At times life likes to slap you in the face and remind you of the things that are most important. Typical human nature often causes us to take things for granted.
My slap in the face came on March 20th in the form of my mother. My mom is my best friend, the one who encourages me in all my various insanities, the one who is here at the drop of a hat no matter the crisis. My favorite childhood memories are of momma letting us play in mud puddles, then joining in. Climbing trees, building club houses, taking us exploring and doing her best to help us follow whatever dream we had at that point in time. She encouraged my “turtle farm” when I was 8 years old (which was actually just a huge enclosure that had 5 turtles in it), let me raise hundreds of tadpoles in my bedroom & she always let us lick the beaters when she made cake.
She did her best to always encourage us to enjoy life and pushed me to be a child and not so much the lil grown up I tended to be. Mom has a zest for life, and even though she’s never been dealt the best cards, she has always done her best and found a way to enjoy life regardless. She does the same with my children and my munchkins always eagerly look forward to a stay with Grandmama.
On March 20th, mom & I took a trip to visit Young’s Prairie Dairy in Elgin, Texas, to pick up some new goats and visit for a bit. Had a great day, got lost thanks to the Garmin and brought home the goats we intended to, plus one unplanned addition (I’ll post about them later). That evening when we got home though, my mom, who is a go-go-go always active person was very worn and tired.
For the past 3 weeks she’d been a lil slower and she thought it was because she was getting over a bug. Then she showed me the bruises. Huge, nasty, unexplained bruises. More troubling was the swelling on the left side of her abdomen. She made an appointment with a new doctor, but couldn’t get in until the end of April. Typical of my mother’s nature, she thought she’d just wait it out until April. I thought that was insane and took her to the ER.
Never in my life did I expect the doctor to come back with a Leukemia diagnosis (the swelling was her spleen). It is amazing how one little word can strike such soul deep terror. Sure, other people could have leukemia, but not MY mom! She’s so healthy, in great shape and always active . It felt like someone hit me in the gut and I just couldn’t catch my breath. I stood there, stupidly staring at the doctor waiting for her to say she was mistaken. They transferred mom to a bigger hospital and from there we spent the week having dozens and dozens of blood samples drawn.
Then came the bone marrow biopsy. I didn’t know they couldn’t give her sedation or pain meds before. I stood there, holding her hand as they did the procedure and prayed it would be over quickly. They didn’t get enough marrow for the test they wanted, so they took a sample of bone instead. Over the week they managed to get her white blood cell count down from 93,000 to 62,000. Put her on a medication to clear out the uric acid that was trying to build up and then a low dose thyroid medication.
Mom was bewildered when she first heard the diagnosis, but now is back trying to be the rock for everyone else. She is determined & optimistic.
She came home with me this weekend (only had to bring home the thyroid meds) and was thankful to be away from the hospital. We go back to see her oncologist on Monday so we can find out what type of leukemia (right now they are leaning towards chronic myelogenous leukemia) we are dealing with and then she will decide her treatment plan from there.
I’ve never not appreciated my mom, but now I make it a point to appreciate her even more…Even the small, mundane moments are things to be treasured. No one is immortal despite a child’s perception of their parent’s invincibility. Mom is the one person who has been there my entire life to dust me off & help me up when life didn’t play fair. The idea of her not being here is by far the scariest thing I have encountered. I can be a “doom & gloom” type of person…. Plan for the worst & hope for the best. But in this instance, I’m going to do my best to share my mom’s optimism. So I laugh, joke, and be silly just like she expects me to be. My brother, her brother, my husband and I have taken over many of the task she usually does and are trying to encouage her to take it easy...
Please keep her in your thoughts & prayers….. I don’t think I’ve ever met a more stubborn, determined person in all my life, so if anyone can beat this, MY momma can.
Sunday, March 25, 2012
Saturday, March 17, 2012
A Noodleville Bloody Battle of Wills
I’m naturally a stubborn person. Persistence is my middle name and I’ll usually stick with it until I accomplish my goal or until it becomes glaringly obvious that persistence is futile.
I really hate to confess that I may have met my match. Worse yet, standing so stubbornly against me is a goat.
This goat to be exact... Don't let that sweet, happy face fool ya....
That would be Bleuberry of course. She is a 1st freshener this year and our milk stand mambo every morning is getting old.
In the beginning I tried cutting her some slack… After all she had a rough kidding (mentioned here) and if you recall, she had a nasty leg injury a while back… Well I thought the multiple doctoring that injury required (all done on the stand) may have made her a lil wary of it.... So I tried very hard to be sympathetic...
We had a back breaking routine every morning……. She walks peacefully up to the stand, I break out the treats and try to coax her on. After failed bribery, I pick up her front end, place it on the stand, and pull her forward by her collar so she can’t back off. At the same time, I reach back with my other hand and try to grab a hind leg & heave her forward. Every day. Twice a day, this same old routine.
Bleuberry is not a small goat.
I am not a very strong person.
This game is no longer fun.
My sympathy and understanding are rapidly deteriorating.
This morning in particular I was up late the night before, didn’t sleep well, then my alarm didn’t go off so everything was a bit hectic. To say I was NOT in the mood for her nonsense is an understatement.
Our battle was more dramatic than usual… she finally figured out my trick and kept backing off the stand before I could grab a back leg, so it took several tries. Then she decided to do the jitter bug on the stand, spilling most of the milk and even splashing me with some. Since she can NOT win this, I ended up milking quite a bit on to the barn floor while she danced, hopped and snorted at me.
This is great because she finally got the hint that I will continue to milk, regardless of her actions. This is not great, because I would have to come out later and clean the barn floor so the milk wouldn’t sit and attract flies.
I finish up and I’m wearing more milk than I thought was possible.. My jeans are soaked and thanks to the holes in my jeans, I can even feel lil puddles of milk inside of my right boot!!!
Unreal!
Given how much I’m wearing, I’m assuming her production is decent… But I can’t say for sure because I haven’t got a full milking inside to weigh yet…… I grit my teeth, talk sweetly and give Bleuberry her customary treat for finally standing still. I was about to turn her loose when I realized I forgot to spray her teats.
In the beginning she was really fussy about the after milking spray. I use Fight Bac spray, and it’s a bit cold, so it took her some getting used to, but the past few days she’s not even flinched when I’ve sprayed her.
I walk around behind her, let her know I’m there, and hold one side so I can spray it well. Then move on to the next one…..
Then WHAM!
Before I even did the second spray, and without a bit of warning, she mule kicks me square in the face!
I really freaked because I thought she broke my nose and there was blood spraying everywhere. It is really quite amazing the amount of blood that can come from a nose.
I swear to you she purposely lulled me into a false sense of security and had this attack planned the entire time!
I don’t have anything but my barn towels to hold on my nose and I just bought new ones so I didn’t want to stain them up with blood. Since the entire front of my shirt was covered in blood anyways, I just held my shirt up to it, sprayed her teat and let her sit on the stand while I leaned against the fence holding my injured nose.
Called the barn cats up to finish what little milk actually made it into the bucket, & glared at Bleuberry the entire time I waited for the throbbing to subside and the blood to stop pouring.
On my trek back to the house, I fancy I might have looked like one of those action heros after the grand finale in a top notch action movie…
Ya know, like Bruce Willis dashing away from an explosion or something. Bloody, beat up, but triumphant...
There were no cool explosions behind me as a back drop, but still, the milk soaked clothes and blood EVERYWHERE looked pretty darn dramatic as I trudged back up to the house. Would have been even cooler if I were toting a weapon, or someone I rescued, instead of my milking caddy, but you work with what you have.
Whatever the image, I do know, without a doubt, that it was shocking, or perhaps “disturbing“ is a better word for it…….
Hair disheveled. Covered in sweat, milk soaked jeans, blood down the front of my shirt, a bit of blood smeared on my cheek & chin and strangely I had a good bit on my arm too….
This is the lovely image the Fedex man saw as I met him at the porch. His expression as he took me in was worth a thousand words. I really must start toting a camera just to capture these moments...
He asked if the name on the package was correct, did his lil' scanner thing, and warily asked if I was ok.
My uber cheerful reply?
“Oh sure.. I’m great! Just finished milking a goat…This weather is just fabulous, don’t ya think??? How are you doing today?”
His facial expression after that comment was far better than the first. The beaming smile and overly cheerful tone were a stark contrast to my bloodied appearance....
It took all I had not to giggle manically at him. Though now that I think of it, maybe I should have…. Would have been funny…
He wished me a speedy “Good Day” and was on his merry, wary way.
Poor guy, probably wondering how that much blood was involved in goat milking.....
Granted I *could* have explained myself better, but vague answers get much funnier reactions, and after my morning, a laugh at the expense of another was well earned. At least he did not get stuck in the situation I put the UPS MAN in a while back… That was a bit more awkward…. lol I really must make a note to try harder not to disturb, embarass or upset those who deliver my packages....
ANYWHO, looky what was in my package!!
Goat goodies! Dewormers, nipples & tubing so I can build a lambar feeder, needles, Fight Bac, syringes (much cheaper to buy in bulk online that to purchase from TSC), more dairy sanitizing products, new filters for my stainless steel strainer, coccidia meds, a new weight tape since Jasper ate mine, CIDR applicator, and some products for my momma too.
As a side note, for the evening milking, I told Bleuberry that there was NO way we were repeating this morning’s fiasco. She could cooperate and get treats, or I’d sell her for dog food. But one way or another, I was done, done, done with the drama, and all my understanding and patience went right out the door the moment she busted my nose.
She glared at me, ears back and stood right behind the stand. I held out a treat and calmly let her know this was her final chance to hop up unassisted......
After a minute of contemplating, she, for the very 1st time, 12 days after freshening and 25 back breaking, individual battles later, jumped up on the stand all by herself!!
Dunno if it was my tone of voice, or if she just sensed that I was finished, but either way, I’m thrilled…..
Persistence does pay off my friends…. Especially when it’s accompanied by a few threats.
-C.W
I really hate to confess that I may have met my match. Worse yet, standing so stubbornly against me is a goat.
This goat to be exact... Don't let that sweet, happy face fool ya....
That would be Bleuberry of course. She is a 1st freshener this year and our milk stand mambo every morning is getting old.
In the beginning I tried cutting her some slack… After all she had a rough kidding (mentioned here) and if you recall, she had a nasty leg injury a while back… Well I thought the multiple doctoring that injury required (all done on the stand) may have made her a lil wary of it.... So I tried very hard to be sympathetic...
We had a back breaking routine every morning……. She walks peacefully up to the stand, I break out the treats and try to coax her on. After failed bribery, I pick up her front end, place it on the stand, and pull her forward by her collar so she can’t back off. At the same time, I reach back with my other hand and try to grab a hind leg & heave her forward. Every day. Twice a day, this same old routine.
Bleuberry is not a small goat.
I am not a very strong person.
This game is no longer fun.
My sympathy and understanding are rapidly deteriorating.
This morning in particular I was up late the night before, didn’t sleep well, then my alarm didn’t go off so everything was a bit hectic. To say I was NOT in the mood for her nonsense is an understatement.
Our battle was more dramatic than usual… she finally figured out my trick and kept backing off the stand before I could grab a back leg, so it took several tries. Then she decided to do the jitter bug on the stand, spilling most of the milk and even splashing me with some. Since she can NOT win this, I ended up milking quite a bit on to the barn floor while she danced, hopped and snorted at me.
This is great because she finally got the hint that I will continue to milk, regardless of her actions. This is not great, because I would have to come out later and clean the barn floor so the milk wouldn’t sit and attract flies.
I finish up and I’m wearing more milk than I thought was possible.. My jeans are soaked and thanks to the holes in my jeans, I can even feel lil puddles of milk inside of my right boot!!!
Unreal!
Given how much I’m wearing, I’m assuming her production is decent… But I can’t say for sure because I haven’t got a full milking inside to weigh yet…… I grit my teeth, talk sweetly and give Bleuberry her customary treat for finally standing still. I was about to turn her loose when I realized I forgot to spray her teats.
In the beginning she was really fussy about the after milking spray. I use Fight Bac spray, and it’s a bit cold, so it took her some getting used to, but the past few days she’s not even flinched when I’ve sprayed her.
I walk around behind her, let her know I’m there, and hold one side so I can spray it well. Then move on to the next one…..
Then WHAM!
Before I even did the second spray, and without a bit of warning, she mule kicks me square in the face!
I really freaked because I thought she broke my nose and there was blood spraying everywhere. It is really quite amazing the amount of blood that can come from a nose.
I swear to you she purposely lulled me into a false sense of security and had this attack planned the entire time!
I don’t have anything but my barn towels to hold on my nose and I just bought new ones so I didn’t want to stain them up with blood. Since the entire front of my shirt was covered in blood anyways, I just held my shirt up to it, sprayed her teat and let her sit on the stand while I leaned against the fence holding my injured nose.
Called the barn cats up to finish what little milk actually made it into the bucket, & glared at Bleuberry the entire time I waited for the throbbing to subside and the blood to stop pouring.
On my trek back to the house, I fancy I might have looked like one of those action heros after the grand finale in a top notch action movie…
Ya know, like Bruce Willis dashing away from an explosion or something. Bloody, beat up, but triumphant...
 |
| Ok, ok.. Perhaps my slow trek back to the house wasn't THAT dramatic.. |
Whatever the image, I do know, without a doubt, that it was shocking, or perhaps “disturbing“ is a better word for it…….
Hair disheveled. Covered in sweat, milk soaked jeans, blood down the front of my shirt, a bit of blood smeared on my cheek & chin and strangely I had a good bit on my arm too….
This is the lovely image the Fedex man saw as I met him at the porch. His expression as he took me in was worth a thousand words. I really must start toting a camera just to capture these moments...
He asked if the name on the package was correct, did his lil' scanner thing, and warily asked if I was ok.
My uber cheerful reply?
“Oh sure.. I’m great! Just finished milking a goat…This weather is just fabulous, don’t ya think??? How are you doing today?”
His facial expression after that comment was far better than the first. The beaming smile and overly cheerful tone were a stark contrast to my bloodied appearance....
It took all I had not to giggle manically at him. Though now that I think of it, maybe I should have…. Would have been funny…
He wished me a speedy “Good Day” and was on his merry, wary way.
Poor guy, probably wondering how that much blood was involved in goat milking.....
Granted I *could* have explained myself better, but vague answers get much funnier reactions, and after my morning, a laugh at the expense of another was well earned. At least he did not get stuck in the situation I put the UPS MAN in a while back… That was a bit more awkward…. lol I really must make a note to try harder not to disturb, embarass or upset those who deliver my packages....
ANYWHO, looky what was in my package!!
Goat goodies! Dewormers, nipples & tubing so I can build a lambar feeder, needles, Fight Bac, syringes (much cheaper to buy in bulk online that to purchase from TSC), more dairy sanitizing products, new filters for my stainless steel strainer, coccidia meds, a new weight tape since Jasper ate mine, CIDR applicator, and some products for my momma too.
As a side note, for the evening milking, I told Bleuberry that there was NO way we were repeating this morning’s fiasco. She could cooperate and get treats, or I’d sell her for dog food. But one way or another, I was done, done, done with the drama, and all my understanding and patience went right out the door the moment she busted my nose.
She glared at me, ears back and stood right behind the stand. I held out a treat and calmly let her know this was her final chance to hop up unassisted......
After a minute of contemplating, she, for the very 1st time, 12 days after freshening and 25 back breaking, individual battles later, jumped up on the stand all by herself!!
Dunno if it was my tone of voice, or if she just sensed that I was finished, but either way, I’m thrilled…..
Persistence does pay off my friends…. Especially when it’s accompanied by a few threats.
-C.W
Friday, March 16, 2012
Noodleville Updates-Both Happy & Sad
Hey there blogger world.
One of my readers brought it to my attention that I’ve neglected my blog for well over a month now……
I do apologize, I’ve kind of been in hiding I suppose… licking my wounds.
As many of you know, my dairy goats are a big part of my life and I’ve suffered some terrible losses this year.
First though, some good news. I left y’all hanging on my last post, but I’m happy to update that Sabrina had two healthy bucks and milked very well. One boy, now named Moose, was huge… 12lbs and already had visible horn buds at birth! The other lil man, Toby, was 8lbs, and had wattles.
I evaluated my herd and made some decisions on where I want to go with it…. Sabrina, though a FABULOUS milker, didn’t fit into my plans and since I can’t maintain a large herd, I had to make cuts. She went to a great home though… 1st time dairy goat owners who needed milk and we stay in touch regularly. Sabrina is the easiest to milk, most tolerant animal I ever met and she has been just wonderful with her new family and very tolerant of everyone learning to milk on her. Toby, the lil buck with wattles, went with her as a companion and is spoiled rotten by their 5 children and they are loving the fresh milk & have been making yogurt by the gallons. Moose, that chunk, went to replace a buck who was lost to snake bite last year.
Now a bit of the bad. After deciding which way I wanted to go with my herd and breeding plans, I scraped up the funds to buy a beautiful bred doe named Astra. She was my idea of perfection and I worked so hard to get her, then drove 5 hours to pick her up…. Sadly, she came home with pregnancy toxemia and due to some inaccurate, but well meant advice, I missed the early warning signs.
We progressed to hypocalcemia & ketosis so rapidly.
Days spent in the barn injecting calcium, spoon feeding her, drenching with alfalfa gruel, trying to boost her energy with sugar…Kefir for her rumen, stole cud from a healthy doe to drench into her (almost lost a thumb in the process), set up a dextrose IV, minced hay in the food processor to feed tiny bits at a time….. Every 2 hours, day & night, tending to her….
Days of sitting in the barn floor praying, begging or crying…..Small improvements that gave me hope…..only to be followed by crashes that had me watching with a desperate hopelessness….
I can’t describe the hopeless horror of watching a dream blow up in your face. Worse yet, that dream felt pain and looked at me pleadingly and I couldn’t fix it… Astra was something I thought I could never have and having this thrown in my lap was just awful.
We had to make a choice…Our hope was to pull the kids early to take the strain off her so she could recover.. But when the vet arrived, it turned into a last minute c-section to hopefully save a kid, but certainly not Astra. Instead we lost all 3. She had a beautiful cou blanc buck with wattles, and a broken chamoisee doeling…. I couldn’t have asked for more… It was exactly what I wanted and in the end I only got to hold dead kids and gave Astra an apology before we released her. Many people don’t understand…Some don’t see what all the fuss is over a goat, but I can’t explain it to folks who haven’t experienced what I have….
To my goat friends & mentors… Many of you were right there with me through this and I can’t thank you enough for your support and help. Y’all kept me going and though we didn’t get the outcome we hoped for, I’m so thankful for the help & encouragement.
To those who own goats, please read Sue Reith’s Hypocalcemia & Ketosis information. It is valuable information.
A few lessons I took away from this that may be helpful to some….. Have your vet give you a bottle of injectable CMPK to keep on hand (Vet RX). It is much, much more effective than oral CMPK (sold OTC), and unlike oral CMPK it doesn’t have a harsh carrier that burns (oral CMPK burns the throat).
Inject 30ccs, SubQ and make sure the injections are warmed to body temperature. I microwaved a damp towel until burning hot, then wrapped my syringes in it and reheated the cloth & rewrapped as many times as needed until I got it to body temp (which goat body temp is warmer than humans)……
My vet didn’t have any CMPK injectable on hand (it’s an RX) so I had to make due with injectable calcium gluconate (sold OTC at TSC for cattle, give 30ccs, SubQ at body temp). I now have 2 bottles of CMPK injectable on hand, but if you can’t get any, at least keep calcium gluconate on hand. Sue Reith also has a recipe for homemade CMPK *here*. It won’t work as fast as injecting it, but unlike the oral CMPK you purchase, this you just make with ingredients from the vitamin isle and mix with warm water to give orally… So no caustic carrier like the oral CMPK.
If you catch the warning signs early enough, the homemade CMPK could just save your doe, but I would still urge you to try to get the injectable (or injectable calcium gluconate) on hand for emergency situations…..
These metabolic issues progress RAPIDLY and as I learned, mere minutes count. Had I caught the small warning signs sooner, I may have been able to save her...
For a doe needing sugar (ketosis), buy a $5 of injectable dextrose from TSC. It’s listed as an IV for cattle, but you can give orally and at the same time, give injections, SubQ, 30ccs at a time as often as needed. Keep several bottles on hand. I found out about this too late, but it did perk Astra up a bit.. Better than anything else we tried.
I also had to use the dextrose recently on another doe... She went off her feed after kidding and her urine had a slight "sweet" smell to it. Tested it with a ketone strip and it turned purple. Warmed up 2 syringes with 30cc each, injected the dextrose SubQ over the ribs (one shot on each side) and then drenched her with 60cc orally. Gave 30cc of CMPK injectable & repeated the dextrose in 2 hours. Then again. Next barn trip she wanted her grain. Did one more round before bed, and the following morning I tested he urine with the ketone strips and nothing showed up. So if you are quick, catch the signs early, you CAN turn around metabolic issues like ketosis & hypocalcemia. Anytime you have a doe go off feed... Check her temp!! Don't ignore it.
Many sites recommend propylene glycol for ketosis. I know it *can* help, but try a bit on your tongue. It HURTS!!! Very caustic and can burn the esophagus making them not want to eat which does even more damage........ Not to mention, something of that nature isn’t friendly to beneficial & necessary rumen flora…
I’m not knocking those who use it, but I’m happy I found an alternative. I will not touch propylene glycol, or items that contain it (Nutri-Drench) with a 10ft pole... Most especially when I found something more gentle, more easily accepted and not harsh.The injectable dextrose is YUMMY (yea, I try goat meds…) and it’s a double whammy because they can have it orally and by injection.
My nerves are still raw from the ordeal with Astra. I didn’t have her long, but when ya sleep in the barn with a goat for days, it speeds the bonding process. All the “what ifs” & “should haves” haunt me. The images from my barn that night are torture. It looked like a scene from a horror movie after it was all finished and it took me 2 days to fully clean it as I could only bear so much at once…
I thought I was made of tougher stuff, but this one really hit me hard. Knowing what I know now, I wish I would have given up sooner and saved her the pain. But I stubbornly thought that if I held on, if I did more, prayed harder, or begged more I could fix her. I’m sorry I couldn’t offer her more than my lap and tears at the end.
I will never buy another doe, on management so different than mine (she had no real calcium source in her diet prior to coming home with me) who is bred and so close to kidding. The move I think, tipped the odds against her.
Very hard lessons, but at least I learned them and I hope to never go through such an ordeal ever again.
For brighter news, Bleuberry kidded on March 5th. Weirdest labor ever. Contractions were sporadic.. Weak, then strong, then gone. Even with the help of CMPK injectable (good for hypocalcaemia and sluggish labor) and oxytocin, we could not get real contractions from her! During the process she tried to lick the skin right off me… Lick…lick..lick, then a sharp bite when a contraction hit. I’m sporting bruises from the bites!
After a while with no progress, my mom ended up fishing the kid out. Good grief, that was awful.
He didn’t want to come out and he was big. This is Bleuberry’s first kidding and she had a 12 1/2lb buckling. Poor Bleuberry has some tearing from it and I just felt awful…
Add to it, she wouldn’t contract afterwards to expel the placenta. We went in and massaged the cervix, that got us some contractions, but not much. Then we kind of did this heimlich maneuver with our hands right in front of her udder and pulled sharply up…. After several rounds of this we finally got her to start expelling the placenta. She’s got a bit of udder congestion and was pretty sore, but she's mending well....
Applied Preparation H to help ease the pain from tearing (which she seemed to appreciate), did a round of antibiotics, and babied her with hot molasses water and her favorite treats. We pulled her kid at birth and he left as a bottle baby shortly after. I was just too tired to deal with him and since I wasn’t keeping him, it was better to place him sooner rather than later. Bleuberry never saw him and bonded to us instead….. Licks us and baby talks to us….Very sweet, but the down side is she screams like crazy when her baby (me) leaves the barn.
We have had a few awkward moments when I sit in the barn and she starts cleaning me, then starts nudging me towards her udder like she would a kid… Milk stand time has had it’s ups & downs, but other than the huge battle of getting her up there, we aren’t doing too bad at all. She's a first fresehener, so I cut her some slack. Hopefully in time things will go a bit more smoothly.... Pleased with the udder I’m seeing so far… It’s not going to be as nice or productive as it could have been if she would have had multiples instead of a single, but it’s well attached, high in the rear & good sized teats that are easy to milk… Still needs time, but I’m excited about the potential she’s showing.
Anywho, I am done kidding until May and am so thankful for that. I am down to Bleuberry, Casper, Comanche and Tonka after my losses & herd thinning and have to work to rebuild my Alpine herd….
Kind of feels like I’m starting at square 1 all over again, but I feel like I have a better idea of what my goals are, so hopefully this year I can work towards those goals & tuck the heart break away for a little while.
One of my readers brought it to my attention that I’ve neglected my blog for well over a month now……
I do apologize, I’ve kind of been in hiding I suppose… licking my wounds.
As many of you know, my dairy goats are a big part of my life and I’ve suffered some terrible losses this year.
First though, some good news. I left y’all hanging on my last post, but I’m happy to update that Sabrina had two healthy bucks and milked very well. One boy, now named Moose, was huge… 12lbs and already had visible horn buds at birth! The other lil man, Toby, was 8lbs, and had wattles.
 |
| Toby, Cou Blanc buckling |
 |
| Sabrina & buckling |
Now a bit of the bad. After deciding which way I wanted to go with my herd and breeding plans, I scraped up the funds to buy a beautiful bred doe named Astra. She was my idea of perfection and I worked so hard to get her, then drove 5 hours to pick her up…. Sadly, she came home with pregnancy toxemia and due to some inaccurate, but well meant advice, I missed the early warning signs.
We progressed to hypocalcemia & ketosis so rapidly.
Days spent in the barn injecting calcium, spoon feeding her, drenching with alfalfa gruel, trying to boost her energy with sugar…Kefir for her rumen, stole cud from a healthy doe to drench into her (almost lost a thumb in the process), set up a dextrose IV, minced hay in the food processor to feed tiny bits at a time….. Every 2 hours, day & night, tending to her….
Days of sitting in the barn floor praying, begging or crying…..Small improvements that gave me hope…..only to be followed by crashes that had me watching with a desperate hopelessness….
I can’t describe the hopeless horror of watching a dream blow up in your face. Worse yet, that dream felt pain and looked at me pleadingly and I couldn’t fix it… Astra was something I thought I could never have and having this thrown in my lap was just awful.
We had to make a choice…Our hope was to pull the kids early to take the strain off her so she could recover.. But when the vet arrived, it turned into a last minute c-section to hopefully save a kid, but certainly not Astra. Instead we lost all 3. She had a beautiful cou blanc buck with wattles, and a broken chamoisee doeling…. I couldn’t have asked for more… It was exactly what I wanted and in the end I only got to hold dead kids and gave Astra an apology before we released her. Many people don’t understand…Some don’t see what all the fuss is over a goat, but I can’t explain it to folks who haven’t experienced what I have….
 |
| RIP Astra |
To those who own goats, please read Sue Reith’s Hypocalcemia & Ketosis information. It is valuable information.
A few lessons I took away from this that may be helpful to some….. Have your vet give you a bottle of injectable CMPK to keep on hand (Vet RX). It is much, much more effective than oral CMPK (sold OTC), and unlike oral CMPK it doesn’t have a harsh carrier that burns (oral CMPK burns the throat).
Inject 30ccs, SubQ and make sure the injections are warmed to body temperature. I microwaved a damp towel until burning hot, then wrapped my syringes in it and reheated the cloth & rewrapped as many times as needed until I got it to body temp (which goat body temp is warmer than humans)……
My vet didn’t have any CMPK injectable on hand (it’s an RX) so I had to make due with injectable calcium gluconate (sold OTC at TSC for cattle, give 30ccs, SubQ at body temp). I now have 2 bottles of CMPK injectable on hand, but if you can’t get any, at least keep calcium gluconate on hand. Sue Reith also has a recipe for homemade CMPK *here*. It won’t work as fast as injecting it, but unlike the oral CMPK you purchase, this you just make with ingredients from the vitamin isle and mix with warm water to give orally… So no caustic carrier like the oral CMPK.
If you catch the warning signs early enough, the homemade CMPK could just save your doe, but I would still urge you to try to get the injectable (or injectable calcium gluconate) on hand for emergency situations…..
These metabolic issues progress RAPIDLY and as I learned, mere minutes count. Had I caught the small warning signs sooner, I may have been able to save her...
For a doe needing sugar (ketosis), buy a $5 of injectable dextrose from TSC. It’s listed as an IV for cattle, but you can give orally and at the same time, give injections, SubQ, 30ccs at a time as often as needed. Keep several bottles on hand. I found out about this too late, but it did perk Astra up a bit.. Better than anything else we tried.
I also had to use the dextrose recently on another doe... She went off her feed after kidding and her urine had a slight "sweet" smell to it. Tested it with a ketone strip and it turned purple. Warmed up 2 syringes with 30cc each, injected the dextrose SubQ over the ribs (one shot on each side) and then drenched her with 60cc orally. Gave 30cc of CMPK injectable & repeated the dextrose in 2 hours. Then again. Next barn trip she wanted her grain. Did one more round before bed, and the following morning I tested he urine with the ketone strips and nothing showed up. So if you are quick, catch the signs early, you CAN turn around metabolic issues like ketosis & hypocalcemia. Anytime you have a doe go off feed... Check her temp!! Don't ignore it.
Many sites recommend propylene glycol for ketosis. I know it *can* help, but try a bit on your tongue. It HURTS!!! Very caustic and can burn the esophagus making them not want to eat which does even more damage........ Not to mention, something of that nature isn’t friendly to beneficial & necessary rumen flora…
I’m not knocking those who use it, but I’m happy I found an alternative. I will not touch propylene glycol, or items that contain it (Nutri-Drench) with a 10ft pole... Most especially when I found something more gentle, more easily accepted and not harsh.The injectable dextrose is YUMMY (yea, I try goat meds…) and it’s a double whammy because they can have it orally and by injection.
My nerves are still raw from the ordeal with Astra. I didn’t have her long, but when ya sleep in the barn with a goat for days, it speeds the bonding process. All the “what ifs” & “should haves” haunt me. The images from my barn that night are torture. It looked like a scene from a horror movie after it was all finished and it took me 2 days to fully clean it as I could only bear so much at once…
I thought I was made of tougher stuff, but this one really hit me hard. Knowing what I know now, I wish I would have given up sooner and saved her the pain. But I stubbornly thought that if I held on, if I did more, prayed harder, or begged more I could fix her. I’m sorry I couldn’t offer her more than my lap and tears at the end.
I will never buy another doe, on management so different than mine (she had no real calcium source in her diet prior to coming home with me) who is bred and so close to kidding. The move I think, tipped the odds against her.
Very hard lessons, but at least I learned them and I hope to never go through such an ordeal ever again.
For brighter news, Bleuberry kidded on March 5th. Weirdest labor ever. Contractions were sporadic.. Weak, then strong, then gone. Even with the help of CMPK injectable (good for hypocalcaemia and sluggish labor) and oxytocin, we could not get real contractions from her! During the process she tried to lick the skin right off me… Lick…lick..lick, then a sharp bite when a contraction hit. I’m sporting bruises from the bites!
After a while with no progress, my mom ended up fishing the kid out. Good grief, that was awful.
He didn’t want to come out and he was big. This is Bleuberry’s first kidding and she had a 12 1/2lb buckling. Poor Bleuberry has some tearing from it and I just felt awful…
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| Bleu's buckling... Pretty smokey color. |
Add to it, she wouldn’t contract afterwards to expel the placenta. We went in and massaged the cervix, that got us some contractions, but not much. Then we kind of did this heimlich maneuver with our hands right in front of her udder and pulled sharply up…. After several rounds of this we finally got her to start expelling the placenta. She’s got a bit of udder congestion and was pretty sore, but she's mending well....
Applied Preparation H to help ease the pain from tearing (which she seemed to appreciate), did a round of antibiotics, and babied her with hot molasses water and her favorite treats. We pulled her kid at birth and he left as a bottle baby shortly after. I was just too tired to deal with him and since I wasn’t keeping him, it was better to place him sooner rather than later. Bleuberry never saw him and bonded to us instead….. Licks us and baby talks to us….Very sweet, but the down side is she screams like crazy when her baby (me) leaves the barn.
We have had a few awkward moments when I sit in the barn and she starts cleaning me, then starts nudging me towards her udder like she would a kid… Milk stand time has had it’s ups & downs, but other than the huge battle of getting her up there, we aren’t doing too bad at all. She's a first fresehener, so I cut her some slack. Hopefully in time things will go a bit more smoothly.... Pleased with the udder I’m seeing so far… It’s not going to be as nice or productive as it could have been if she would have had multiples instead of a single, but it’s well attached, high in the rear & good sized teats that are easy to milk… Still needs time, but I’m excited about the potential she’s showing.
Anywho, I am done kidding until May and am so thankful for that. I am down to Bleuberry, Casper, Comanche and Tonka after my losses & herd thinning and have to work to rebuild my Alpine herd….
Kind of feels like I’m starting at square 1 all over again, but I feel like I have a better idea of what my goals are, so hopefully this year I can work towards those goals & tuck the heart break away for a little while.
Friday, January 27, 2012
Life's lil' Luxuries & The Unbearable Waiting Game
Yesterday I took advantage of the beautiful weather & did some much needed cleaning. Scraped all the old bedding out of the barn, limed the floors, let it air and added a fresh layer of new dirt. Dumped in 2 big ol’ bags of fresh shavings and turned the goats loose to check out their new spic & span sleeping area.
Bleuberry LOVED it…more so than anyone else. Everyone else sniffed, nibbled on a few shavings and then headed back to the alfalfa pellet feeder. Bleuberry luxuriated in all that freshness…
Yesterday afternoon looked promising though. She started digging, nesting and moaning a bit. I thought “Surely it’s today!” Bleuberry was the only goat Sabrina wanted around and she would actually cry if Bleuberry left. I snapped this picture of them in the barn together… Every time Sabrina would groan, Bleuberry would start grooming her… So Sweet!
Since I’m not well rested and over the moon excited, you can guess that Brina didn’t kid yesterday. After a few pitiful hours, she got up as if nothing was going on and chowed down on hay. This morning though her belly has dropped and is hanging low instead of bulging out high to the sides, so maybe, just maybe we can have some lil ones before the day is up….
Bleuberry LOVED it…more so than anyone else. Everyone else sniffed, nibbled on a few shavings and then headed back to the alfalfa pellet feeder. Bleuberry luxuriated in all that freshness…
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| That is an expression of pure bliss! |
Silly girl! Speaking of Bleuberry…. We drew blood and sent off samples to Biotracking to test for CAE & pregnancy. My CAE results came back last Friday (Negative!! Woo Hoo!) and two days ago I got my pregnancy results and am very happy to announce that Bleuberry is pregnant and due March 5, 2012! She’s a big girl (can‘t tell if she‘s pregnant by looking at her like you can with Sabrina), who doesn’t cycle regularly and didn’t take last year so I was on pins & needles waiting for those pregnancy results!
And of course we get to that “Waiting Game”......
Apparently Sabrina is out of the loop, but she was due to kid, YESTERDAY. Since I’m pulling her kids to bottle raise on CAE prevention, I need to attend the birth. Which means for the last week I’ve been doing barn checks every few hours….around the clock, day & night... (to say I’m slightly grumpy & really sleepy is an understatement).
Yesterday afternoon looked promising though. She started digging, nesting and moaning a bit. I thought “Surely it’s today!” Bleuberry was the only goat Sabrina wanted around and she would actually cry if Bleuberry left. I snapped this picture of them in the barn together… Every time Sabrina would groan, Bleuberry would start grooming her… So Sweet!
Since I’m not well rested and over the moon excited, you can guess that Brina didn’t kid yesterday. After a few pitiful hours, she got up as if nothing was going on and chowed down on hay. This morning though her belly has dropped and is hanging low instead of bulging out high to the sides, so maybe, just maybe we can have some lil ones before the day is up….
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| Waiting...waiting...waiting.... |
Friday, January 6, 2012
A Noodleville "How To": Copper Bolusing
Why?
Well, because most of them provide really useful info in an entertaining format… Throw in a healthy dose of life experiences/stories and I’m a happy reader.
My blog is mostly a place where I jot down various happenings in my life, but rarely do I post actual useable info.
Not sure how this is going to go, but I’m going to attempt to sporadically post useful “How To’s” in the future. Do note that I said sporadically…this gets me & my sporadic, hectic, unscheduled self off the hook for posting specifics at particular times.
So… Today’s “How To” is going to be about copper bolusing goats. In advance, I’ll forewarn y’all that this isn’t necessarily the gospel, it’s not the ONLY way to do things and I won’t be getting overly scientific on y’all.
Copper has been linked to fertility, parasite resistance, growth, resistance to disease, & general over all health. Most minerals do not provide adequate levels of copper to meet the needs of goats. Copper bolusing is a fantastic way to give a slow release copper supplement.
Copper deficiency can show itself in numerous ways. Also, blood samples are not a reliable way to check for copper levels in goats, the best way to check copper levels is by liver biopsy…Which can be performed during a necropsy (I personally don‘t know any vets willing to do it on a live goat, but it can be done). Handy for the goat owner to get a view on how things are going with their management… Not so handy for the goat having the necropsy.
So, here are a few outward signs of copper deficiency I can show you from my own goats (do keep in mind, these are not the only signs, just sharing a few from my herd).
Sabrina came to me looking a bit rough. Her diet had been a mineral block, heavy sweet feeds (covered in molasses, which is high in iron and high iron levels inhibit copper absorption), rationed alfalfa hay, unlimited grass hay and grazing/browse. If you look at her tail tip in this picture shortly after we brought her home you can see she has a “fish tail” with a bald tail tip and the remaining tail hair resembles a fish tail. Many goats will grow this hair back after proper mineral needs are met and maintained, some won’t. Sabrina’s has filled in some, though not fully so I’m still waiting to see if hers will fill in.
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| Sabrina 2011. Note the coarse coat & "fish tail" |
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| Before Copper. January 2011 Brittle, coarse hair. Discoloration affected all dark hairs |
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| After Copper. January 2012. Hair has no discoloration, it's sleek, smooth (and covered in hay bits) |
Another sign of copper deficiency is a fading out of the coat, or what some folks call "ghosting". Bleuberry shows deficiency this way. She has no noticeable "fish tail" or burnt hair tips. I can't give you pictures of her as I shaved her down and don't have the "before" pics to share.... Just keep in mind, that even within one herd, animals can display deficiencies differently.
To make a copper bolus I rely on the info provided by Joyce Lazzaro at Saanendoah. Her site will give you all the scientific, technical info on her copper studies (plus show you the other signs of copper deficiency not shown here). Fantastic read, great pictures and any goat owner really should take the time to read her information.
First you’ll need to buy a bottle of Copasure. I buy mine from Jeffer’s Livestock. These are copper boluses made up for cattle so you’ll need to break them down into smaller doses for goats. The $40+ may seem steep, but a little goes a long way so this should last you quite a while. I'll have to double check, but we bolused my mom's 3 miniature does, my 2 Lamanchas, and the 2 Alpine does & I think we used 3-4 of the boluses total and we typically bolus every 4 months.
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| Copasure & a calf sized bolus |
Using a postal scale, you weigh out the appropriate dose of copper needed for your goat. Repackage the rods into smaller gel capsules. I place the lil' foam pad from the Copasure container on my scale, zero it out, then pour on the copper rods.
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| Copper Oxide rods inide a bolus |
I buy the smaller gel capsules at the health food store, but recently noticed Jeffer's is now carrying them, as are several other online vendors. You can buy a variety of sizes but I personally prefer to package all my boluses in one size gel capsule & fill accordingly. I dose according to the data collected by Joyce Lazzaro which is 1 gram per 22lbs.
Ok, ok, I confess… I seem to be the only bolusing challenged person in the whole world!!!!!!!
I was instructed to use the smallest baling gun. I tried that. I got chomped up, spit out boluses. I found it too long, bulky, and thought it did a very poor job of holding the smaller bolus (even with peanut butter!). The goal here is to get the entire bolus swallowed WHOLE. Which means, using the baling gun, you hold open the mouth, put the baling gun as far back as possible…. I’m not talking just in the mouth. I mean over the back of the tongue and into the throat. Once in position you push the plunger and shoot the bolus, whole, down their throat.
I saw videos. I had helpful folks walk me through the process and give me 10,000 pointers. Yet, while all my goaty friends were swiftly, happily bolusing their goats, I was not. I tried empty horse dewormer tubes… Still a no go. I gave up, and went for an alternative method. Hiding the rods in treats. Sabrina would swallow an orange slice with a bolus in it with no problem. My miniature doe liked marshmallows. The rest? Not so much…they spit, chomped and basically did whatever possible to thwart me with every treat imaginable.
Sadistic lil critters!
Then I found my life saver in the form of a $3 piece of plastic.
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| "Quick & Easy Pill Dispenser" with 2 goat sized boluses inside |
This pill gun known as "The Quick & Easy Pill Dispenser" freaking rocks!!!!!
Granted, it’s not as long as a baling gun, so I have to hold their mouth open wide and get it back there but that’s no biggey. This lil pill gun can hold 2 goat sized boluses at once and fits easily in my hand.
Granted, it’s not as long as a baling gun, so I have to hold their mouth open wide and get it back there but that’s no biggey. This lil pill gun can hold 2 goat sized boluses at once and fits easily in my hand.
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| Pill dispenser with loaded with 2 goat boluses |
Follow up with a treat while saying “Nummy, Nummy” and you’re all done! To ensure your pill gun is longer lived, I highly recommend wrapping the barrel in several layers of duct tape or electrical tape, otherwise goat teeth will damage it after several uses.
I say “Nummy, Nummy” in a "sing-song" voice while giving all oral meds to goats & children. I think it helps the process, my kids contradict me.
Now, a few things to keep in mind. In the front, goats only have bottom teeth, no top teeth, instead on top they have a hard “dental pad“. However, in the back they have both top and bottom teeth that are SHARP! Your dog’s molars have nothing on the molars of a goat and I promise you, you do not want to get your fingers caught!
Here is a handy picture showing you the anatomy of a goat’s mouth. You can see the lower incisors in the front, the gap, then the razor sharp molars in the back.
When bolusing, I straddle the goat, grab from the top and hold firmly in that toothless gap, careful to keep my fingers away from the chomping molars. Tilt the head back, push pill gun up over the tongue and as far back as I can get it, then push the plunger, close their mouth and shove a treat in!! With Bleuberry, I'm not tall enough to straddle her, so I lock her in the milkstand to bolus her. Easy Peasy! So easy in fact, that Clayton, my 8 year old, bolused Casper without a single problem….No spit out boluses, no chomped boluses, and no missing fingers.
Now, there is some debate on whether or not bolusing via treats is as reliable as the traditional baling gun (or pet pill gun) method, I‘m not getting into all that here. I did the treat method out of desperation, but in all honesty, I prefer the pill gun and giving full, un-chewed boluses. That way I KNOW without a doubt that they received their full dose.
Here is a nifty lil diagram illustrating how the bolus actually works:
Now, do keep in mind that copper is just one part in the mineral equation. Depending on your area you may have other deficiencies to worry about. For my area, and my herd, I have best results copper bolusing every 3-4 months, and I also give Bo-Se which is an injectable Vitamin E/Selenium that you can obtain with a vet RX. In addition to this I feed a high quality LOOSE mineral.
Emphasis on LOOSE mineral, as in bagged and similar to coarse sand in texture. Yes, there are mineral blocks available, but have you ever been licked by a goat? If not, come over and I’ll set Sabrina on ya.
Goats have very smooth tongues like a dog does which make it a bit more difficult to get all they need simply by licking at the block. Mineral blocks are typically full of cheap salts, so the goat needs to consume more of the block in order to meet it’s mineral needs. Problem is, the goat is attracted to the mineral block because of the salt and they typically get their fill of salt before they've come close to consuming the necessary amount of minerals. So all in all, while it’s a convenient concept, to me, a mineral block is worthless.
There are a variety of loose minerals on the market. Steer clear of “Sheep & Goat” minerals. Copper in high amounts is toxic to sheep, while studies have shown that goats need a good bit of it, so a mineral safe for sheep just isn't going to come close to meeting a goat’s copper needs. I prefer to buy dark, loose minerals…grey, brownish, earthy-toned ones. The red ones usually contain higher levels of iron and iron inhibits copper absorption. Add in that many of the red minerals have iffy amounts and sources of copper to begin with and it’s just not worth the money. My all time favorite mineral is Bluebonnet Techmaster Complete. Smells sooooo good, and has added kelp, yeast & probiotics.
I say “Nummy, Nummy” in a "sing-song" voice while giving all oral meds to goats & children. I think it helps the process, my kids contradict me.
Now, a few things to keep in mind. In the front, goats only have bottom teeth, no top teeth, instead on top they have a hard “dental pad“. However, in the back they have both top and bottom teeth that are SHARP! Your dog’s molars have nothing on the molars of a goat and I promise you, you do not want to get your fingers caught!
Here is a handy picture showing you the anatomy of a goat’s mouth. You can see the lower incisors in the front, the gap, then the razor sharp molars in the back.
When bolusing, I straddle the goat, grab from the top and hold firmly in that toothless gap, careful to keep my fingers away from the chomping molars. Tilt the head back, push pill gun up over the tongue and as far back as I can get it, then push the plunger, close their mouth and shove a treat in!! With Bleuberry, I'm not tall enough to straddle her, so I lock her in the milkstand to bolus her. Easy Peasy! So easy in fact, that Clayton, my 8 year old, bolused Casper without a single problem….No spit out boluses, no chomped boluses, and no missing fingers.
Now, there is some debate on whether or not bolusing via treats is as reliable as the traditional baling gun (or pet pill gun) method, I‘m not getting into all that here. I did the treat method out of desperation, but in all honesty, I prefer the pill gun and giving full, un-chewed boluses. That way I KNOW without a doubt that they received their full dose.
Here is a nifty lil diagram illustrating how the bolus actually works:
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| How the bolus works. Photo courtesy of Joyce Lazzaro by way of Animax Vet |
Emphasis on LOOSE mineral, as in bagged and similar to coarse sand in texture. Yes, there are mineral blocks available, but have you ever been licked by a goat? If not, come over and I’ll set Sabrina on ya.
Goats have very smooth tongues like a dog does which make it a bit more difficult to get all they need simply by licking at the block. Mineral blocks are typically full of cheap salts, so the goat needs to consume more of the block in order to meet it’s mineral needs. Problem is, the goat is attracted to the mineral block because of the salt and they typically get their fill of salt before they've come close to consuming the necessary amount of minerals. So all in all, while it’s a convenient concept, to me, a mineral block is worthless.
There are a variety of loose minerals on the market. Steer clear of “Sheep & Goat” minerals. Copper in high amounts is toxic to sheep, while studies have shown that goats need a good bit of it, so a mineral safe for sheep just isn't going to come close to meeting a goat’s copper needs. I prefer to buy dark, loose minerals…grey, brownish, earthy-toned ones. The red ones usually contain higher levels of iron and iron inhibits copper absorption. Add in that many of the red minerals have iffy amounts and sources of copper to begin with and it’s just not worth the money. My all time favorite mineral is Bluebonnet Techmaster Complete. Smells sooooo good, and has added kelp, yeast & probiotics.
Sadly, Techmaster is not available in all areas. Used it for many years before my local dealer closed up shop, so for a few years I used Cargill Right Now Onyx, a cattle mineral, and the goats did well on it.
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| My loose mineral of choice. A 50lb bag last FOREVER. |
To be truly scientific I have even tried a few for comparison.... And yes, by "tried", I mean I went on a taste testing spree.
I licked a mineral block, a salt block and tried a pinch of both the Techmaster & the Cargill Right Now Onyx loose minerals. Salt block obviously was the saltiest. That mineral block was almost as salty as the pure salt block, with a hint of earthy undertones and my loose minerals were kinda gross (or should I say "very earthly"?)… I could taste a SLIGHT saltiness, but it was barely there… So given that controlled, uber scientific experiment, I have proven that my loose mineral of choice isn't chock full of cheap, filler salts.
True, I also read the labels as well, but the taste testing, IMO, made the whole thing more legit.
Also, a side note… Copper boluses are made of copper OXIDE. I see some folks grabbing bottles of copper SULFATE and just pouring who knows how much into their water troughs, and some who even have fed it via syringe. Do keep in mind that there is such a thing as “Too much of a good thing”. The copper OXIDE rods in the bolus dissolve slowly over a period of MONTHS in the digestive tract of the goat and when used properly, pose no risk of copper toxicity. The copper sulfate CAN be toxic and it is not a gradual release form of copper supplementation....
Anywho, just look how pretty Sabrina is now!
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| No coarse hair, no coat discoloration, no more hoof issues |
Before her diet was heavily processed sweet feed in huge amounts (4 1/2+lbs of 16% sticky sweet feed per day), browse, a flake of alfalfa hay, mineral block and grass hay free choice. Here we switched it up a bit.
She now gets 17% protein, Standlee alfalfa pellets, good quality coastal & sudan hay, LOOSE minerals and her grain ration is a 12% protein mix of 2 parts whole oats, 1 part Purina Strategy Healthy Edge horse feed (lower protein, high forage content high fat/calcium feed) top dressed with black oil sunflower seeds or rice bran pellets…..When milking she consumes no more than 3lbs of grain per day (usually 1lb each milking) and last lactation she milked 14lbs at 2 weeks fresh. Plus she maintains great condition. So, in summary, she actually looks better on LESS feed.
The diet is made up of quality forage (alfalfa & hay), proper minerals and minimal grains. I find many folks will buy the poorest quality hay for goats, when in fact, I find my money better spent when I choose the best quality I can afford. Making the bulk of my herd’s diet alfalfa and quality hay enables me to have better production, better condition on a lot less of the concentrates (grain/pelleted rations) Not to mention the overall health of the herd is much, much better. Good forages make for a happy, healthy rumen. Proper minerals improve the overall health.
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| Sabrina's pregnant belly January 2012. Such a huge difference in overall condition when compared to last year. Kids due January 26th. |
Anywho....usually the folks who think I'm nuts and advise me to use outdated methods of poor grass hay, lots of heavy sweet feeds and inadequate minerals are those with scraggly looking goats and they are the ones losing does to hypocalcemia every kidding season.
No scraggly looking goats here, and my does receive enough calcium from their alfalfa that I’ve had no losses & no hypocalcemia. Providing proper minerals i.e- copper, has also allowed me to deworm less frequently as well.....
Of course, each person has their own methods. I didn’t invent this stuff folks. I’m blessed to be advised by those who have decades of first hand experience and have been willing to help me out. In turn, I’ve tweaked things to suit my herd’s needs and my budget and all in all, I’m a happy goat owner with healthy goats.
I’ve said it once, I’ll say it again. If you have goats, I strongly urge you to read Joyce Lazzaro's Copper Studies (think I've linked to it enough in this post? lol)..
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There are some interesting pictures of animals suffering from extreme copper deficiency as well as more in depth info than the brief review I provided.
Good stuff!
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