Goat ate chicken food yesterday, MUCH BETTER~Song added....

[savingdogs]

So yesterday I noticed that Ginger my lactating mini nubian doe had somehow opened the door to the duck coop yesterday. There was only a small amount of food out there (I had hoped) as I had fed the ducks much earlier. I also hoped that the illegal bounty was shared by the two does I have in the pen and perhaps neither had too much. Everything seemed fine yesterday.

This morning Ginger is not interested in eating. At first I just thought she was unhappy the wind had blown in some water and the hay was too damp (very strong winds here today). But when I went out to give the morning grain and fill up the hay feeders, she is not interested one bit. She seems to have a slightly enlarged belly and doesn't look quite like herself. She runs around and acts fairly normal but the not eating is just......I've got to think she got all the poultry food herself yesterday.

She weighs about 80 pounds and probably at at most a cup, possibly two cups of "flock raiser" mixed with a little alfalfa pellets.
Should I give her baking soda? Right now she is laying down calmly resting like she normally would on a blustery rainy day such as we are having.

Advice?

 

[Javamama]

Yep, try some baking soda and maybe keep her off grain until she seems right.

 

[glenolam]

I'd check her temperature too, just to cross that off the list. She's not going to like it, but it'd be a good place to start.

If you're convinced she's not well, in addition to dosing her with a baking soda drench you could give her mineral oil, I think the last time I looked up mineral oil it said to give it at 6-8oz for an adult.
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Yes - 6-8oz for an adult and 2+oz for a kid. Massage her rumen as well to "speed" things along.

Bloat gorging on anything unsuitable such as wet grass pastures or after raiding food bin

Drench with Mineral oil (6-8 fl oz) for an adult, (2+ fl oz) for kids. Walk goat about, massage flanks.
"Giving mineral oil is very effective in getting a goat that has over eaten grain to speed that grain on it's way. Vegetable oil will add to the digestive load, and may cause more harm than good. Mineral oil is not digestible, and I have used it with no problems at all. Feed that is overeaten ferments, causes gas, and acidosis to occur, which can lead to death. The object is to speed it out of there without adding to the digestive load." by Coni Ross

Another breeder's experience
"You wouldn't call me an expert on goats but I have had experience with the Bloating disease. To tell you the truth vegetable oil does work. I have personally used it on a couple of my bloated goats. I had amost a total of 3 of my kids die because of bloating, after the first one died I decided that it was time to get on the internet and do some of my own research. I came a crossed a web site that had information on bloating goats, and it said "If needed use vegetable oil", and it worked. I have used vegetable oil ever since. "
Amanda R. Wolfe


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Suggestion from visitor to web site.

Mix some baking soda in with the goat's feed they really enjoy it and it takes away bloat.


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Second Suggestion

15cc Pepto-Bismol
5cc Penicillin orally
5cc SQ Penicillin
5-7cc CD antitoxin SQ
Then give another shot of CD ANTITOXIN and Pepto later that day as well to make sure all is okay...12-24 hours later make sure you give the goat a probiotic to put the live bacteria back into the rumen...You will need to repopulate the gut once you clean it out

Once she's back on her feet and interested in food I'd give her some probios with her next grain meal to help jump start her.

ETA - website this info was taken from http://www.jackmauldin.com/diseases.htm

 

[savingdogs]

I have plenty of baking soda, I have vegetable oil, and I have probios. I also have kaolin-pectin.
The other goats ate the grain, she isn't eating. They are all laying down resting thought because we have a drenching rain and winds. Walk her around?

She is really good at opening latches and gates and such.

I'm going to try the baking soda right now, but if someone could get back to me about trying vegetable oil or the other things I listed.

Hubby could bring home some mineral oil but not until later. Or I could go down the hill for some if it is an emergency. I'm going to go ahead and have Hubby bring some home today no matter what, but should I worry about a time delay? I do have a car here my son could drive to the store for me.

 

[glenolam]

I wouldn't worry yourself over the mineral oil.

If she seems that bad, give her some vegetable oil, but from what you've said it sounds like she's just not eating....otherwise she's fine.

Have you seen her chew any cud? If not, that might be an indication things aren't working as they should.

I haven't given veggie oil to my goats, just mineral oil to a kid that got into milkweed. Worked like a charm.

IMO - if all she's doing is not eating, I'd wait until hubby comes home with the mineral oil. Give her a baking soda drench now and just keep an eye on her.

PS - if you do give her veggie or mineral oil, be on the lookout for flying poop.

 

[MorelCabin]

http://www.homesteadingtoday.com/archive/index.php/t-307146.html

Here's a thread with some info. We had a goat kid that died from eating chicken pellets. At the time I didn't know how dangerous it was or how fast it could kill her...but it does depend on the quantity eaten as well.

 

[Bubblingbrooks]

I am so thankful we feed all our animals whole grain mixes that we make ourselves.
The only difference between the goat and chicken feed, is the addition of fish meal for the chickens.

 

[Bubblingbrooks]

SD, a latch we found that goats are not able to open, is one that is kind of like a carabiner. I am not sure of the name for it, but it requires sliding a button to open the loop up.
We never had a goat growing up that could figure that style out.

 

[glenolam]

...but it does depend on the quantity eaten as well.

Exactly. I think in this case since it was a cup to two cups at most you might be OK....but still proceed as recommended here and in that archive. Better to be safe than sorry.

 

[savingdogs]

Well I gave her the baking soda and that made her plenty mad. She got up and ran over to the other stall (across the yard). I got a good amount down her, but her tummy does look BIGGER now. I'm thinking I should maybe go for some mineral oil. I'm going to watch for chewing cud for a few more minutes and if things don't improve I'm just going to have to wake up my son to drive me down the hill. I don't like the way the tummy increased in size like that...she looks pregnant now! :/