# Bloated goat



## Buckhuntr (Oct 4, 2012)

Ok, I goofed. Didn't introduce new feed slowly enough, and Sox got bloated. DW phoned me and said Sox was vomiting up foamy stuff, so I wheeled into the TSC on my way home, talked to an employee who had goats and sheep, and he said it sounded like bloat. I got a drench syringe, a bottle of something to treat bloat, and DW and I proceeded to treat the doe. Now, as a hunter and outdoorsman I can handle all manner of noxious smells and putrid fluids, but one thing I cannot handle well is vomit. The goat puke about had me heaving. :ashamed: Worst was when she snorted, flung her head, and some landed on my lower lip. :buds:Had to sterilize my mouth with some 100 proof bourbon, just to be on the safe side, after scrubbing my lip raw with soap and water. 

All this after getting a crown set at lunch, without the numbing shot, and on a tooth without having had a root canal, so the nerves were intact. I told the dental assistant that her ancestors must have been Vikings who liked to torture and pillage, and she said it was just one of the perks of the job. :hammer:

I sure hope tomorrow goes better...


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## myheaven (Apr 14, 2006)

I'm sorry your day was horrible but i just loled big time!


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## Ford Zoo (Jan 27, 2012)

OK Buckhuntr, that must be a guy thing (your poor DW, I feel her pain)

Back to the goat, what did TSC have you drench her with? How is she? IS she eating, drinking; or laying around grinding her teeth? I would drench baking soda mixed with water. Foam is indicative of faomy bloat and you may want to add mineral oil to the mix. And keep her up and moving for sure, don't let her lay. Giving the same mix of baking soda and mineral oil as an enema (yes-if you can gut a deer, you can shove a tube up a goat's butt!!) may help her too. But keep working her till she seems right.

Trust me, you don;t want to wait and see if a treatment works!!


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## Frosted Mini's (Nov 29, 2012)

Cud slinging, ew! What did you give her for the bloat and how much? Was it called soemthing like, therabloat? I have not needed to use it yet, but I think you need to use a whole bottle. If she is not getting better quickly, you may need to tube some oil into her. Sometimes the tubing part helps a little bit too. Once she is through the worst of it, I would give her a transplanted cud from another goat, because the change of feed and then the treatment for the bloat, will have killed a lot of her rumen flora.


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## Frosted Mini's (Nov 29, 2012)

And if you do use oil, definitely tube it, you don't want it in the lungs, and you need to give several ounces, at least.


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## Buckhuntr (Oct 4, 2012)

The drench from TSC is Durvet brand Bloat Treatment. It has Docusate Sodium emulsified in soybean oil. I gave her 30 CC's of it, then followed with an equal amount of baking soda/water mix. After an hour I checked on her, and she was standing & looking totally miserable, but was not grinding or foaming. DW is just now checking again, hopefully this is helping.


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## Buckhuntr (Oct 4, 2012)

DW said Sox is standing like she's tired, but she's not grinding or frothing anymore.


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## Buckhuntr (Oct 4, 2012)

5:00 AM This is Buckhuntr's DW. I just checked on Sox and she's doing well. She was laying down when I went out but got up to check the feed trough to see if I was bringing food. Her eyes are brighter, she's not grinding her teeth, and seems to be getting back to her perky self. Tail is still down though so I know she's not 100% back yet but hopefully that will happen today.


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## BackfourtyMI. (Sep 3, 2007)

Glad she's feeling better. I would give only good hay for a day or 2 then introduce any new feed slowly. Grass hay will help sooth & settle her stomach too.
Probios or a cud from another goat like previous poster suggested is a great idea.


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## Minelson (Oct 16, 2007)

Buckhuntr said:


> The goat puke about had me heaving. :ashamed: Worst was when she snorted, flung her head, and some landed on my lower lip. :buds:Had to sterilize my mouth with some 100 proof bourbon, just to be on the safe side, after scrubbing my lip raw with soap and water.


I can't believe how this sounds exactly like my husband!:shocked: He could have written it...so much so that I had to read it to him! 
''that sounds exactly like you honey''
''no it doesn't''
''yes it does''
''no it doesn't''
''yes it does!''
''no it doesn't, I would have cut my lip off after I scrubbed it raw''
''oh that would help''


Thanks for the laugh and I'm so glad Sox is doing better!


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## Sherry in Iowa (Jan 10, 2010)

M-I-N-E-L-S-O-N!!!!!!!!!!!:hysterical::hysterical::hysterical:

Buckhuntr...your day was NOT good :yuck:hope you and your goat are both on the mend today!


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## Minelson (Oct 16, 2007)

How is Sox doing???


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## Buckhuntr (Oct 4, 2012)

Ok, last night Sox was looking better, then this morning a little more foamy drool and tooth grinding. So we gave her some baking soda in water, and went off to the day jobs. A little bit ago she was trotting around looking pretty chipper, so I put some fresh hay in the manger and we dosed her with some probiotics that I picked up at TSC. Fingers crossed...
Thanks for the concern!


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## BackfourtyMI. (Sep 3, 2007)

Is she up to date on her CD & T shots? Just checking in case it might be something other than bloat.


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## Buckhuntr (Oct 4, 2012)

Shots?... Um...


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## Minelson (Oct 16, 2007)

Uh -oh....Katie...what do you recommend for Sox. Anti-toxin??


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## Minelson (Oct 16, 2007)

Buckhunner....you need more help than I can give but I know this is an emergency so I started another thread. Please follow the advice here and try to save your goat. It's time to throw the kitchen sink at her and get her over this. This is very serious!! Don't think you have time...you don't 
http://www.homesteadingtoday.com/livestock-forums/goats/475149-need-help.html


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## CaliannG (Apr 29, 2005)

~ponders~ If it was tetanus or C&D reaction, I don't think she'd still be alive after 36 hours. Both of those kill pretty fast without treatment.

Hold on, I'll check symptoms and treatment to make sure.


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## KrisD (May 26, 2011)

You need CDT antitoxin now! If they eat too much that is what they need. Make sure you're taking her temp regularly. If her rumen stops working she's dead. If you don't have CDT antitoxin on hand call other goat people in your area. The vaccine won't work only the antitoxin will work.


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## CaliannG (Apr 29, 2005)

What kind of hay are your feeding?

Her symptoms do not match Enterotoxemia, which is the condition caused by C&D bacteria, nor do they match Rumenal Acidosis, another possiblity.

The do match Frothy Bloat (also known as Pasture Bloat) which is caused by a change in diet or an addition of new legumes.

Treatment is tubing oil into the rumen to break up froth tension.


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## KrisD (May 26, 2011)

If you have a stethoscope listen to her lungs and her rumen. Her rumen should sound like your stomach when it's growling. 
When was she last dewormed and with what? Check her eyelids, what color are they? We need more info to help you.


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## CaliannG (Apr 29, 2005)

I didn't check for tetanus because honestly, if she had tetanus, she'd be dead after all this time without the antitoxin.


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## Buckhuntr (Oct 4, 2012)

I asked for the CDT antitoxin at TSC after work (Gail found mention of it on another site), but the manager at TSC had never heard of it. 
We just went out to check on her, and she has rumen sounds, she was with Rocco in their nest under the hay manger and chewing her cud, looking at Gail like "why are you disturbing me with that light after I've gone to bed?" She ate some hay earlier while we were out, and was moving then like she was feeling better. 

I'm thinking it was the molasses in the sweet feed (which now may go to the chooks), since they first got the sweet feed on Monday morning, and that evening I was puzzled at what she had gotten into since her muzzle was dirty looking, but dry. She was moving around Monday evening, so I didn't really think of her having any problems then.


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## Minelson (Oct 16, 2007)

Chewing cud is a good sign..but she needs to be watched like a hawk until she is over this. Do you have any other farm stores that might have the anit toxin? Can someone in the area help get it??


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## Minelson (Oct 16, 2007)

I agree with Kris.. more info is needed. Deworming? with what and when and dosage and how it was given. She should only have access to grass hay right now with baking soda available.


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## CaliannG (Apr 29, 2005)

Change in diet could cause the frothy bloat. The fact that she has been flinging green froth at you is a pretty hearty symptom of frothy bloat.

And yes, sweet feed, especially added abruptly, can do that.

If she starts showing symptoms again, get some oil down her. Even veggie oil will work.

Order C&D antitoxin from online if your local stores don't carry it. You don't need it THIS time, but believe me, if you ever DO need it, there isn't anything that you can substitute for it, and a couple of hours can make the difference between life and death. It's best to have the stuff on hand.


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## cayenne47 (Nov 7, 2004)

They DO have it...they just dont know it. I went through this last year when we lost a goat....called every feed store in 100 mile radius. Lost the goat...next time i went to town and to Dels(west coast TSC) they had it! Ask for the long name...heres a link.
http://www.tractorsupply.com/c-d-antitoxin-250-ml-boehringer-ingelheim-drug-2216306


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## Ford Zoo (Jan 27, 2012)

Keep a close eye on her and keep dosing for the bloat, I know-thought my Mattie was improving so I went to work and had DH treating her. She didn't make it. They rally, then crump. Do the oil/baking soda drench frequently, and give it via enema if you have to. Feel her sides, if they are still bloated and firm-drench again, even if she is up on her own. Keep her moving.Worse case scenario, google how to puncture the rumen to release the gas. Good luck! But stay with her...


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## Buckhuntr (Oct 4, 2012)

She's looking real perky this morning, and I'm pretty sure I heard rumen sounds. Memo to Self: get a stethoscope!
As far giving enemas to a goat, that is far above my area of expertise. When a teen, I had to buy Fleet mineral oil enemas for Grandpa, would that work if necessary? I am making a list of things to order this weekend. What is a good source for goat medical supplies?


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## BackfourtyMI. (Sep 3, 2007)

Just went through Bloat & or Blockage with a wether a couple months back. With the vets & some help from folks here I pulled him through with Mineral oil, 1/4 cup, baking soda 1/4 cup at a time mixed with a little water & 20-30 cc of pepto bismol. I did that twice in 1 day & the next day just the pepto & more baking soda. 
There was no change in my goats feed so thinking it was more blockage in my situation.

The mineral oil & baking soda will do the trick if that's your problem. The pepto bismol helps with the diarrhea the oil causes & soothes the stomach.

If se is not UTD on her CD & T vaccines I do suggest getting a shot of C & D ANTITOXIN IN her & then 2 weeks later give her CD & T Toxoid shot & she will need a Booster of CD & T toxoid 3 weeks later. The Antitoxin might not be her problem this time but it surely won't hurt her & could save her.
CD & T toxoid after they have their 1st & 2nd shot for the booster is only given 1 time a year 2cc per goat doesn't matter the size, breed, etc. That is 1 vaccine I always give.
Hope your girl rally's & is going to be fine.


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## BackfourtyMI. (Sep 3, 2007)

Jefferslivestock.com will carry most everything you need unless it's RX item. They also do free shipping on orders over $60.00 now.


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## Buckhuntr (Oct 4, 2012)

Got home from work this evening, and first thing I noticed was Sox out in the open, bouncing around like she hadn't a care in the world. :sing:
Second thing I noticed was a bunch of feathers in the lawn outside the goat pen.  One of the escape artist Speckled Sussex hens pushed her luck too far. She was eaten not 20 feet from the goat fence. I'm betting it was that  bobcat again.


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## Minelson (Oct 16, 2007)

Well that is scary! But I'm so glad Sox is doing good!!


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