Rescued goat suddenly come into milk and has now very clotty fluid coming out ??

Alma · #1 11/26/05, 04:50 PM

I rescued a goat about a couple of months ago, no history at all. Except the vet said she was about ten years old. Was wandering around without the previous owners caring about her. She had all the brouse she wanted , no poisons here at all in this area, many of the cabin neighbors were sort of looking out for her but eventually got fed up with her not being looked after and called in the SPCA. She ended up at my place as I have goats too. She is a full Toddenburg and is very friendly and well trained. The previous owners only got her in July and there's no way they would tell the SPCA where she came from !!!!!A few days ago her one teat(she only has one big one the other is only small possibly from a bout of MAstitis or an injury maybe) started to get bigger and bigger I thought could she possibly be pregnant!!?? No other signs visible even tho I have been trying to feel around on the right side I can't see anything either. Then yesterday I saw that her teat was looking far too shiny and even on the verge of looking very full and felt her udder and it was very hard (no heat there tho) when I tried to milk her a little she was a little fussy but I have put warm compresses and bag balm massaged in and when I got some liquid out it was clotty and yellow in color . It didn't smell very nice either but this morning the smell was gone but she is still full and hard to milk it out. More warm compresses and bag balm but I'm not sure she's pregnant and why would she all of a sudden get a full udder if she not ?? I have three good books I've been reading and other than a false pregnancy or summer mastitis Has aanyone ever dealt with something like this before and can offer some help. I have put a call in to our agri vet but only get a call back in extreme emergency. She doesss not show any other signs and is eating her hay happily.

Goat Freak · #2 11/26/05, 05:11 PM

Are there any bucks near you, or do you have any that she has been exposed to? My guess would be that she is pregnant, our goats that have been bred before always started to fill up in the last week or so and looked about to burst the day before. Good luck with her, glad to hear that she has a good home now. Bye.

Alma · #3 11/26/05, 05:24 PM

We don't have any bucks in this area and I have also have had experience with birthing both sheep and goats but without any history its hard to know for sure. I have put her in a seperate place with hay and bedding as if she 's going to give birth just in case but I'm really worried about the udder getting so sore looking and very yellow fluid in it. We do have another mother goat and her eight month okld who is still not fully weaned from her mom. I was wondering if she tried to suck on the old gaot would she start to produce milk. I don't know if she's even been pregnant at all in recent years. We live in a area that pretty remote and only a few place have people with breeding goats. Many times people have them for company with horses or for pets. Mine are for milking and I use the young bucks for sale or for food. There isn't many around here that even know where she came from cause I checked with pepole I knew with pictures of her, but nothing turned up. I was going to breed her with a Toddenburg buck next time she went in heat but now this. If it turns out to be real pregnancy I am lucky I have goats first milk in the freezer and a milker albe to give me goats milk for any that might be born.!!

Goat Freak · #4 11/26/05, 06:16 PM

Mu only thing would be is that most of the time goats do NOT let ANY baby other than their own, and only their most recent, nurse from them. We have had babies that have tried to nurse from a doe other than their mom, and they ALWAYS goat a smack for it, from the goat they were trying to nurse from. Good Luck with her. Byhe.

mary,tx · #5 11/26/05, 06:24 PM

Ten does seem a little long in the tooth for her to be bred if she has not been breeding in recent years. Colustrum, of course, is yellowish, but should not be clotting. I expect someone with more experience will be along to give you advice.
mary

havenberryfarm · #6 11/26/05, 08:19 PM

If the previous owners only got her in July, then she may have been exposed right before she was sold. In which case, she is due. I wonder if they are right about her age. Hmmm.
Glad she found herself a good owner. Good for you!

**mygoat** · #7 11/26/05, 09:56 PM

I had something like this happen to me this month. My doe kidded in august and her kids were separated middle of october from her. She was totally dry and I didn't milk her. then on the 10th, I was petting her and touched her udder. one side was full and felt like a beanbag. squirted some out, and it was mastitis. I didn't think they could get this unless we were milking or unless there was still some milk in the udder. called the vet, they said 5cc pennicillin for a week, then to call back. after milking out, shots and massaging daily for about two or three days, about 2" behind the teat, inside the udder, got hard and turned into a hard lump, wich decreased in size daily. I think it was inflamed tissues. The amount of liquid was now very little, and had very few chunks. There was now hard lump. I posted here, everyone urged me to massage. I think that made it worse, because the liquid turned from a ornage color to a heavily blood tinged clear dark orange. But there was very little fluid and after I stopped massaging the color went back to orange and the lump kept decreasing. I stopped penicillin early this last week, and I ordered some products from jeffers, such as tomorrow, which should be here on the 29th. Even the vet thought it was odd that she had a lump and very little liquid in there. I haven't checked her udder lately, and sice she is off antibiotics it may be coming back. I hope that my tomorrow gets here soon...

Alma · #8 11/27/05, 05:51 PM

Thanks for the interest, another friend who has haad goats for many years said that it could be possible even tho its not oour normal breeding season and many times his goats have bred twice in one year. That is if she had been around a buck of course. I am treating her as if she is aabout to kid and he says too that the yellow could be the colustrum . Today I didn't do any milking at all and just rubbed in some bag balm and keeping her warm and comfortable in her own space . She's eating all her hay and all functions are working. So its now just a matter of talking to the vet and maybe try to confirm if she's in kid or not., ONLY time will tell I guess. We haave just visited with another goat owner today to Have our Thelma bred to a Toddenburg buck and was a successful breeding and a fun ride in the "car" with her and her 8month old along for the ride. It helped to take this off our minds, and our son (11) was really into the planning of his goat herd of the future planning to milk all of his goats and me making the cheese!! It was a fun day. Take care and thanks for all the help and support!!