[Lesley Silvester]

Pom is getting patches of thinning hair along both sides of her spine and a bit lower down. It looks like she's rubbing those parts on the fence which I do see them do quite often. I've looked at pictures of mange in goats and I don't think it's that although, in one or two places, the skin looks a bit scaly. As mine are zero grazed, I don't know how she would get mange, if indeed it is. Or could it be a result of the very difficult kidding she had a month ago? She seems well enough, eats well and it produces more milk that I've ever had.

[Penninehillbilly]

Is she treated for external parasites? noticed one of mine scratching a while ago, found a louse on her, and one of the Togg babes looked a little thin coated in places, so they all got a dosing of louse powder. All looking well now.

[Dogwalker]

Does she usually moult?

A friends goat that stays here moults each year through June, looks very scrappy.
Now she looks really smart and sleek but will soon start growing a thicker coat again.

[Lesley Silvester]

She isn't treated for anything but I have had a good look through her coat and not noticed her scratching either, just rubbing along the fence which she's always done.


She is moulting and I comb her most days. She loves it and even stops eating to enjoy it, even her beard. The patches are either side of her spine on both sides and just behind each shoulder at the same height which is why I think it's from rubbing on the fence.

[cuckoo]

Could try giving her a bath with a dog shampoo for itchy skin - that is what I did with my GG who had seriously scaly skin and hair loss. Mind you she also had a lick with added zinc added and dectomax and paramectin pouron too.  The bath loosened all the dead skin and she immediately seemed a lot better and a lot less itchy

[Lesley Silvester]

I'll try that but I don't know how she will react to being wet. I use the hose as an 'incentive' for them to go back in their yard and only have to walk towards it, shouting hose pipe, for them to stop eating the fuchsia and run back inside.

[Cosmore]

I used to give my herd big blue rocky (cobalt) licks, they used to really go for it (there was a suspicion that we were in a 'pine' area). They always had beautiful coats, even after kidding. In addition to concentrates and grazing, they were fed good quality hay and regular browsings, mainly Elm. Unfortunately, they stopped doing the pure cobalt blue licks, they are now combined with other minerals, but you'd have to check that the ingredients are suitable for caprines.
Hope this may help.

[cuckoo]

We used warm water and rinsed her off with jugs not the hose - I wouldn't like to be hosed off in cold water!

[Lesley Silvester]

I'll try that, cuckoo, thanks. Going away for a few days tomorrow so it's a job for when we get back.

[Lesley Silvester]

Just got back from holiday and was horrified to find my goat looking almost bald. Not as bad as I first thought as there is new hair coming through but there's a lot of skin showing through still. It seems to be isolated to her rib area and either side of her spine although more seems to be coming out.


My goat sitter said she thought it might be due to the traumatic labour and birth she had six weeks ago. Apart from the hair loss, she seems well, is eating and cudding well and producing copious amounts of milk.


Has anyone else had a goat lose hair after a trauma?

[Anke]

If her coat is regrowing, the skin is clear and not infected/scabby/red/raw in any way I would just feed her well and watch. Sheep are known to loose their fleece (or have a bad break in it) after stress, even a bad spell of weather (I had to throw out all of my fleeces after the really bad winter in 2011!). If she is generally well and milking well, I would just  watch.

I have treated dry scabby patches this last winter with rubbing in some olive oil (to remove the dead skin) and after a few weeks all was regrown and no trace of where bald patch had been.

[Lesley Silvester]

Thank you, Anke. Her skin looks fine although there are a couple of dryish patches so I'll try the olive oil on them. Otherwise I'll just keep an eye on her. It's not affecting my otherr goat so I doubt if it's any sort of lice or mites and I've had a good look for snything like that. Must just be the trauma.

[Penninehillbilly]

I took on a cade lamb who lost every bit of 'wool', obviously thought of every problem going, but skin was clean and healthy, I searched high'n'low through books, couldn't find anything, then realised she had a fine coating of new growth.
found out they can lose their coat by stress, so maybe that IS what Pom's problem is.

[Lesley Silvester]

I think it must be. Less is coming out now than a few days ago and the skin looks lovely and healthy. She is very well in herself and eating plenty. She didn't eat much for the first couple of weeks after the kidding and I don't suppose that helped her hair.

[Lesley Silvester]

I thought you might like an update. Pom's coat is nearly back to normal now and there is hardly any hair coming out when I groom her - just the normal amount. She is also putting on weight nicely whereas she was painfully thin and milking off her back. Nice shape now and much much better in herself.