[milly]

Hello All,
I am pleased to have joined this small holders Forum,  and to be able to speak with fellow goat keepers I have 2 Golden Guernsey females, one who is in milk still from kidding during the summer, also 1 teenager Golden x Sannan, plus 6 laying hens.
I have been keeping Goats for 25 years, and have never come across this before and hoping someone out their may just have the answer.

6 weeks ago my dairy girl was soaking wet one morning I guess she had been licking,,  she has always been a bit scurfy,  but none  have ever had  mites or any other critter,   done all the normal procedure,  oromec  with follow up dose, iodine, copper levels  normal ,bathed her tea tree shampoo / animal medicated shampoo, then a good blow dried all was well for a few days,
then same problem again she is groomed along with the others everyday.
So again gave her a good scrub and hair dry she really enjoys it, put a small fleece coat on for the night, this morning all warm dry underneath the coat, but she is still licking the coat in places.
She has a good diet plenty of black sunflower seeds every day mineral blocks .free choice loose mineral ,
I cant think what else I can do, so any help please would be great.

[Mad Goatwoman of Madeley]

  Hi, Milly, and welcome to TAS. I keep Saanens. I've never come across anything like you describe so can't help but I'm sure someone will be along soon who will know the answer.


Whereabouts are you?

[clydesdaleclopper]

You say she has always been a bit scurfy - I'm dredging my memory here but I think that can indicate a zinc deficiency which could be caused by excess calcium in the diet. Hopefully someone will be along who knows.

[milly]

Hi yes thankyou,I did wonder about that,in fact I have been slowly changing her Mix to Cattle nuts, 
I have painted her flesh under tail with a dab of Iodine, now its still staining so hopefully that's been a help.
also have treated her with a little DE dust, this morning she is thankfully dry, but she does have her coat on!
and her milk has gone up
 

[Anke]

Is her skin actually sore/broken/red or just scurvy/dandruffy? If her skin is broken and inflamed you may have to go for antibiotics. Also I wasn't aware that Oramec kills mites, I would have used Dectomax (injection) or (Cattle) Eprinex as a pour-on for heel mange mites.

If it is not inflamed/itchy skin it may just be a winter thing, some goats get really dry skin in winter (as do humans!). But if it irritating to her you obviously have to do something. I would try and get a completely organic shampoo - nothing with SLS etc in it, as most cheap shampoos have. You may have to go to a health food shop or order online. (Plumseverywhere on here does goatsmilk soaps and also shampoos I think). If she likes having a coat on I would keep it on. Other than that I don't know what to suggest.

Are you sure that her being wet all over is not a cloudburst? Or was she not that wet?

I also have GG's, BT's and am using my BT sock to breed up to British Guernsey.

[clydesdaleclopper]

Maybe offer some free choice seaweed meal.


If you want a good herbal shampoo Pioneer Herbal are great. Most of their stuff is aimed at horses but if you phone the chap he is brilliant at giving advice on this sort of thing.

[milly]

  Many thanks to you all, my mistake it was Ivomec not oramec.
Her skin is not broken, the shampoo was a prescription horse one the tea tree was pure from health shop, like you say it just well may be her,
 have used natural oils in coconut butter to rub in her skinto stop the irratition
I have always used the DE and have never has any probs with lice etc.
It wasn't a cloud burst as I have been keeping a close eye on the licking, so today all well nice and dry under her coat and no scurf so far today,  all out enjoying the sunshine.

[Anke]

Oh good that her skin is ok.

I find my GG's get definitely more "dandruff" than the BT's, especially my long--coated girls. A bath in spring time and regular brushing from then on (ok brush-out before 1st bath, then maintenance brushing) will normally take care of it for the summer.

Seaweed sounds good, I wish my girls would go back to taking it....

[shygirl]

our stables were unusually soaking the other day and I was thinking the water buckets must be leaking, but it was actually the frost/condensation melting and dripping off the metal roof after a particularly cold spell.
could you have a similar scenario that is making the goat wet??
just a thought.