Copper Bolus for kids?

I have a doe and a buck who are 8 weeks old and (I think) showing mild signs of copper deficiency. The buck is insatiably hungry and not growing, he's 13 lbs, otherwise he seems healthy, his coat doesn't seem faded from when he came to us at 3 days old, although it hasn't gotten darker either.  My doe is 15 lbs and recently developed a rust patch on her black coat. It's about the size of a quarter. I'm concerned that my buck is so much smaller. They are both registered pure bred from solid lines, although I know that isn't a 100% guarantee against anomalies. When I got them they were the same size and I weighed them every week, she has steadily been getting bigger than him, even though he eats more (hay) than she does. He always finishes his bottle first, then tries to push her off hers.

I purchased copper bolus for kids, but am unsure of giving it to them. The dosing is for large breeds I'm assuming, and also says to give it at 3 months of age. I've been reading online and I keep seeing 1g for every 20ish lbs, which neither of my kids is close to. I'm not sure if I should wait? The symptoms are mild at this point, but then again (as a mother of 10 human "kids") I know that deficiencies as a growing kid could affect future health... Is letting it go for another month going to have a worse effect on them?

Also, how on earth do you give this to them?? The idea of shoving a stick down their throats with the bolus seems impossible to accomplish without hurting them, they squirm so much just trying to get a close look at their eyelids or gums!

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Replies

  • They have a loose mineral that they sniff and lick at. I also leave kelp and baking soda (separately) out free choice. They seem to sample them all.



    Emily said:

    Do they have a loose mineral available with lots of copper in it like Sweetlix? 

  • Do they have a loose mineral available with lots of copper in it like Sweetlix? 

  • When I bolus, I open the capsule and sprinkle it into a mixture of oats and peanut butter, then form that into a ball. My goats gobble them down.

  • Thank you for the replies! I hate the thought of waiting when I know there is an issue, especially when it's affecting health and growth! Looks like I need to get some marshmallows...

  • I do the marshmallow method too, although I have one girl who won't eat them willingly and it takes a few rounds of holding her mouth shut and her still being able to spit it out before it goes down.

    I gave kids about four weeks old copper without any ill effects.  I divided the contents, eyeballing it since I don't have a balance that sensitive, into portions based on the recommended dose.  In my case, they were close to ten pounds and each got a quarter of the contents of a 2g bolus.  

  • I can't speak to dosage, but when we need to give a goat a pill, we empty the capsule contents in between two halves of a marshmallow, then sandwich it. They gobble it right up.

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