Hi there,
This is my first post, but hopefully someone can help me out. Our doe just kidded 4 kids yesterday. 2 were still-borns, and 1 healthy, and 1 with a lame leg, and weak joints.
I'm writing about the weak guy. I thought we could maybe help him out because he wasn't eating, so we started feeding him with a syringe (which was working out), but i noticed that when we went to feed him, his stomach didn't seem small, and felt full. As it turns out, he doesn't have an anus. There's no sphincter muscle or even a slit or hole. We're taking him to the vet tomorrow, but was wondering if we should try to feed him a bit tonight before we go to bed, or just leave him till the morning. We don't feel comfortable euthinising him ourselves, so maybe the vet will do it. Also, any advice is appreciated.
Thanks in advance.
Ty D.
Replies
Can't wait to see your photos!
Welcome to the group, Ty. Sorry your first post is such a downer. I have had a lamb born without an anus, and we had to euthanize him within about three hours of his birth because he started having seizures. I looked it up in Merck's, and although it's not unheard of, it's not common.
If your goat had these issues, I'm wondering if she's deficient in either copper or selenium, or if this was an inbreeding. My lamb was the result of an accidental mother-son breeding, but nutritional deficiencies are usually the reason behind dead kids and reproductive issues. We had a lot of problems here before we realized we had a copper deficiency problem caused by the sulfur in our well water.
Poor thing!! Poor YOU!! I would think that feeding him more might hurt him... but I really don't know... I hope someone else with more experience will be here with help!!