I found my doeling writhing on her side in pain around 10:30 last night. I brought her in and she grew worse during the night. Right when I brought her in I gave her nutridrench, she perked up for a bit, but then declined again. I tried to bottle feed with goat milk replacer. I notice the mother wouldn't have anything to do with her when I picked her up. I arrived at the vet at 7:45 this morning. had to wait for over an hour for it to open. They took her in and believe she has tetanus. I don't understand. I did give her mother a cdt shot two weeks before birth. Maybe I was too late. I checked her from head to toe and no injuries anywhere. Her twin is doing great. I feel so horrible. She is on IV's but the vet doesn't think it is going to help. My heart is broken and I feel like I failed her. I will know more soon.
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Hej,
Thanks. I am as over it as I ever will be. This little two-week-old boy died more than 10 years ago. I knew so little about goats then. We all have to go through these heartbreaks to learn, it seems. That trial and error that led to deaths of my goats was one of the things that motivated me to write Goat Health Care.
KSweden said:
Hej from Sweden !
Cheryl, I am so sorry for the loss of your little guy Comet. I can understand the helplessness you can feel. You can do nothing to save your little goat. I understand your loss. I hope it gets better for you.
Cheryl K. Smith said:
I am not sure you ever get over some of them. I had a little guy named Comet, who died right after the state fair ended. He had touched the lives of hundreds of people--more than some humans can say about their impact in this world. He got pneumonia and I was unable to save him. I still get emotional when I tell his story.
Beth Colquitt said:
Hej from Sweden !
Beth, it does take awhile. It all depends on you and how this loss affects you. Some people take this in their stride as "just part of farm life". I have had a real hard time since we lost our little Miracle. He was born in August and he passed in August. It was terrible. I have seen his mother Pumpkin grieve and she did for a long time. I am not sure exactly how his sister Rose took it;I took it badly for her. You can read about my experience in my blog http://gullringstorpgoatsblog.wordpress.com
Look at these 2 posts: " Little Miracle at Gullringstorp" and " A New Friend for Rose"
It's been 7 months and when I look into their box, I still imagine little Miracle there. I still miss him and wish things could have been different. My little fellow had a bad heart. Nothing could be done and he would not have had a good quality of life. His passing was actually a blessing. I know all of this yet I still miss him!
Like all loss, it does get better. It does get easier. But, because you love each and every goat you have , you will never forget Ruby. And you shouldn't! She was here and you did love her.
Deborah: I am feeding CHS goat minerial 16.I have been feeding the same mineral for over a year. None of my other goats seem to be having a problem.I will have to find the report to see what his copper levels were.
Beth: Yes it is normal to feel sad. I cryed for a couple of weeks. One of my co-wokers told me if you love something even if it is animal you will greave for its passing. I still after a couple of months get teary eyed at times. It just means that you are a very caring person. I am so sorry for your loss. Just hang in there each passing day it will get easier.
Ruby's sister, Opal is doing great;) But I am still so sad about my Ruby. How long does it take to get over losing a baby goat? I never expected to feel this sad about it. The more a I see Opal playing and having fun, the sadder I get. Is this normal? Am I crazy? Thanks to everyone for listening and all of your encouragement.
This is really interesting. I've never heard of a goat dieing from copper toxicity from unknown causes. What was his liver level of copper? Which mineral are you feeding? And you certainly can't feel guilty about him dieing because the vet couldn't have done anything. There isn't a treatment for mineral toxicity.
Julia Johnson said:
I know how you feel. In December one of my bucks got sick. We did not take him into the vet right away. But after a couple of days he just got worse. So we took him to the vet and that night he passed away. He died of copper toxicity. I total felt it was my fault. I even told my husband that I should just sell all of our goats since I am such a bad goat owner. Even now after a couple of months I feel bad about his death. We had a necrospy done but still not sure what he got into to cause his death. Hang in there. It sounds like you have done everything you could for the doeling.
sorry for your loss :(
Hej from Sweden !
Oh dear !! I am so sorry for your loss. I feel for you .
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