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Sunday, February 20, 2011

Tummy Ache

When I went out to see the goats the other morning Addison did not look like she was feeling well. Look at that sad face.  She wouldn't eat her grain and she was wandering off outside all by herself. She has done this self isolation routine in the past when she wasn't feeling well so I knew something was definitely wrong.

I broke out the medical kit and prepared a Vitamin B complex shot, a Gatorade drench for electrolytes, some pro-biotics, and some raisins.

Have you ever smelled a goats cud? Yuk! A Gatorade drench followed by the vitamin shot did not leave Addy in a good mood.  When I took her temperature she registered a little low and she started shivering. I decided to take her into the house to warm up a bit.

The rest of the goats were in a tizzy, they did not like being separated from their queen. When I was bringing Addison into the house the other goats stood at the fence and screamed at the top of their lungs!

I started by putting Addy into Sara's kennel, but that didn't last too long as she stared crying.  Sara, the lover of goats, was pacing the floor at a rate that would have worn it out in less than an hour so I needed to get Addy out.

I decided to sit with her in the middle of the floor on a throw rug. Good thing the rug was there because it caught the poo that she decided to drop. Sara would not leave her side, I'm not sure if she was jealous of the attention Addy was getting or if she was just worried.  I could tell Addy was perking up as she headbutted Patch and gave Mocha and Chai long stares.  After she warmed up it was time to give her a few "medicinal" raisins and to take her back outside.

She seemed to be somewhat better as she nibbled a bit of hay upon her return to the goat barn. I will keep a close eye on her for the next few days, she is due to deliver for the first time in about six weeks.

14 comments:

  1. great work baby! she might be a little fussy from now on. if her energy seems low you can give her some molasses in warm water. and be sure to offer her baking soda - and then fluff her pillows and fan her with a palm frond while singing her gentle songs. goats = sheesh!
    ;-)

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  2. Oh :-( Poor Addison. But what an awesome goat mama you are. I love the shot of the bowl of hay balancing on the arm of your couch. :-)
    Vitamin B complex shot... should I have some of this on-hand in my first aid kit or is this more for pregnant does? I have Probios standing by, along with some goat nutri-drench but that's it.
    I can imagine that Addy didn't care for the cage - seriously - of course she wanted the cozy, warm spot on your lap. Hopefully there was a good movie on t.v. for her to watch.
    :-)

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  3. Sounds like you have a good ADR (ain't doing right) kit.

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  4. OFG - I read about how other folks goats like molasses and carrot coins and mine won't touch either. I figure raisins have a lot of sugar in them so they may be a poor girls substitute. The wind outside is HOWLING as 25-30 knots so I will hold off on the palm fronds for now...

    Farmgirl - I have given vitamin shots to both the goats a sheep when they have been feeling ill or suffering from worms so it might be something good to have on hand. Surprisingly she doesn't like the house too much, I think getting eyed by the two cats and dogs wears on her a bit.

    4R's - Thank you for commenting, it helps my confidence that a real vet thinks I'm not too far of the mark. Hope you stop by again!

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  5. holy goat what a wind! stay snuggled in... as for the molasses, heck get a big barreled syringe (no needle)and give them the business (pry mouth open, shoot some in careful so that she doenst aspirate it). let us know if she takes a bad turn. there are a couple things to watch out for - probably tho, her babies are sitting on her belly funny. and she doesnt think its funny at all.

    great work!

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  6. Oh poor sick Addy. I hope she is feeling better soon.

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  7. OFG - I think you are correct, the babies may be sitting funny.

    BMKW - I think she is getting better, she ate a bit of grain tonight.

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  8. Honestly-you are amazing to me and after reading Ohio Farmgirl’s blog and that you just started this a year ago--I am blown away. You are a born farm girl :) Hope she is feeling much better. Poor baby--but so lucky to have a good maaaama :)

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  9. Awww.... poor bug, sounds to me like you've done everything right. I had a couple of my does act a little strange before their first kiddings, and even still my best doe starts doing things differently way ahead of time, she gets quieter, stays on her own more, etc. So it could be a lot of those things, like the babies sitting in a certain way, her just feeling different, etc. I hope that's all it is and everything you did today helps to get her feeling better :) Love the pictures :)

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  10. Verde - OFG has been a great help as has the Goat spot and everyone's blogs. There is a lot of experience and information floating around out there, I'm happy folks are so willing to share.

    Luckybunny - I sure hope its how the babies are sitting. I have quite a ways to go to match your picture taking skill.

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  11. Betcha someone will be delivering early!

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  12. I'm excited to hear about babies! I'm glad to hear that Addison is feeling better, too. Poor baby! It's funny that she doesn't like being inside, but I can understand it. She's used to being outside with her goat family. Inside is a whole new place for her. But it's good to get her warm! It's so cute to see her in the crate, with the bowl of straw on the couch! Lucky girl! You are a great goat mama!

    ~Lynn

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  13. Lynn - That pretty much summed it up, new surroundings and different faces don't go well with a tummy ache. The warming up did her good so it turned out well.

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