[smudger]

One of my new girls may have mastitis, or may not.


She had a few lumps initially, but is quite hard in the udder now but doesn't seem terribly hot. Two days ago she was limping but then I noticed she was holding her leg up when milking so I cleaned the hoof out and applied blue spray (and applied uddermint to the udder). She seemed a bit better yesterday but no improvement (but no worse) today. She is letting me milk her but not getting a lot out given size of udder.  I've done the California Milk Test twice. First time it seemed a weak positive. This morning I am not even sure its that (and on another site, its says as the CMT is for cows a slight thickening is normal for goats milk).


Is it just congestion? If so what to do (I am massaging with a hot flannel as well as uddermint after milking).

[wytsend]

I personally wopuld seek Vet advice..... almost certainly there is mastitis there.    If left, the udder could become necrotic and slough off..... extreme I know but it can happen.
A course of appropriate antibiotics now will cure the problem.

[Lesley Silvester]

Agreed and go for the antibiotics that you squirt into the udder.  She will hate it but it's much better than injecting.

[Anke]

Pen & Strep injections into the muscle over 5 days, dose dependent on her weight would be the first option to deal with it. One other fairly sure sign of mastitis is that the milk yield drops quite rapidly.
 
Use a teat wipe before milking and a teat dip with disinfectant in it afterwards. I had problems with one of my BT's last year, several times subclinical mastitis, lumpy udder and reduced milk yield, she was uncomfortable with me milking it out, but otherwise fine. So far this year no problems, and the lumps in her udder dispappeared of their own accord in the autumn...

[smudger]

Thanks all. I will call vet tomorrow.


Anke re pep & strep - how long do you keep it. I have some from lambing Jan/ Feb but its says use within 28 days.  Is there a better/ safer muscle position for goats; also the norbrook site doesn't list goats, what is the dosage per kg or goats and max dose in a single location?


Also what do you use for udder dip? And what container (one goat kicks like beckam).

[smudger]

Well, vets been and 6 injections of antibiotic later, not much improvement. Not tender to milk her but udder still sizeable with little milk being produced / released. CMT still slightly positive. Didn't do the teat insert antibiotic thing as too big for her.


Phoned vet who said wait till Friday. What next ? (I'm not expecting any improvement).


I also asked about a goat health plan, got feeling not asked for one before.

[jaykay]

Are you massaging the udder and milking out what you can?

Get some baby oil or something similar to help with the massaging. Rub and strip, as often as you can.

[colliewoman]

Interesting this, As I am in the same boat with Doris... I think


Firm mass in one quarter, loss of yield etc. but she likes me massaging it, and doesn;t mind it being milked at all. She still has her kid on her, CMT negative, not blood or clots etc.
I have taken the bull by the horns so to speak and have her on a long course of ABX and added extra milkings into the day, that plus a good massage of golden udder seems to be doing the trick as this morning things were nice and soft. I shall keep going with the treatment a while longer yet though, just to be sure

[smudger]

Before I got vet in I was stripping in an additional session, but I am only get about 100-200mm from both udders (!), and most of that comes in first 5 mins. I alternate each side and get one squeeze thereafter (with copious massages in between), then I think it does just annoy her.  I'm using uddermint, I see there are 'silver' / 'gold' products (don't know trade name).


Both udders are about the same size (previously one was bigger than the other) but when you look from behind, they are very round, whereas the other goat who is milking 2-2.5 l a day is flat (as well as droopy).


Vet mentioned maybe an oxytocin injection, although she lets down easily, just stops after a small amount.

[Anke]

Is she also still suckling her kid? I can't remember if you said earlier... If yes it is quite likely that she will keep it back for her baby...
 
I have found that is it more difficult to make them let the milk down completely if they have had their kids on for longer than a few days at the beginnings. Definitely with my GG's - very maternal.
 
I also had to switch AB for my later cases of subclinical mastitis, as it didn't respond to Pen & Strep, and it was an expensive (about 100 quid if I remember correctly ) lab test to make sure we use the right one. Did the trick though, have since religiously made sure of cleaning udder before milking and teat-dipping afterwards.

[smudger]

Anke, might be onto something, as I have her kid, although supposed to be weaned. I did see her try to suckle once  (when I had forgotten to apply uddermint before she hopped down).  I wonder if i should stop the udder mint and see if she will suckle - as long as she gets stripped out, not cncerned about the milk supply.


Vet used an a/b starting Tylo... can't read the rest. She was surprised it hadn't done the job.

[Lesley Silvester]

Have you tried a hot poultice? My girl loved it except she would keep drinking the hot water while I had the cloth on her udder.

[smudger]

Thx MGM. I do use a microfibre cloth and warm/hot water initially but will try again after she dries up.  She's not off her feed at all and could give the pigs a run for their money when she gets her head stuck into the trough...

[smudger]

Actually that was one other thing I was considering - do i drop her feed? Hesitant to do so since the other two are being fed and she could do with gaining some weight.

[Anke]

If you want to dry her off - yes put her on only hay and water until she is dry, and then only maintenance ration (mine will get a handfull of goat mix and some sokaed sugarbeet shreds for that, maybe a few oats).
 
if you want to continue milking her, maintain feed (which is what?) and milk her twice a day. Completely remove the kid (behind a fence/hurdle). I found that my older girl (who had suckled her first kid when she came to me with her) is very canny and can put herself into a position where the kid can get her mouth through the bars and suckle... they are bright animals and her first duty is to her baby afterall...
 
If you think she is not quite in good condition (and you aren't desperate for the milk) - dry her off and then once she is dry give her a slightly higher ration - but make sure she is staying trim. If you plan to put her into kid (did she have triplets this year - if yes, don't) this autumn, make sure she is not going fat. I have had both my GG's down with Pregnancy toxeamia a couple of years ago - very stressful. This last year I made sure that the in-kid girl was quite slim, and only increased her food to more than maintenance in the last 6 weeks. She ate (albeit with strange preferences) till the end and delivered triplets with no problems! Now as skinny as a rake, but milking fine (and eating ) well enough.
 
But I also found that my T who had quite a few lumps in her udder all summer - all of a sudden they were gone in autumn. I can't even remember when exactly...., so if she is well (and more importantly doesn't get any worse - as in hot udder, runs a temperature etc) just keep doing what you are doing.
 
For what it's worth I also did the following: when I suspected another case of subclinical mastitis in my BT in the autumn I found an article that recommended feeding the goats quite high quantities of dolomite (a mineral containing Ca and Mg) - I increased the amounts of Caprivite - and vitamin C (powder available from health food shops as an ingredient in bread making, it is made by Doves Farms). It didn't increase the milk yields to really high levels but they recovered to what I would expect in late summer/autumn. Her udder is now soft and she is still being milked (run through). She did get to 1560kgs in her 365 day period.
 
There is a book: "Natural goat care" by Pat Coleby. Very interesting, if not relevant in all places as it is written for Australia and US.