Probably about 85% of all goat health problems are rooted in worms. Goats are extremely susceptible to worms and will actually die if a successful worming program is not in place. Symptoms include sluggishness, loss of appetite, scours (diarrhea), drop in milk production, and can easily lead to death. In fact, anytime a goat seems off, the first thing we check for is worms. Right now you should be proactively watching for worms. Heading it off at the pass is much better that nursing a goat back to health (or burying it)
Worms and other species of parasites, such as coccidian protozoa, invade the body, consume the vital oxygen-carrying red blood cells, wound tissue and excrete cancer-causing waste. Sick goats are often misdiagnosed and incorrectly treated for other diseases when a worm infestation has played the key causative role.
A worm infestation can seriously impact the overall health of your goats. Although normally thought of in terms of the stomach and intestines as being the primary sites for these uninvited guests, parasites can also be found in the liver, muscles, joints, esophagus, brain, spinal column, blood, skin and even in the eyes.
Quick Check:
Nothing is as good as sending a stool sample to the vet but the best quick check is to pull out the lower eyelid and check its color. Worms cause anemia (low red blood cell count). You want to see a nice, rich salmon color or bright pink. If it is pale pink, or even worse, white, your goat most likely has worms.
Treatment:
1. Worm your goat. If you use a chemical wormer, make sure that do a second dosing 11 days after to kill the larva and eggs (now adult worms) that were missed during the first dose.
2. Provide a course of probiotics to restore the natural balance to their digestive tract. We strongly recommend the Fast track Jump-start gel. Give 5 ml every day for 3 days.
3. Start an iron supplement to rebuild the red blood cell count. Without the iron supplement it takes a very long time for the goat to rebuild its red blood count.
4. If you have Bovi-sera or Goat serum, go ahead and give a 10cc sub-q injection. This will help strengthen the goat’s compromised immune system and possibly head off any additional ailment that is waiting to piggyback on the opportunity and weakness created by the worms.
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