[nihicib2]

Hi all


We have five goats we keep for milking, all different breeds and two have horns, they run together in the field but are penned separately at night with the horned ones apart from the other three, yesterday morning when I went in one of the three had somehow gotten in with the the two horned ones and she was acting very strange, very unlike her usual self (quite bossy and a bit of a dont mess with me attitude).  She was staring into space seemed unsteady on her feet and very disoriented.  She ate a small amount of feed but last night and this morning she is still the same, its like she doesnt know where she is, she seems almost blind but cant be as she doesnt trip over anything when she walks.  She has no marks or swelling on her and her temp is normal, the other two horned goats that she managed to get in with can be very violent to the others if they are in a confined space with them, so Im wondering could she have suffered brain damage from being basically battered by the two horned ones or could it be concussion?  Not sure what our vet could do if we called him out, its very upsetting to see her like this as she is my favourite and she just stands there with a vacant lost look, any advice please??

Brid

[plumseverywhere]

SOrry to hear about you goat Brid    Am no expert but I would call the vet I think, 'star gazing' could be a symptom of other conditions (thiamine deficiency, listeriosis...) and they could be treatable if caught in time. Especially as you can't find any marks from the horned goats on her, it could be worth a  check x

[wytsend]

I definitely second that  and urgently, really urgently.

[nihicib2]

phoning vet now thanks would it mean that it could pass onto the others should I keep her apart from them

[jaykay]

If she's confused then a separate pen might be a good idea anyway. What did the vet say?

[nihicib2]

Well he said as her temp is normal that its not listeriosis, he cant see her until half five so we have to wait until then, She seems comfortable enough with the others, the two nubians that are with her are gentle, she's just lying there staring at the wall but I have her covered with a blanket  I'm just so annoyed at myself that I didn't get the vet sooner, I honestly thought she had concussion from the other two butting her   is there anything I can do between now and the vet to make her more comfortable?

Thanks again
Brid

[doganjo]

Any update?  I don't have goats but I erally like them, and couldn't help reading about this poor girl.  Hope she's improving.

[ballingall]

Hope she is ok- there are some things that it could be disease wise, but none of them are especially good :-( I hope it's just been a knock.


Best wishes

Beth

[little blue]

how is the goat?  did the vet take bloods?

[jinglejoys]

A thought for the future.Have you seen bucks fighting in the wild,they really throw their heads into it(pardon the pun)so concussion is not often the option.
 I do hope your goat is better

[nihicib2]

Hi all, sorry for not getting back sooner, we had farmers market to bake for this morning, killed a pig during the week so we were doing some butchery and with Nora Bheag (wee Nora) being ill we're up to our eyes, took her to vet, he didn't take bloods, gave me a course of anti inflammatory injections and vitamin injections, also some glucose powder to mix with water to give to her because she was weak, she seems much perkier today and was eating hay this morning but still seems like she can't see properly, horrible rain all day so kept the others in with her and she kind of follows them around the stable, but the fact that she was up and about and eating gives me hope, the only worry is that I left it too late and she might have some sort of permanent damage, but time will tell, hopefully she will be ok, she's not the prettiest, biggest or most milk producing goat but she has an attitude that I love, as with all of ye the animals become part of the family and when one is ill its horrible, thanks for all the advice and the concern, I will keep ye updated on her progress 
Brid

[little blue]

have your goats been CAE tested?
Caprine arthritis encephalytis can manifest as wobbly, stargazey - ness....

[nihicib2]

No they haven't, we have five milking goats and its just for ourselves, we don't have a herd number or anything for them, not really sure if you need to in Ireland, we have herd numbers for the cattle and pigs, I will ask the vet about it and maybe get them tested, I don't know much about it to be honest
 

Brid

[jaykay]

Listeria can cause the sort of symptoms you've described, including the blindness. They can get it from mouldy food, silage being the chief offender.

The website I just read says the cure is thiamine (vit B) injections and anti-inflammatories to reduce the pressure on the optic nerve. Sounds like your vet is doing the right things, if this is what it might be!

[wytsend]

High temperature is one symptom as the Vet said, but it is not infallible as I found out.  I lost a goat to Listeria... she had got at a small amount of haylage with mould on it ( almost not possible to see it but tested positive) and her temperature stayed normal.   Did a PM afterwards... proven Listeria.