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Friday, September 17, 2010

Goat Doctor


Little Gidget had lung congestion and a cough for about a week so I knew it was time for me to do something. I opened my medicine kit and broke out some LA 200 (an anti-biotic). LA 200 was designed originally for cattle and stings when injected. When I purchased the LA-200 from the feed store I didn't realize that they had a non-sting version. I can't remember the name of the non-sting version but it would have been worth while to purchase and would have saved me some heartache.

I gave Gidget a 1/2 cc shot for four consecutive evenings, twice under the left foreleg and twice under the right. The "sting" made Gidget cry out every time. Sara did not like that at all, in fact she did her best to jump up to get Gidget out of my arms in attempts to stop her from crying. Sara thinks Gidget is her baby and is very protective of her. Remember that when giving injections it is best to have a shot of epinephrine on hand in case the animal has a negative reaction, luckily in this case it was never needed.

After the shots I gave Gidget some Probiotics to keep up the good bacteria counts in her tummy that help in the digestive process. She is now no longer coughing and her lungs sound clear. Both Sara and I are happy that Gidget is back to her happy self, healthy appetite and all.

5 comments:

  1. Oh lordy, lordy...I've heard about the LA200 sting - ugh! I bought Baytril because of its "non-sting" liquid, but when I had that nagging cough of Pete's going on about a year ago, the vet gave me another antibiotic that also caused quite a scream (literally) upon administration. It was so awful, I literally cried, too!
    Let me know if that cough doesn't go away and I'll tell you what wound up finally kicking it for us.

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  2. I admire you. One of my worst goat memories is trying to save a kid by giving some necessary injections. I have no idea why it's so hard for me, but with the kid wrestling and jumping, and me stabbing and missing, over and over, I was a blubbering mess!

    So glad Gidget is doing well now!

    ~Faith

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  3. Thank you both for the kind thoughts. I felt terrible giving Gidget the shots especially when she cried out so horribly, but I knew that without the medicine things could get worse.

    Where my precious goats and involved crying is always an option.

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  4. Aw, I'm glad Gidget is feeling better!

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  5. Wonderful information to have on hand. I am currently trying to gather all I will need when we make our move. Is there a goat care book you can refer? ... I am a super new at this whole thing!

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