Goats acquire many of the same diseases that occur in any dairy animal so great attention must be paid to goat health. The best way to keep your goats disease free is to keep everything clean and sanitary. Make sure that you have a veterinarian check the health of your herd frequently and keep any necessary vaccinations up to date.

One of the things you must do that is critical to goat health is to establish a plan to control parasites. Have your goats wormed frequently and protect them from external parasites, such as ticks, lice, mosquitoes, and all kinds of flies–house, horn, stable, horse and deer. Any of these insects which bite and suck can affect the condition of your goats, sometimes causing diarrhea and affecting milk production. You should talk to your local county agricultural agent to see what are the best ways to eliminate these parasites.

Mastitis is a disease which affects dairy goats as well as dairy cows. All it really means is that there is inflammation of the udder. When you examine the udder it can look to be tense, hard, hot and cause tremendous discomfort to the goat. Whether acute or chronic, mastitis is treated with antibiotics.

The first line of defense against mastitis is cleanliness during milking. The organisms which cause mastitis can be present in the environment. Manure most be removed frequently. All of the milking equipment, whether you use your hands or machines, must be sanitary at all times. A solution made with Clorox(TM) bleach should be used to clean teats.

Udder edema is another goat health problem. This usually occurs in dairy goats near the end of their dry period. It is treated by controlling the amount of sodium, potassium, and corn meal in the goat’s food.

Abscesses (caseous lymphadenitis) can be a problem in adult goats and can even lead to death should the abscesses surround an internal organ. They are most often on the neck, shoulders or head. The condition can be treated by draining the abscesses, cleaning the area and giving the goat penicillin. If this problem develops, the affected goat or goats have to be isolated to prevent it spreading to the rest of the herd.

If your goats live in an area that is frequently very wet, foot rot is a possibility. There will be a gray, smelly discharge, and the goat will be lame and in pain. It’s treated by trimming off the rot and applying a copper sulfate solution or ointment. Proper trimming of hooves can help avert this problem.

The best plan for goat health is to observe your goats daily so that you can quickly notice any changes in posture or behavior that might be an indication that something is wrong and a vet needs to be called. The better you know your animals, the easier it is to immediately see that something is off or just not right.

Article:Peter J Lee:Ezine