By: South Carolina Meat Goat Association (SCMGA)
Web Site: http://scmga.tripod.com
About the Author

Goat Tips - The individuals and members who have contributed tips to this article are not veterinarians. These are tips that have worked for them as goat keepers. - Always consult your veterinarian!

1. To keep tattoo letters from becoming lost, cut a piece of styrofoam to size then put all the letter and number points down into the styrofoam, insert foam into a tackle box. The digits are easy to pick up and don’t move around.
From Joe Raff

2a. Pinkeye infections (conjunctivitis) triple antibiotic ointment purchased from Dollar store, used twice a day. Sometimes and injection of Biomycin or LA 200 SQ, can speed up the healing process.

2b. Pinkeye infections (conjunctivitis) draw up LA200 or Biomycin into a syringe, remove needle flush eye twice a day until infection is gone.-

2c. Pinkeye - If eye starts to run put Tylan 200 directly on the eyeball for several days. If eye begins to cloud put penicillin directly on the eyeball for several days, if goat becomes blind and gets a scar on eyeball put penicillin on eyeball and also give a IM shot(in thick muscle of neck) of LA 200. Continue Penicillin every day and LA 200 every 3rd day until pinkeye is cleared up.
Fred Homeyer, Antelope Creek Ranch

3. After a doe kids-mix 8 tablespoons sugar, 4 teaspoons salt, ¼ teaspoon baking soda in 5 quarts tepid water, give to doe. This replenishes fluids lost in kidding, may be repeated one more time.

4. To prevent ketosis in pregnant does, feed one month before, free choice, Ragland’s 3 way sweet block, no animal urea, continue use of the block one month after kidding.

5. Skin diseases - goats may occasionally contract ringworm - this is not a worm but a fungus, causes round hairless patches. Use 1-% antifungal cream, from drug store, or wash daily with betadine solution (iodine) or use Fungisan liquid. Use gloves, this is contagious to humans.

6. Teeth grinding is another indication of illness, usually advanced illness when a goat grinds its teeth.

7. Normal goat temp is 102.5-104 degrees F. Above normal temp is an indication of infection which may require antibiotics. Below normal temp is often fatal and indicates a critically ill animal and needs immediate care. Always take a goat’s temp rectally.

8. Try to avoid summer births in hot climates where temps are often above 90 degrees during summer and fall. Kids tend not to grow as fast under such circumstances. High Temps combined with drought conditions cause stress.

9. Judy Muska's recipe for Poisoned goats - If you do not have toxi-ban on hand- 1 pint water, 1 tsp. Ginger. ½ tsp. baking soda, ½ tsp. salt, 1 tsp. molasses, 1 tblsp. Epsom salts-give entire mixture to an adult goat, for a young or small goat, give as much as you can comfortably get down, give slowly, don’t get into lungs.

10. Check behind your goat’s eartag for ticks, this is a favorite hiding place for ticks.

11. Chilled Kid- Hypothermia- Fill a 5 Gal bucket with warm water (like very warm bath water for you) immerse kid in the bucket, keep mouth, nose and ears free of the water, for 15-20 mins, massage kid while in the water, remove, dry extra good, when kid is completely dry return to dam.

12. Goat shelters in the south - three enclosed sides and covered top, leave the open end facing the south, remember to make it high enough to get under in case you have a sick animal hiding inside that needs care.

13. Wethers and Bucks fed on substantial amounts of grain are prone to develop renal calculi (water belly, kidney stones); add ammonium chloride to the diet, keeping the Ca:P ratio 2:1. To encourage water consumption, clean loose cattle minerals should be free choice and fresh water. Many prepared feeds have ammonium chloride added.

14. Castrate goats before one month of age, dehorn kids at 3-5 days of age, separate buck kids at 3-4 months of age-weaning age is 10 weeks to 3 mos. - remember to give tetanus shot to goats before castrating or disbudding.

15. After a kid has bonded with dam, "slather" Vaseline (petroleum jelly) around anus to prevent feces from sticking to anal opening. Check kids frequently as feces can clog anal opening and cause kid to be unable to "poop".

16. Try not to feed whole kernel corn it can cause acid in the stomach which can become an ulcer and can cause death to the animal-cracked corn can be feed in small rations-corn is "goat candy".

17. Moldy hay can cost you the life of your goat. Always smell the hay, if it smells fresh, feed it, if it smells stale or moldy, don’t feed it.

18. Bacterial Scours-1tsp Terramycin powder mixed with 10cc water, draw up 5cc of the mixture into a drench gun, add 10cc to 25 cc kaolin/pepto bismo, depending on weight of goat, for adult weighing 150+ lbs-25 cc kaolin/pepto bismol; for a kid weighing 30 lbs-15 cc kaolin/pepto bismol give mixture slowly making sure animal swallows, do not get into lungs, if the goat has not been dewormed in the last ten days give appropriate dewormer. May repeat terrimycin-kaolin/pepto bismol mixture in 24 hours. Do not deworm again, if no improvement in scours consult your vet.

19. Use 7% iodine to dip naval cord and hooves of newborn kid to prevent disease. Naval cord acts as a wick to draw bacteria into kid, hooves are soft and also can draw in bacteria, use a baby food jar or other small container.

20. Inverted eyelids-use a piece of dental floss and super glue. Get the kid in someone’s arms or hold until they quiet down. Take a piece of dental floss and put one drop of super glue on one end of the floss. Apply glued floss to lid near the eye, just below the eyelashes on the outer edge not inner edge, then when the glue is stuck, pull slightly to get the eyelid t o pull away from the eyeball so the lashes do not rub against the eyeball. Then take a loose end about ½ inch down from the first glued spot and glue to the area below or above the eyeball. Depends upon which lash you are treating, upper, or lower. Clip the remaining dental floss off. This is like taking a stitch to keep the eyelid positioned correctly until the eye can heal. While doing this I also use eye ointment 2 to 3 times a day for the ulcerated cornea. Don’t worry about the super glue it falls off in about three days, which is usually about what it takes to correct the problem.
Vicki Murashima

21. To get the "buck" smell off your hand after handling them, use toothpaste to wash your hands, cheap toothpaste, use like soap, rinse and it’s gone!

22. DO NOT use Immodium AD for diarrhea or anything else on goats. It can stop the peristalic action of the gut and cause quick and horrible death.
Suzanne Gasparotto, Onion Creek Ranch

A thirteen ounce coffee can holds one pound of goat feed. Very helpful in measuring feed or feed dewormer.
Carroll Wyatt

24. Tattoo - If you can wait until the kid is 3 to 4 months of age, the tattoo will "take" better. To insure a tattoo that is easier to read, after you rub in the ink, rub with baking soda, it will make "little bumps", not harmful to kid, and "raise" the tattoo for easier and long lasting reading.

25. Deworming - If the dam has not been dewormed 11 days prior to kidding deworm dam three days after she kids. Deworm kids at 30 days and 60 days with safeguard or panacur for tape worms. Deworm entire herd twice annually for tape worms with safeguard or panacur. Ivomec does not take care of tape worms.

26. If feeding bucks heavily, to show, it is recommended that you top dress feed with extra Ammonium Chloride and give 2cc, orally, of Methigel, weekly. Methigel prevents kidney stones in cats. You can get Methigel from your Vet, Jeffers or Atica Pet at 1-800-822-9085
(note: GoatWorld also has Ammonium Chloride available in the GoatWorld Store)

27. Probiotic paste - if you give large doses of antibiotics for several days you may "kill" off the "good" bacteria in the goat’s "stomach" which aids in the digestion process. It is a good idea to give probiotic paste, natural yogurt or buttermilk to reactivate these bacteria.