Selenium deficiency

Togg lovers

Check with good breeders in your area and ask what they do. Some parts of the country are just fine with selenium. All advice is general, as problems vary with the part of the country you are in (like Texas has a a big worm challenge, and North Idaho is a piece of cake-still worm, but we don't have worm resistance to certain wormers and don't have to worm as often.)

Camille

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Camille
Copper Penny Ranch
Copper Penny Boer Goats (home of 4 National Champions, 4 Reserve Champions)
Copper Penny Pyrenees
Whey-to-Go Saanens


www.copper-penny-ranch.com

Togg Lovers, I completely understand! Perhaps your vet intends to run some blood work on them before breeding. He is probably correct about the controls on Bo-Se. The AVMA got much more restrictive laws passed concerning prescription meds a few years ago. In most cases, they cannot legally dispense unless they have "examined" the animal. I think some vets are much more relaxed about it, or maybe the laws in some states aren't quite as restrictive. I will find out when I ask for a bottle of Bo-Se! I had him give the shots that were given this time, but I believe he has dispensed to my friend.

Anita

I will head to the farm store tomorrow to see what is available. I am 130 miles southeast of Boise, so who knows what I'll find here.

The interaction of minerals is also a factor. After all the reading I've done today, it's a wonder we're all not dead - people AND livestock! Just ran across a CATTLE TODAY article about copper deficiency in cattle that quotes many specialists in Idaho and the Pacific Northwest, so it's very relevant to my area. Here are a couple excerpts; entire article at http://www.cattletoday.com/archive/2003/May/CT271.shtml.

"Primary [copper] deficiency occurs when feed is grown on copper deficient soils. Secondary deficiency often occurs when dietary excess of other elements (molybdenum, iron, zinc, lead or calcium carbonate) tie up copper so it can't be utilized.
"Another factor that can push a marginal copper supply into the deficient category is interference by iron and/or molybdenum. ...producers should look at the copper to molybdenum ratio. When forage samples contain less than 8 10 parts per million of copper, they are borderline deficient. The problem is compounded when molybdenum levels are in excess of 1 3 parts per million, or when the copper to molybdenum ratio falls below 3:1 or 4:1, he explained."

Holy goat! (That's a derivative of "holy cow", modified for this list.)

I think Emily nailed the hair-coat problem. One of the things mentioned in the article was dry-looking coat; browning on a black coat. Yup. That's what we've got here.

In addition to regular mineral supplements I feed my cows and goats lots of surplus bread. It is a great treat, cheap (free, a lady down the road brings it home from the bakery) and the beasts love it. If it gets moldy, it goes to the chickens.
Lots of selenium in bread in addition to all the other goodies.

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If angels existed, they'd probably be considered big game. (Don Swain)

Home schooling.........not just for scary religious people anymore. Buffy

Thank you. I called someone this morning who's had goats for a long time around here. They said they use the same vet and follow his guidelines. They have never had a problem.

Our neighbor (who has horses & cattle) said their vet doesn't dispense many meds anymore either. So I guess they are getting more restrictive. I don't know what someone would use some of this stuff for but,...you never know these days.