Is my goat too skinny?

[Rebecca solomon]

Hey there all! I just want to start by saying that I love love love my ND wethers and am so glad to have them!

Just a question about weight though. My Sonny is the runt of the pack and gets pushed around a little. He's fine and seems happy enough, but to me he feels super skinny! His little bones pop out all over. He is one who was pulled from his mother at about a month so didn't get much milk. I have two of their brothers who were with mom for about 5 months and they are very solid. 

Sonny's overall health seems fine and he loves his grass and seems to have a healthy rumen, but should I be concerned about his weight? I thought of supplementing the goats with grain, but they are wethers and I know about the issues it can cause. 

Thoughts?

And, when this winter hits, should I be thinking about sweaters for my goats? The two early weened ones are so dainty!

[Deborah Niemann-Boehle]

If a goat is really thin, and they are getting enough to eat, then it is usually worms and/or coccidia causing the problem. That would be the good news. A wasting disease like Johnes would be the bad news, but parsites are much more common.

[Rebecca solomon]

I actually have Corid for my chickens so I'm alright there. He really does seem healthy other than being skinny. I keep a close watch on his poo and it also looks good. Nothing odd, just grassy like my bunnies. 

Do you think I should give him some supplements?

The lady who sold me the goats was nice, but didn't strike me as the brightest bulb or have much info on what she did with the goats other than give them hay.

[Deborah Niemann-Boehle]

Yes, he definitely sounds too skinny. If you have other goats to compare, that is a great way to figure this out. Sounds like the other two are in good shape. When kids are weaned too early, they are also missing out on the antibodies in the milk, so they tend to have a lot of health problems, especially with internal parsites, such as worms and coccidia. It is very hard to ovecome that. You can buy the meds over the counter, but with only one goat needing treatment, it might be cheaper to take him to the vet -- although it depends on the vet. A bottle of Safeguard is not very expensive, but the coccidiosis meds are a little more unless you can find a 16 ounce bottle of Corid. The others are sold in one gallon jugs. Any chance the person who sold you the drugs will give you the meds?