What's wrong with my goats?

[anita]

Only have some hobby goats for pets. And they have big bellies and no fat on their backs and shoulders.

I feed pasture, costal hay, 1lb goat pellets, wormed last month with 2cc ivomac.

I am lost what do I wrong?

Thanks in advance

Anita

 

[Sonya]

What kind of goats are they? That does make a difference...Pygmies and Nigerians tend to have the "pot belly"...I have had both kinds and that's it...I know very little about goats in general, but I would think the type would make a difference.

 

[~Dan]

Sonya, i think that dairy breed kept for milking are generally more lean. The pygmies are more out of proportion compared to the Nigerians Dwarfs, which are more like replicas of standard dwarf breeds, generally kept as small milk animals (i think.) Are their droppings normal beans, if its diarrhea, cant that cause the pot bellied bony look??? Im not sure just reading out of a book I have, so don't quote me. I just l0ooked thru alliments of a goat and couldnt find anything. My first guess was worminess like in horses. Best Of Luck

 

[Bunnylady]

As others have said, the breed(s) of goat can make a big difference as to how they should look. When at proper weight, most goats look rather bony along their backs. The pot-bellied appearance may be normal, too. I've heard that goats tend to store fat in the belly area (my goats certainly do!

), so your goats may just be well fed!

As to the worming, I can't say whether 2cc's of Ivomec would be the correct dose or not. My vet told me to dose at twice or even three times the rate recommended for a horse. So a 100 lb. goat would get enough wormer for a 200 lb. horse. Around here, the biggest parasite problem in goats is caused by the barber pole worm. I am told that Ivermectin is the only drug that is really effective on these pests, and they are getting more and more resistant to it. There are even some populations that are completely immune to it, meaning that an owner could load his goats up with wormer 'til he went broke, and the poor critters would still have worms! (pasture rotation is the only control method that helps in those situations.) I mentioned this as a sort of general information kind of thing, I'm not suggesting that this is what is going on with your goats (as already said, they may be at a fine weight for their breed/type.)

 

[ErikaS.]

Could they have a worm that isn't killed by your wormer? Like tapeworm? I don't really know- just throwing out ideas.

 

[anita]

Thank ya'll so much.

The goats should be meat goats. I followed your advice and did worm today again with a bit more wormer.

Thanks again

Anita