When I first started my homestead, part of my desire was to raise animals more naturally.I didn't want unnecessary antibiotics, growth hormones, etc. but at the sane time I knew I would not sacrifice an animals' health by withholding modern medicine when they needed it. For example, I tried herbal dewormers first, but I found they didn't work and have used chemical wormers since.
Anyway, I used CD/T vacs from the beginning because I believed the risk was too great not to. But...I have not vaccinated this year or last because I normally vaccinated before does kidded. No one has suffered or gotten sick from not being vaccinated.
So now I'm wondering...is it really necessary? Under what circumstances?
Views: 175
You need to be a member of Nigerian Dwarf Dairy Goats to add comments!
Thanks for your responses! I think I will give up preventative shots and keep an antitoxin on hand in case of an emergency.
I worry about reactions, too, and I've always wondered why animals would need yearly boosters when humans don't. I know there are a lot of differences between human and animal systems, but it still always seemed strange.
I do disbud, and really, unless your goats are living in squalor, it doesn't open them up to germs... Anything that could harm them at the site of the burn has been heated to the point of killing those germs. I have put a wash of iodine on the burn spot when their scabs fall off, but nothing else. :)
Rachel in Wonderland said:
I wondered about whether or not disbudding would affect it. I disbud, and I know that opens a place up for germs...but it also cauterizes.
Rachel, do you disbud?
Susan Oleson said:
I have done some & not others. If I think I will be selling to someone who will want CD&T I will do it. If the kids are likely to stay I don't. The kids I have now have not been & won't be. They also get to keep their horns! I also try my best at natural. I fecal test & only deworm when needed. I think herd size & how much time you can spend with each one matters. If you know your animals you are more likely to see an issue before it is a problem.
My philosophy is pretty much the same as yours. We started out doing CDT but quit doing the kids we were keeping after about three years. After a few more years I quit vaccinating completely, including kids that I sold. I say on my website that you can buy a bottle of vaccine for $5 and a syringe and needle for less than $1. (And if you're planning to vaccinate, you might as well learn to do it now.) We do disbud. At this point, we've probably disbudded a couple hundred kids without vaccinating and have had no problems.
I quit vaccinating after seeing people online talking about vaccinated goats that got enterotoxemia (in spite of being vaccinated), which then led some people to vaccinate as much as 2-4 times a year, even though the manufacturer only recommends annual boosters. And I also knew breeders who'd had goats much longer than me who quit vaccinating because they'd had problems with goats reacting to the vaccine. I had always been a little worried about the vaccine because I had a cat almost die from a vaccine when we still lived in the suburbs. It pulled through after spending a few hours at the vet, so I always made sure I had a bottle of epinephrine in case of a reaction when I was vaccinating my goats.
I wondered about whether or not disbudding would affect it. I disbud, and I know that opens a place up for germs...but it also cauterizes.
Rachel, do you disbud?
Susan Oleson said:
I have done some & not others. If I think I will be selling to someone who will want CD&T I will do it. If the kids are likely to stay I don't. The kids I have now have not been & won't be. They also get to keep their horns! I also try my best at natural. I fecal test & only deworm when needed. I think herd size & how much time you can spend with each one matters. If you know your animals you are more likely to see an issue before it is a problem.
I have done some & not others. If I think I will be selling to someone who will want CD&T I will do it. If the kids are likely to stay I don't. The kids I have now have not been & won't be. They also get to keep their horns! I also try my best at natural. I fecal test & only deworm when needed. I think herd size & how much time you can spend with each one matters. If you know your animals you are more likely to see an issue before it is a problem.
I haven't vaccinated, and the dairy I got my last doe from doesn't either. So far so good! I agree with your line of thought about going naturally when you can too. :)
Replies
Thanks for your responses! I think I will give up preventative shots and keep an antitoxin on hand in case of an emergency.
I worry about reactions, too, and I've always wondered why animals would need yearly boosters when humans don't. I know there are a lot of differences between human and animal systems, but it still always seemed strange.
I do disbud, and really, unless your goats are living in squalor, it doesn't open them up to germs... Anything that could harm them at the site of the burn has been heated to the point of killing those germs. I have put a wash of iodine on the burn spot when their scabs fall off, but nothing else. :)
Rachel in Wonderland said:
My philosophy is pretty much the same as yours. We started out doing CDT but quit doing the kids we were keeping after about three years. After a few more years I quit vaccinating completely, including kids that I sold. I say on my website that you can buy a bottle of vaccine for $5 and a syringe and needle for less than $1. (And if you're planning to vaccinate, you might as well learn to do it now.) We do disbud. At this point, we've probably disbudded a couple hundred kids without vaccinating and have had no problems.
I quit vaccinating after seeing people online talking about vaccinated goats that got enterotoxemia (in spite of being vaccinated), which then led some people to vaccinate as much as 2-4 times a year, even though the manufacturer only recommends annual boosters. And I also knew breeders who'd had goats much longer than me who quit vaccinating because they'd had problems with goats reacting to the vaccine. I had always been a little worried about the vaccine because I had a cat almost die from a vaccine when we still lived in the suburbs. It pulled through after spending a few hours at the vet, so I always made sure I had a bottle of epinephrine in case of a reaction when I was vaccinating my goats.
I wondered about whether or not disbudding would affect it. I disbud, and I know that opens a place up for germs...but it also cauterizes.
Rachel, do you disbud?
Susan Oleson said:
I have done some & not others. If I think I will be selling to someone who will want CD&T I will do it. If the kids are likely to stay I don't. The kids I have now have not been & won't be. They also get to keep their horns! I also try my best at natural. I fecal test & only deworm when needed. I think herd size & how much time you can spend with each one matters. If you know your animals you are more likely to see an issue before it is a problem.
I haven't vaccinated, and the dairy I got my last doe from doesn't either. So far so good! I agree with your line of thought about going naturally when you can too. :)