.
As of 7/23/2017 My kid Josie only needed two treatments with Corid starting at 12 days old and then about 18 days later. The weather dried up and she didn't need any more treatments and she is 3 mos. old as of this writing. It's been 7 years since I had a baby goat since I do the extended lactation.
Allowing the harmless stage of Coccidia to remain, which Corid does, helps to build immunity in the goatling. If there is an overgrowth of Coccidia and diarrhea occurs then Di-methox is used, which will wipe out all stages of Coccidia fast. This is called "treatment" instead of "prevention". Prevention worked well for my kids in 2010. They didn't get any diarrhea while growing up and had excellent growth.
My first wether out of Moonbeam was 93 1/2 lbs at 5 1/2 months old using prevention management. I weighed him on a scale. He got mothers milk and grain to build his rumen. He was half Nigerian Dwarf and half LaMancha.
I have been fortunate that I've never had a goat with pneumona or diarrhea.
DISCLAIMER- My management may not work in your part of the country since coccidia and worm resistance is becoming a problem so it is necessary to find out what works in your area through fecal examination and FAMACHA observations.