You want to keep your goat healthy. Just how do you do that? It is a lot like how you take care of yourself. Set up a routine and follow it.

• Feed your animal 2 times a day. Be sure to set up certain times that you know you will be able to feed your goat. It is best if you always feed your animal at the same time everyday. If you feed him at 7:00 am every morning and at 4:00 pm everyday, your goat will be familiar with this routine and will grow good for you. If you feed at 7:00 am one morning and 4:00 pm, 9:30 am and 5:00 the next, 8:00 and 3:30 the next, 10:00 and 4:30 the next day... then your animal's metabolism isn't going to work as consistently and your growth target may get fouled up. Consistancy will help your animal. Although the closer you get to your market weight and date, you may want to decrease the amount of feed and feed more often during the day... stretch the feed into three feedings instead.

• NEVER feed your animal on the ground! Place hay in a feeder or a bucket, never on the ground. The goats step on their food and can urinate and defecate on it. You wouldn't want to eat food like that, be sure your animal isn't either.

• Clean Water - Be sure that if you are giving your goat water in a bucket that you don't just always add water to the bucket. Dump the bucket out and clean it. Your animal will sometimes drop little pellets into the water. Think to yourself if YOU would want to drink the water. If the answer is NO, then you should probably be cleaning it out.

• Every day when you feed take a look at your goat. Get to know them and their habits.
  Be sure your goat is E.A.T.E.N.! Check the following:
  þ Ears - be sure that they aren't cold. Your goats ears should be warm, if they are cold then that is usually a sure sign that they are sick.
  þ Appetite - if your animal's isn't hungry and doesn't want to eat, this could indicate a problem.
  þ Tail - the tail should be up. When your goat's tail is down then it is also a sign that they aren't feeling too good.
  þ Eye - around the bottom of the eye the skin inside should be pinkish to red in color. If your goat's eye's are lacking color or are very white, this may indicate anemia - which could be caused from worms.
  þ Nose - be sure that it isn't runny. If your goat's nose has a clear runny nose, it may just have the sniffles from the cold, or from running around excising. If it is more mucus and yellow or green, it may be an infection. You may need to listen to it's breathing.

If your goat is sick it is a good idea to take it's temperature and call the vet. A normal temperature for a goat is 102 F.

VACCINATIONS / PREVENTATIVES

• Covexin 8. This is an 8-way vaccination and helps prevent Clostridium perfringins C & D (sometimes called overeating disease). You can vaccinate again in 5 weeks. (You can also use CDT) 2 mil - Sub-Q. Check withdrawls. C & D and Covexin 8 is typically 21 day withdrawl to slaughter.

• BoSe - all market wethers have been vaccinated with BoSe - which is for Selenium. It would be a good idea to give them another shot 45 days before your fair. Check labels for withdrawl times. The BoSe that we use is 16 day withdrawl.

PARASITES

An important part of your goat project is to make sure that the goat(s) remain free of parasites. Parasites can rob nutrients from your animals and prevent them from reaching their genetic potential. There are a variety of parasites that must be controlled.
The first to consider are external parasites, mainly lice.
There are two general types of internal parasites that you need to consider, worms and coccidia.
Coccidia are single celled organisms that can infect the gut and cause permanent damage, lowering the animal's ability to absorb nutrients from the gut.
Worms and Coccidia must be controlled differently, but both can be injested in the same way. In most barnyards parasites are in the ground. An animal who is infested with parasites will shed them in the feces and that is how the ground becomes contaminated. When goats are fed on the ground, or when they put their feet in their feeders, they can injest the parasite eggs and start they cycle all over again. It is therefore of upmost importance to have feeders and waterers off the ground and set up so the goats do not put their feet into them if at all possible.

Parasite Control Methods:

• Lice and External Parasites:
  A goat that is infested with lice will chew, scratch or rub his hair, because the lice are irritating to them. It is usually possible to see lice, but if you can't and you do see raised patches of hair where the goat has been itiching, it is OK to go ahead and dustr your animals to get rid of the lice. You must dust all of the animals in the pen to be sure that you take care of the problem. Always wear disposable gloves when dusting your goat. Shake the dust down their topline and behind their elbows and in their flanks, then rub it into the hair. You should probably repeat this application in three weeks, that is how long it takes for the eggs of lice to hatch.

• Coccidia:
  Again, take all possible measures to prevent your animals from injesting coccidian from their environment. Most of the commercial feeds on the market today contain a cossidiostat. Usually this will help and will control this for the time that you have your market goat. If your animal starts to decrease their food intake, and/or develops diahrea this could be Coccidia. Take a feces sample to the vet to determine if it is Coccidia. And the vet will prescribe either Albon or Corrid for treatment.

• Worms:
  The animals have all been de-wormed. You should probably worm them again approximately 45 days before your fair. Be sure to watch the labels as Ivermec has 70 day withdrawl for meat. Panacur or Safegaurd, Trimisol or Cydectic are less, check the labels for withdrawl times for slaughter.

OTHER DISEASES

• Fungus / Ringworm will first appear as a raised patch of skin anywhere on the animal. Later, the hair will fall out and the patch of skin will appear scaly. It is best to treat the spot as soon as it is noticed. We have found that Sullivans' Fungus fighter is the best. Fungus can be transmitted to other goats through direct contact or by using the same equipment. Keep the infected goat isolated and thoroughly disinfect any equipment such as brushes, feeders and collars.
  Treatment and Prevention (especially if you are going to shows): Spray or wash your goats with Nolvason, or other fungicide at arrival and departure from shows. If you develop ringworm - scrape the heads off of the Itch spots. It is painful, but it will quicken the healing process.

• Soremouth is also contagious to people. It produces scabs and sores on the skin where the virus has entered through a break in the skin. Once an animal has had it he becomes immune. If your animal gets soremouth, isolate him, and treat the mouth with 7% iodine around the scabs. Be sure to wear gloves and dispose of them immediately after use. Wash hands thouroughly and repeat as much as three times a day to dry out the scabs.

• Urinary Calculi is a metabolic problem which results in a blockage of the urethra in male goats. Stones or crystals are formed in the urine and full or partial blockages can result. If your goat becomes "blocked: he cannot urinate 0 it is an emergency! And you need to call a vet immediately. There are ways to prevent this and they should be implemented, because once an animal becomes blocked, the prognosis is not good. Most commercial feeds contain Ammonium Chloride, which helps prevent stones. Also the commercial feeds should have a calcium-phosphorus raition of at least 2:1 (2 parts Calcium to 1 part Phosporus) Have salt or mineral blocks available at all times for the animals and fresh water!

• Pinkeye - You may suspect your goat has pinkeye if his eye gets red, swollen and he keeps it closed most of the time. He may have the infectious form of pinkeye, or he may have gotten something in it or scratched it. You should examine the eye carefully to be sure there is nothing in there, then you can apply an eye ointment such as Neobacimyx.(Bacitracin - Neomycin, Polymyxin) If the eye clears up right away, and no other goats get infected, it was probably not the infectious version. There are many infectious agents that can cause "pinkeye" and most can be spread easily between goats. If you have an outbreak, and several goats re-infected, please consult your vet.

THINGS TO HAVE ON HAND

• Probios: Paste to help active rumen. 5 cc orally at the back of the mouth.

• Penicillian - 1 cc per 10 lbs, 1 or 2 times a day. Sub-Q injection. As directed by Vet. Check withdrawl label as labels may differ.

• Vitamin B-Complex Fortified - 5 ml per 100 lbs of body weight. This can help stimulate your animals appetite. No withdrawl on label.

• Syringes (6 cc) and 1" x #20 Needles

THINGS TO WATCH FOR AND CONSULT YOUR VET

• Respiratory problems, pnemmonia

• pinkeye or gunky eyes

• sores at the mouth

• not eating and cold ears

• abcesses (except for Covexin 8 shots that have been given in the neck - these may cause a lump, but it will go away)

• If your goat acts listless, dizzy and blind, this could be contributed to a Thiamine Deficiency. Consult your vet immediately.