Hi Guys!
Question for you.
Of my 6 does - 2 have a tendency to show the cottony undercoat a lot throughout their coat and the others don't really show it at all but it is still there when you groom them. My black girl and her sister - the brown girl both have the most - I thought partly it is coat type - flatter shiny outer-coat but less of it and more undercoat in winter. The other 2 older girls have super thick outer coat and never show the undercoat and frankly - look the same winter and summer unless you really over-focus. One of my youngsters is like the sleeker coat girls and the other is like the thick outer coat girls. The lighter goats are the ones with the thick guard hair coats and the darker goats have the tighter sleeker shinier coats but more undercoat that shows.
My friend has 1 goat (her darkest goat) that recently started showing the cottony undercoat in her neck and body and when chatting with others - they said it was a sign of copper deficiency.
Lastly - all my goats are just beginning to shed - sun is warmer even though temps are not and their area faces sun all day. But my queen - who shows the most of this undercoat cashmere stuff is holding on to her undercoat more than all the rest (when I brush with slicker).
Reason I focus on this is that one of my sheep - 3 years ago - the only sheep that got pregnant that year- held on to her winter coat UNTIL she had her baby and then dumped it in 2 days. All the other katahdins shed out long before the pregnant girl. But what does it all mean?
I can't write off this black goat holding on to coat due to pregnancy since 2 other pregnant girls are shedding well - not excessively - just a nice amount if you brush.
So wondering what you all think? And for those of you who copper bolus - what are your observations and how much do you give to adult goats. I have a couple sources with different answers - like to hear from you all.
Judy
Replies
OK. That makes it more clear!
Aside from Deb's new (to me) information about a LATE blowing of the cashmere, cashmere itself is NORMAL in NDG. I do think it has to do with coat type when it comes to how obvious it is. That's why I said I have one doe that it comes in SUPER thick on. She's a light colored goat, but hers comes in HEAVY. My black goat is hardly noticeably compared to the other, but her coarse coat type is different than the lighter doe.
I guess I wasn't clear.
My goat has lovely black coat but lots of cashmere.
My friend has a dark goat with cashmere showing and was told the cashmere was sign of copper deficiency.
I wanted to find out if the cashmere showing more on this black goat WAS a sign of copper deficiency or was just merely a coat type.
MY theory based upon reading and HAVING a goat last year that was faded and held on to her winter coat too long - is that the black goat just has a coat that has more cashmere and my friends goat - being dark - also has a similar coat. All my friends other goats are light in color and frankly - I think you don't see the cashmere as much in the lighter goats.
But I'm in the Judy theory mode - and I wanted to hear from experts.
Judy
I thought she was saying the fading/lighter coloring meant they were copper deficient. (my goat's cashmere is always lighter than their regular coat) So I was answering with the difference between a faded coat from copper (being the coarse top coat) and cashmere. (the cottony stuff)
I hadn't heard (or didn't remember) the late shedding being a sign! That's good to know...
None of my does are LATE... but some of them shed their cashmere more slowly than others.
Deborah Niemann-Boehle said:
I don't think I understand what your friend was saying meant a goat was copper deficient, so I'll just start from the beginning. A goat that does not shed at the appropriate time can be copper deficient. A goat whose liver biopsy verified copper deficiency had not shed her winter coat by June, which is just crazy! A lot of times, as Rachel said, when you give copper to a goat that was deficient, they will blow their coat. Also, a faded coat -- a gold goat that turns cream, a cream goat that turns white -- is a sign of deficiency.
Hey, Judy!
What you're seeing are does with cashmere that shows well.
This is not the same thing as fur that is getting lighter and fading due to copper deficiency. That shows up in the coarse, year round coat of goats. Once in a while, you also see goats blow their coats when they are dosed with copper, and they are deficient. Mine have done this, but they lose the coarse coat when that happens. Not just the cashmere.
I dose my goats with copper bolus in their grains, every four or so months. I don't measure it out precisely.
I should add - that I copper bolus my goats. I've seen the great affect. I wasn't sure my goats needed it right now as they felt good, no fading, but when my friend asked about the undercoat - I did my own version of "testing" which is getting my chiropractor to muscle test. So far - my goats "call" for copper every 4-5 months.
I've been giving my adults the 4g and my kids the 2g. But I know people who measure it out by exact weight of the goat and do less amounts more often (3 months).
I still want to know about what you all think about the cashmere stuff/cottony stuff and if that is affect a lightening of the coat and indication of the copper needs.
I don't expect to see dramatic differences as they are within the OK time frame except this darn undercoat thing.
Judy