Calling all goat people!

[curly_kate]

So my poor little guy, Lucky, seems to have a urinary stone. I feel horrible about it because I know it's because I wasn't feeding him right, but he's doing a little better than yesterday. My wonderful vet left an Acid Pack at the office for me on Saturday night, so I've been drenching him (or trying to, at least) every 3 hours. He was slightly more cooperative early Sunday, but by last night, it took an hour to try and get the better part of a dose in him. This morning, DH and I wrestled him to the ground, and got the dose in him. What we're wondering is, is there an easier way to do this? We've tried straddling him and also just sitting him in our lap, but prying his mouth open is the trick. We tried using a turkey baster, but that was a miserable failure, and I got a drenching gun from the farm supply store, but it's way too big for his little mouth. We've had the best luck with one of those little bulbs you use to clean your ears, but the trouble with that is you can't see how much is in there, and it's impossible to get a full dose in it.

Help!!!

 

[Nyboy]

Curly I know nothing about goats, but when i have to give meds I use a syringe. Your vet might give you one if you ask. Good luck !

 

[bobm]

I assume that you do not have a chute. So, put some medication into the drench gun, bulb syringe or tube , place the goat onto it's butt by the goat standing by your side and your knee placed just behind it's shoulder , with your one hand going over the goat's back reach over to hold the goat's jaw, and with one QUICK and FIRM motion twist it's head sideways toward you with it's body rolling over your knee that is behind the shoulder as you step slightly backwards with your other leg. Now the goat is sitting on it's butt with it's legs straight out facing away from you while it's back is resting just between your legs and against your knees.
grab one or both of the goat's front legs to steady it. You will have complete control of the animal at this point all by yourself. Now you have the goat under control and both of your hands free to do whatever you need to do. Now with the drench gun or ? you are using , with your ( Left hand if you are right handed) free hand hold the goat's head at the jaw and lift it's head upwards then with your other ( right hand ) hand work the tip of the drench gun or ? at the side tip of the mouth, there is a gap between the front teeth and premolars insert the tip in and over it's tongue ( the goat will start mouthing the drench gun r ? ) then squirt the medication into the mouth holding it's head together with it's lower jaw up with your L hand. When you are done squirting in the medication, massage the throat with your R. hand if need be to aid in swallowing. When done release the goat by pushing it's head, neck and/ or back forward away from you allowing it's legs to reach the ground, and it will stand up on it's own. Easy as can be ... Done !

 

[canesisters]

Yup, a great big 35 or 60 cc syringe is what I've used to give liquid oral meds to the horses. I can't remember, do goats have a gap in their teeth like a horse? With the horses, I would back them into a corner, force their head as high as I could, stick the tip of the syringe in that gap in the side of their teeth and let it go. More often than not, I got a good bit back on top of my head. But him being so small might work to your advantage. I would guess that straddling his shoulders and pulling his head back against you to get his muzzle pointed up would be the best bet. That way you could keep his head a bit more steady if you pin it between your arms and stomach.
No chance of sneaking it into a little bit of tasty treat??

 

[curly_kate]

We tried the tasty treat route this morning and he was wise to it. DH took him to the vet, and apparently it's not a stone but some kind of physical issue that's causing his problem. He's having surgery as we speak, but DH was horrified that now we have to give him a shot in his *ahem* nether regions for the next few days. So any advice or moral support you have on that will be much appreciated!

 

[canesisters]

GOOD GRIEF! What could the poor little thing possibly have that would require a shot in his 'nether regions'!!??? Unless goats are VERY different from every other animal I've had... which, I suppose is quite possible... antiboitcs & pain meds get injected IM - ususally in the big muscle of the hind leg. Anti-inflamitories (sp?) are usually oral.
???
Poor little goat.
(poor DH too - lol)

 

[Nyboy]

Poor Goat

 

[bobm]

Not to be a hard A ** or unsympathetic as I have been in similar shoes to yours quite a few times in farm animal ownership all of my life ... But in the real facts of life , any / all farm animal is / are NOT A PET but a source of food, fiber, or work and provide one with income and deserves to get proper husbandry for food, shelter, health and safety care that the owner should and can provide. It comes with the territory of farm animal ownership. Using a Vet to treat any animal is useful and necessary from time to time as needed when one can't provide the necessary treatment, but the truth in the matter is that one would be hard pressed to even have a Vet to make a ranch call for a chicken, rabbit, sheep, goat or pig as the call would cost more than the animal is worth. However, in today's economy most Vet.s will charge you 3x to 10x what this goat is worth ( because he/ she can and does to empty one's wallet. I seen this done many times over ) for any surgery, then the add ons for hospital stay for observation, after surgery care, medications, another appointment for post- surgery exam, then etc, etc. for anything else that they find as a " complication " . If this goat was mine, I would send it to freezer camp before any Vet could ever get a hold of it as I could buy a small herd with the money I would save. Good luck !

 

[curly_kate]

@canesisters - This information is all coming via DH, so I'm not sure exactly what needs to be done just yet. Waiting on the actual discharge instructions from the vet. @bobm - I understand your perspective, and that has been my opinion on any issues we've had with our meaties/layers, but this little guy is a pet, so we're treating him like we would our dog or cat. We've got an upper limit on what we'll pay before we consider putting him down, but this is coming in under that amount, so we're comfortable paying it. From what I've read, removing the urethral process is pretty simple and can help wethers with urinary problems. And I trust our vet's judgement, so I'm pretty confident they're not taking me (or my wallet) for a ride.

 

[ninnymary]

I assume that you do not have a chute. So, put some medication into the drench gun, bulb syringe or tube , place the goat onto it's butt by the goat standing by your side and your knee placed just behind it's shoulder , with your one hand going over the goat's back reach over to hold the goat's jaw, and with one QUICK and FIRM motion twist it's head sideways toward you with it's body rolling over your knee that is behind the shoulder as you step slightly backwards with your other leg. Now the goat is sitting on it's butt with it's legs straight out facing away from you while it's back is resting just between your legs and against your knees.
grab one or both of the goat's front legs to steady it. You will have complete control of the animal at this point all by yourself. Now you have the goat under control and both of your hands free to do whatever you need to do. Now with the drench gun or ? you are using , with your ( Left hand if you are right handed) free hand hold the goat's head at the jaw and lift it's head upwards then with your other ( right hand ) hand work the tip of the drench gun or ? at the side tip of the mouth, there is a gap between the front teeth and premolars insert the tip in and over it's tongue ( the goat will start mouthing the drench gun r ? ) then squirt the medication into the mouth holding it's head together with it's lower jaw up with your L hand. When you are done squirting in the medication, massage the throat with your R. hand if need be to aid in swallowing. When done release the goat by pushing it's head, neck and/ or back forward away from you allowing it's legs to reach the ground, and it will stand up on it's own. Easy as can be ... Done !

Understand this perfectly. All I have to do is stand on my head.

Mary