I have been noticing my goat's poop is smaller than usual. Is this a sign of dehydration or something else.
I have two goats, one about 50 lbs, the other 55 lbs. They turned one on May 24th.
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You should only try to drench them if you really think there is a danger of them being seriously dehydrated because this is a risk of aspiration pneumonia if you get water in their lungs. I would NOT do this based upon their manure size. If a goat is completely lethargic, however, and his skin is not elastic, I would suspect dehydration.
Thanks I have mineral for them,but I may try the syringe.
Wow! That is really hot! I can't say we've ever had to deal with that, although we've come close. I'm not sure the smaller manure is related to it. I would be worried about their overall health though if they're not drinking as much as usual in that kind of heat. Having free choice minerals available supposedly causes them to drink more because of the salt, so keep their mineral feeder full. Other than that, if you see a goat that is lethargic, the first thing I'd check is the skin. If it isn't as elastic as normal, I'd use a drench syringe (sometimes called a drench gun) to get water into it.
I thought of dehydration because it's been about 110 degrees here and there not drinking as much and their always panting , so spray them down with a hose about every hour.There appetite hasn't changed and I haven'tchanged there feed, all I could think of is dehydration.
Hmm ... I can't recall ever being concerned about goat poop as long as it was shaped like a little ball and not sticking together. Is anything else going on with the goats? Has their appetite changed? Is there any particular reason you're concerned about dehydration? Have you changed what you're feeding them?
It about 1/2 the size of a peanut.
Could you explain what you mean? It should be the size of berries, peanuts, peas, etc.