Cleanliness Is Next To Goatliness
How to Encourage Good Hygiene in Goats: Hoof, udder and intestinal health form the holy trinity of goat hygiene.
Frequency: Monthly
Goat nails grow fast and need to be trimmed regularly to prevent nasty infections and avoid long-term joint problems. In the rocky mountain crags where their wild ancestors dwelled, the constant scraping of hoof against rock kept goat hooves in good shape. In the barnyard, however, goats need our help to care for their hooves. If left untrimmed, goat hooves become long, curved and pointy, impacting their gait, leading to arthritis and possibly lameness and even death. Soil and feces become packed into the center of the hooves, causing festering sores and hoof rot, a potentially fatal disease.
Some goats are calm and cooperative during the trimming process, but most will resist it, especially those that are not accustomed to a high degree of contact. It’s important to work quickly while they are distracted by the food, but it may be necessary for a second person to restrain the goat’s movement during the trimming process. If your goat barn is not lit up like a laboratory, wear a head lamp while trimming so you can see exactly what you’re doing.
The tissue beneath the hoof, called the ‘quick,’ contains blood vessels that don’t easily clot if they are cut, so a clotting agent should be kept on hand when trimming.
Frequency: Daily
A little disinfectant and bag balm go a long way to prevent teat problems. Following a simple hygiene protocol before and after milking promotes healthy, productive udders and keeps mastitis and other serious infections at bay.
There are as many theories on how to care for goat udders as there are goat farmers. But there is no question that disinfection is an important component, whether you favor chemical or all-natural udder care products.
Frequency: Daily, Weekly and Monthly
Intestinal parasites are the most common source of poor health in goats. They are highly contagious and once they invade a herd, they’re hard to exterminate. Goat feces should be in the form of firm pellets – if runny poop is observed, the sick goats must be treated quickly as severe, ongoing cases of diarrhea can cause death in just a few weeks.
The more widely your goats can roam, the more space they have in the barn and the more varied their diet is with wild plants, the fewer parasites they will have. Low levels of parasites are unavoidable; your job is to manage the herd to prevent an unnatural buildup of parasites to the degree where illness occurs.
Some parasites don’t cause scouring (the technical term for diarrhea in goats), making it hard to know when a serious health problem is lurking. For this reason, it’s important to check your goats monthly for signs of anemia, which is the other primary indicator of parasites. There are two ways to do this:
Seemingly minor ailments tend to progress quickly in goats without intervention. If unusual symptoms present themselves (diarrhea, gauntness, difficulty walking, discolored milk, tender udders, etc), consult with a vet for a diagnosis. By adopting a good hygiene regimen, you’ll avert the vast majority of serious goat ailments and keep the vet – and hefty vet bills – away.
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April 21, 2015
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