Hi all! I have a Nigerian that is a bit over one year old and he started acting weird this morning. He kept laying down and then every once in a while he would stretch out while laying down. We moved him from our 3 acres where we let them roam into their pen so we could keep a close eye on him. I kept watching him and he would just stand in one place for the longest time and then he would lay down for a while in the same place. I was starting to worry maybe he couldn't pee so I was looking for a vet to come out (we are in an area without a lot of vets that work on goats). I couldn't get a hold of any. My husband and I took his temp and it was 103.2. Right before we took his temp, he did pee and he didn't appear to be struggling to go. He also drank a lot of water. Right after we took his temp he pooped and then went over and started eating. His left side did look a little bigger than the right but not horribly so and not any more than all my other goats who are acting normal. His tail is not it's usual erect way. We do know we need to give them copper as they are starting to get the fishtail look but any ideas on what could be going on with him? I have never had a sick goat before so don't know what to expect with bloat or anything like that.
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There's a product called bloat guard. A small bottle of a clear thick liquid. Only had bloat once when I bought a new buck. Vet used this on him and I have always kept some on hand since. It worked quickly and only took a little bit. Cheap insurance to have it on hand.
Nothing sounds terribly alarming. I'm glad you saw him pee. The left side is often bigger than the right because that's where the rumen is. If you press it is, and it stays depressed like cookie dough, that's normal. It just means the rumen is full of chewed up grass and other food. If you can't press in the left side, or if it sounds like a drum when you tap it, that means it's full of air. You can offer free-choice baking soda or even get a teaspoon of it into his mouth if you really feel he's bloated. If that doesn't help, you need to get an ounce (30 cc) of oil into him. I've only had two cases of bloat, and I used whatever oil I had in the kitchen at the time, such as sunflower oil. That did it for goat, but the second goat I had to offer a second dose of oil about 30 minutes later.