Max Gets Sick

It seems like it has been one thing after another lately and I am so busy I don't have much time for writing. First off we brought the herd home one of the ladies (Silver Doll) ended up getting sick. Not sure what was wrong but she stopped eating and her milk dropped off. It's actually a good thing I was milking her or I'm not sure I would have noticed as quickly as I did as it is hard to monitor exactly what every one eats. I ended up giving her a couple shots of Oxytetracycline and in a few days she was her normal self again. I think maybe it was shipping fever but she couldn't tell me so that is only a guess. Thankfully everyone else seemed fine and I gave a big sigh of relief that all was well. That is until I woke up Saturday morning and Max decided he didn't want breakfast.

Poor little guy! His tummy had a very full look about it and his poor bottom was.... well.... in animal terms you would say he had scours. In human terms just imagine a baby with the runs. Yep.. Diarrhea. This is the scourge of all baby animals and can kill them quicker that you can blink. What was wrong and what to do? I was pretty sure Max had eaten something he shouldn't have so removed everything from the boys pen except of course their bedding. But now what? There is nothing open on the weekends in this remote area and I don't have a vet yet. Not that I would call one right off the bat like that, you really don't want to know the prices up here. I immediately went to the computer and started to do research. I know I'm not the only one who has had this problem! Sure enough there is a lot of information on scours all over the place and luckily someone had posted a homemade electrolyte formula and wouldn't you know it? I had the ingredients! 

Homemade Electrolyte Formula for Goats (Great site)

2 teaspoons salt

2 teaspoons baking soda 

1 tablespoon molasses

1/2 ounce strong coffee

2.5 liters water

I mixed it together and tried to get Max to drink some.... no dice. He wanted nothing to do with it and seemed listless. Mountain Man ended up holding him while I force some down his throat. Then I held him on my lap for about an hour and a half while he slept, when he woke up I offered him some more. This time he took it! Big sigh!! Maybe I could save him. For the first day all he was offered was this mixture and by the next morning his scours had stopped. Sunday I mixed the formula with about 1/4 milk in the am then 1/2 and 1/2 later in the day. He ate it like a trooper and begged for more. Of course he always begs for more! By tomorrow he will be on 100% milk again and I am breathing a big sigh of relief.  I'm definitely going to have to watch him more carefully. Max will eat anything.... seriously! Yesterday when I took him out for a bit of exercise he tried eating everything from the dirt to dried grasses and I had just fed him. Most goats are very curious creatures and will mouth almost anything to see what it is but they will rarely actually eat anything other than their food. Max is obviously the exception and will require constant supervision until he gets a bit bigger. I sure hope everyone else had a more uneventful weekend!