Goat Health and Care

Small Scale Goat DairyingCentral Point, OR

April 5, 2008Charles Estill, OSU Extension Veterinarian

BiosecuritySecurity from transmission of infectious diseases, parasites, and pests

Buy from reputable breeders.

Know the health status of the animals you are purchasing.

Maintain a closed herd.

Limit showing/ exhibiting.

Isolate new animals for at least 30 days.

BiosecurityReduce transmission of infectious diseases, parasites, and pests

Don’t loan or share or bucks.*

Don’t breed does for other producers.*

Do not mix your animals with other people’s animals.*

Don’t share equipment unless it is disinfected after each use.

Limit access to your farm/animals.

Control cat, dog, bird, and rodent populations.

*Unless the other farm/animals have equal health status.

Health problems of goats

Udder disorders Caprine Arthritis

Encephalitis Caseous Lymphadenitis Floppy Kid Syndrome Johne’s Disease

Mastitis What is a normal udder?

Uniformly soft and symmetric Temperature is same as rest of body No swelling or pain Teats are thin and uniform, milk easily

Examine milk for: Color Consistency Clots, flakes

Diagnosis of mastitis

Physical signs Uneven udder Udder is hot, swollen, or painful Sick, off feed, fever Reduced milk production May be no outward signs

General types of mastitis

Acute Bluebag Sub-clinical Chronic

Acute mastitis

Udder is hot, swollen, painful Udder may be hard Milk is abnormal (clots, flakes, watery) Reduced milk production Goat may be sick and have a fever May have a stiff gait Can be fatal

Blue bag Mastitis caused by

Staph. aureus or Pasteurella

Up to 80% die Udder is initially

red and hot then turns blue and cold

Milk is watery, brown

May slough ½ of udder

Sub-clinical mastitis

Very common May be difficult to detect without CMT Udder may be firm May be occasional clots, flakes Reduced milk production

Chronic mastitis It is 15 to 40 times more prevalent than the

clinical form. It usually precedes the clinical form. It is of long duration. It is difficult to detect. It reduces milk production. It adversely affects milk quality. Firm, non-

painful udder Career counseling

Diagnosis of mastitis Testing

California mastitis test pH Cells 0, Trace or 1+ is normal Compare halves of udder

Somatic cell count (inaccurate) <500,000 is normal (1M reg. limit) Much higher at end of lactation

Milk culture Technique Staph. epidermidis most common

California Mastitis Test

Treatment of mastitis

Frequent stripping out Oxytocin Antibiotics

Intramammary (1/2 tube) Today Spectromast Pirsue

Treatment of mastitis

Sick goats need systemic treatment! Systemic antibiotics

Penicillin G, Naxcel, LA-200, Gallimycin Anti-inflammatory therapy Fluids

Mastitis prevention Hygiene

Clean, dry, comfortable environment Maintain milking equipment

Avoid excessive vacuum Properly working pulsators Properly fitting liners

Proper milking routine (teat dip) Good nutrition Clip udder hair CMT monthly Treat ALL does at dry-off

Caseous lymphadenitis (CL or CLA)cheesy gland, boils, abscesses

Usually external abscesses in skin or lymph nodes.

Pus in external abscess is initially pale green.

Usually affects animals > 6 months of age.

Lives in soil for >1year

Caused by Corynbacterium (Actinomyces) pseudotuberculosis

Zoonotic potential - ???

Caseous lymphadenitis Diagnosis

Culture of organism Necropsy Blood test

Treatment Complete surgical excision is best Isolate for treatment-do not open in environment

of other goats If draining- flush with Nolvasan or iodine Cull

Caseous lymphadenitis (CL or CLA)cheesy gland, abscesses, boils

Controlling/eradicating CLA Identify and cull affected

animals Avoid skin injuries Practice good hygiene. Purchase from CLA-free

flocks/herds. Vaccination can reduce

severity of disease. Do not vaccinate naïve

herds

Caused by bacteria Corynbacterium pseudotuberculosis

Caprine Arthritis Encephalitis (CAE) Retroviral infection

Only 25% will ever show signs (38-81% positive)

Joint swelling/arthritis in goats >6 mo.

Encephalitis in 2-4 mo. kids

Pneumonia and mastitis in adults

Caprine Arthritis Encephalitis (CAE)

CAE virus is primarily transmitted to kids through colostrum and milk.

Contact transmission is rare, but possible.

Diagnosis- blood test after 6 months of age

No treatment or vaccine is available.

Caprine Arthritis Encephalitis (CAE)

Prevention and control Pasteurize colostrum(133 F for 60 min)

Feed pasteurized milk(165 F for 15 sec)

Milk positive does last Quarantine and test new additions w/i

60 days Disinfect equipment Cannot eradicate w/o culling positives

Johne’s Disease paratuberculosis

Cattle, sheep, and goat strains Fecal-oral transmission Young animals most susceptible Symptoms

Only 5% show signs within a herd at a given time

No signs until 2-7 years old Animals w/o signs are still a

source of infection Chronic weight loss Precipitated by stress Profuse, watery diarrhea in

terminal stages

Caused by bacteria Mycobacterium anium spp. paratuberculosis

Victoria, Australia

Small intestine

Ohio State Universitywww.johnes.org

Johne’s Disease

Difficult to diagnose Fecal culture (40-60%) Blood test-good when

clinical signs present No treatment. Difficult to control. Prevention

Maintain a closed flock/herd Cull offspring of infected

animals Sanitation Be careful with cow colostrum Test annually

Theoretical link to Crohn’s disease in people.

Ohio State Univ.

Small intestine

Floppy kid syndromeFirst documented in 1987

Affects kids between 3 and 10 days of age (normal at birth)

Most common late in kidding season.

Causes muscle weakness, ataxia.

Cause unknown, but suspected to be gastro-intestinal, a metabolic acidosis.

Treat with sodium bicarbonate and supportive therapy.

Questions, comments

Questions????