I'm a little confused about the fecal test. When I took a goat care class a little over a year ago, she showed us how to check for worms and put material on the slide. Today the vet said the fecal count was low on the "float test" and they did not need any deworming. Of course, no deworming is good news and I really wasn't surprised since I regularly give them fir boughs and, in the past, have added D.E. to their feed. Does this sound right to you about a "float test?"
Also, he was surprised that all three tested negative on T.B. I told him I wasn't surprised since they came from a closed, clean herd and had been around no other goats. He said usually at least one is positive as it isn't actually a positive but a signal to retest. I thought this was a bit odd, but this is my first testing experience.
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You are correct that there is no reason to test again unless your goats were somehow exposed to TB.
Glenna Rose said:
Apparently, this TB test (results) goes elsewhere. I had to sign it and it is pre-numbered. Also they insisted on my home address (vs P.O.) on it. I live in Washington and under "Reason for Test", 3 Milk Ordinance is checked with the note "Personal Consumption." Guess that is why the vet asked me Saturday if I drank the raw milk. It has ID info for each goat though only Ginger has any I.D. (her tattoos). I didn't have anyone chipped as I originally planned to sell Capri and Summer together later. However, I have gotten very attached to Capri and don't know if I can let her go; guess milking them does that to us. I don't know why, but I think this form is a bit intrusive given I am not running a dairy or even selling/giving away milk. Of course, I won't test again as there would be no need to, would there?
lol 90% of 90%... lol I love it! (and agree)
Agree with Margaret on all counts! Almost all states are TB-free, so I have no idea why he would say that. I have never seen any state out west listed as one with any cases of TB. Michigan and Texas pop up every now and then, and I recently saw another state in the middle of the country, but TB is almost eradicated in the US. Being in a TB-free state for as long as I've owned goats, I don't know a lot about the logistics of the test, but maybe it has a high number of false positives?
I've heard of the float test and I don't think that part is unusual!
The other sounds kinda weird, but of course it seems that about 90% of what 90% of the vets say about goats seems weird!
IMO!