Oh boy. So I came home from the store today to find my oldest daughter running around yelling at the goats in the next door pasture. Then I realized that my young 5 month old Phoebe had somehow gotten out (and left her pal Travis behind) and gotten in with the neighbor's goats.
Of course, Phoebe is in heat & of course there's a big goat buck (reg size -- not Nigie) in that pen named Thumper. He was trying to mount her and was actually crushing her while trying. We didn't see him succeed but we also don't know when she got into the pen either. It was insane trying to keep him from her (and he has some huge horns)...and her from him...absolutely insane. We were chasing, grabbing, dodging...
But now I'm terrified that she's pregnant. She's only 5 months old and not the right size to have his kids either. I do NOT want her to die having a larger goat's babies! Any advice?
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I agree about not needing an exam before giving the injection. It's not about examining for the pregnancy but rather evaluation the goat before giving them anything at all.
In other words they want the exam fee :D so that they're established as a patient. I guess it's necessary for certain things but on other things it's ludicrous.
There is no point in examining a goat before a lutalyse injection. A vet won't know if the goat is pregnant or not at seven days. Hope she gives it to you. Lots of big breeders use it synchronize their does and make them all come into heat at the same time for artificial insemination, so it's not a drug that anyone keeps a very tight control on -- not like anesthesia or something like that.
Snacks -- anything grain based is generally okay, but stay away from artificial stuff like ranch flavored and things like that. Plain tortilla chips or oat cereal are okay once a week or something.
Dry does and wethers over six months of age really do not need alfalfa and grain unless they are enduring some extreme living conditions like 50 below zero in Canada or something like that.
Wow, Jackie -- $85 plus $3.40 a mile would give me a heart attack too! I don't have vets come to my farm even with the fees they do charge around here. If I absolutely need a vet, I take the goat in. NDs are portable, so you don't need a truck or a trailer.
I have been wondering about using cheerios as a treat also??
Chris McLaughlin said:
Yes, I've had vets do this for me when I've had an ongoing relationship with them & they know my animal. But we just moved here in the middle of June & we don't have relationship with a vet yet.
The Large Animal Vets here are mobile unit too but they use the lab etc from the local small animal clinic, so I could drop off samples etc at the office in town or for none urgent care it is possible to call and set up an appointment to meet them at the office on a day when they are scheduled to do a lab pick-up.
When I questioned him about goats on the phone he gave me quick to the point answers that lined up with what I have read in books and on here.... and I once wittnessed a kid and his 4H goat in the office waiting room a few yrs back when there with my dog, I am thinking these guys should (I hope) be pretty good about them.
Thank you for all those that chimmed in with prices from your area. I think I will call again and ask if the travel charge is on top of any kind of consult charge, I know the in office for my small animals is around $25 for a consult....will also ask about after hours charges too...thank you for the tips.
As for vets giving meds without seeing the animal, I think it depends on the vet and if they think the person is knowledgeable about the condition of the animal in question...I know for my dog, my vet was more than happy for me to skip a consult and give meds because she knew, I knew what I needed and what to do with it, but it took me awhile to build that kind of relationship with the vet in question...Sadly she moved state and I though I still use the same office have not bonded with any one Dr still there yet.
By the way -- if it's an emergency or a same day visit the rate is $125 before they ever look at the animal.
Well this is a mobile vet -- that's what they do. They charge $50-$55 a visit I think. Then any injection I've ever had from a vet has been about $25. If I don't hear from them early tomorrow I'll give a different vet a call. I'm just hoping that they'll give it to me without seeing her. I don't how it is where ya'll are, but in California the big thing is that they won't just give you medication if they haven't seen the animal. They just won't.
This goat thing has been crazy this time around because I don't remember everything we did when we had goats about 14 years ago. So when the vet was out to float my aged mare's teeth I asked her about my goats. The breeder told me to feed them alfalfa & alfalfa pellets along with grass hat. The vet said absolutely no alfalfa.
I know that you guys here don't like goat chow for the wethers, but I was also told by the breder to feed them that, too. I did at first but then stopped because of this forum.
I want to give them more than just orchard grass, however. So I've been giving them Old Fashioned Quaker Oats (not the quick ones) only because it's wonderful for rabbits (rabbits is where my specialty lies :D). I'd like to supplement with other things but am not sure what to give them.
I did give them plain Cheerios this morning :D.
Y'all be thankful for those farm call fees! Here it is $85 AND $3.40/mile! I nearly had a heart attack. They are great vets, though.
Around here, it's $25 to $75, depending upon the vet. I think it just depends on how much the vet hates doing farm visits. I think most of them would prefer to sit in their office and have you bring in animals, so the higher fees are a disincentive for people to have them come to their farms. I've come to this conclusion because the ones closest to me are the ones that charge $75. If they told you there was a $45 "travel charge," that doesn't include the regular exam fee, which probably adds another $35 or so for your base fee before they do anything extra. This is one reason I've learned to do pretty much everything myself -- in addition to the fact that most vets know nothing about goats AND most stuff does not happen 9-5, M-F, so you'd also be adding an "emergency fee," which quickly starts to add up to $$$!
I called around this past week to find a vet in my area that does goats and was fortunate to find 2 vets that have a joint large animal practice that work out of my local animal hospital...I was told they charge a $45 "travel charge" for a farm visit...Is this about the going rate?
Chris I hope you are able to resolve this pregnancy issue quickly and will no problems for you or your Doe.
Blessings Kelsie
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