I have two kid goats about five days old. Both were born on the same day to different dams. They were both doing very well for the first two days, then began weakening. Now they are both floppy, their eyes are cloudy, both with one eye swollen and they have both started to drool. We have them in the house out of the heat and are bottle feeding them and giving electrolytes. No diarrhea is present. I've been raising goats about 8 years and have never come across this before. Any information you have would be great.
Optional Information: Type of Animal: goat Gender: Female Age: 5 days Already Tried: We've put drops of pennicillin G in the eyes to combat any possible infection as well as washing the area under the eye with Listerine. Giving electrolytes (bounce back) and baking soda because it started to present as floppy kid syndrome. Now I'm not sure what I'm dealing with.
Do the does appear to be normal?
Are the kids able to stand and walk?
Can you take the kids' rectal temperature?
The does are normal, though they appear to be developing mastitis. The kids can stand, though they are very wobbly and can't stand for long before they go "floppy" No fever was present yesterday morning, now they have a temp. of 104.3 and 105.1. All I have on hand is Pennicillin G and LA 200. I know the LA 200 shouldn't be used on kids.
Are the kids displaying any respiratory symptoms such as coughing, runny noses or rapid breathing?
No coughing and its hard to tell about the runny nose since they are both drooling quite a bit. The kid with the higher temp. does have rapid breathing. I can't hear any congestion in their chests. I have given both baby asprin for the fever. Just wanted to add that both does have at least one other kid that is doing well.
Are the healthy kids nursing or are you bottle feeding them?
They are nursing and seem to be doing fine.
The best thing to do is treat both the sick lambs with penicillin. The dosage depends on the type of penicillin you have and the weight of each kid.
What is the concentration of the penicillin? It will be on the label (300,000 units/mL?).
How much does each kid weigh?
It is 300,000 units/mL. One kid is 6 lbs and the other is 10 lbs.
I also would like to know if I should keep giving them the milk replacer or keep them strictly on electrolytes until the fever abates. Also, is there anything else I can be doing for the cloudy eyes, as both eyes in both kids are almost completely opaque, with no ulceration that I can see.
Thank you.
The dosage is 10,000 per lb. every twelve hours. The smaller kid should get 1/4 cc. every 12 hours for three days. The 10-lb. kid should get 1/3 cc. every 12 hours for three days. It may be best for you to use a tuberculin syringe (1 cc. syringe).
Keep giving them the milk replacer.
If you are sure there are no corneal ulcers, you can apply an antibiotic-steroid ointment to the affected eyes every 4 hours.
If you are uncertain about corneal ulcers, you can give them injections of a non-steroidal anitinflammatory such as flunixin.
You will probably need to purchase these drugs from a veterinarian.
Experience: 35 years of experience