Hi all! This is my first post - a friend suggested I come here for info.
My full size doe kidded 4 days ago with twins. By the next morning, one side of her udder was hard, hot and producing 1-2 tablespoons when I milked her. Vet says (no exam, I just asked for antibiotics) she has gangrene mastitis and will likely die.
I've been researching gangrene mastitis, and so far, my doe does not appear to be following the progression. As of last night, her udder is still hot, not turning color and is slightly less hard. Still not producing anything. We're infusing 2x/day with Today and giving her Excede, a long acting antibiotic. For a 10-day dose, she got a shot on Friday and will get one more on Tuesday.
I have 2 questions:
First, does this sound like gangrene mastitis? I've never dealt with mastitis in a goat, but it kind of seems like just regular mastitis. I don't want to get too optimistic and then lose her, but she's still got feeling and it seems like it might be ever so slightly improving.
Second, I left the kids with her, thinking it would be less stressful for her. They appear to be getting enough from the good side. Is there any reason I should pull them?
Thanks in advance for any information!
Replies
I am hoping to get some peppermint oil tomorrow, sounds like really great stuff to have on hand anyway. In addition to the conventional treatments, I have been giving her Molly's Herbals immune support tincture 2x/day. Not sure if it's helping, but surely can't hurt. I need to look up rose hips, they'd be good to grow/keep for everyone too.
I'm so glad to hear that thing are looking up for Coffee! I don't know why some vets are so quick to think a doe is a lost cause when she has mastitis. Someone local had a similar situation last year, but her goat made it too as she treated the goat in spite of her vet's bad advice. If you're into herbs, rose hips and willow bark can make nice complementary therapy. Rose hips are high in vitamin C, so can help boost her immune system, and the willow bark is the natural form of salicylic acid, which is the active ingredient in aspirin. And in addition to milking frequently, you could also rub peppermint oil (in a carrier oil) on her udder. Organic dairy farmers in Wisconsin are really into peppermint oil.
Good point, Megan. LOL, Rachel! Either way works, I guess as long as mom is ok huh? At any rate, it does sound like mom is doing better and I am so happy for you both.
Megan, that's how I felt when Ginger first kidded and started out lopsided!! I thought I'd be able to milk out that side and keep the milk! Too bad the kids decided it was a tasty teat after all! lol
I was thinking I wouldn't mind if they continued to avoid it, because then I can get all the milk I want without having to separate them - could be the silver lining to all of this. :)
Once that side is better, if the babies don't want to nurse couldn't you just put teat tape on the good side for a while every day to encourage nursing on it or something like that so they get the idea that it taste good now too. Has any one tried that, and had any luck?
Thanks so much for the information and quick answers. I will milk her more frequently and keep an eye on things. Definitely feeling better today about it all.
You should milk that side as often as you can for more than supply... until her udder isn't showing signs of mastitis, you should be milking to keep the ducts clear. Once they are, you can stop milking that side (stop milking "extra" on that side) as long as her udder remains balanced. If you notice that her udder starts getting lopsided, you'll know the kids are favoring one side.
Thanks, Marin. That's what it seemed like to me.
Good news with this morning's Today treatment! I milked a cup of seemingly normal milk - no curdles, strings or pink, and her udder is noticeably softer, though still mostly hard. I don't want to jump the gun and call it something else, but I am beginning to be quite certain it was *not* gangrene mastitis.
Does it seem right that I should try to milk very often to help build back up supply, or just let it be at 2-3 milkings/day? The kids don't seem to even try that side anymore, so I feel if I don't try to build up her supply, no one will.
Yes. KEEP MILKING HER!! Don't just trust the kids to do it, because they actually probably won't if they are having a tough time getting the milk out.
Another gal on here used peppermint essential oils and found that helped her doe with mastitis.
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