Hoof rot vac??

allenslabs · #1 11/20/06, 05:40 PM

Anyone used the hoof rot vac? I am having the hardest time with the hoof right now with all the rain and mud and feel sorry for these poor goats. My dairy goats are just fine but the boer goats are having a harder time as they're outside more I guess. I thought about the vaccine and wouldn't mind using it except for the fact I know little about it and the vet said he didn't have much luck with it around here but again....... few with goaty knowledge. He tries and is a great vet but is still learning on the goats. I guess I'm kinda the guinea pig. HAHA!! He said he'd help me if I needed it but didn't have much good to say about it and that made me wonder if anyone else has or maybe they weren't given enough or weren't give the booster or what but I'm sick of seeing limping goats! I don't have a place to make a footbath and tis' some major work gettin em all up for hoof trimmin. Once the buck leaves it'll be easier as he has no respect for me and that is annoying.
Anywhoooo just wanted to see whatcha all thought of it!! See ya later!

Vicki McGaugh TX Nubians · #2 11/21/06, 12:33 PM

The type of hoofrot you are having would have to be identified, if it isn't the same thing the vaccination covers, than it is worthless. Like you can't vaccinate our goats with the pinkeye vaccine for cows, because goats do not get that strain of pinkeye.

Have you upped your copper? Huge in helping with hooves. The coopertox you use to treat the hoofrot is copper. Your boers likely have more of their diet from your property (pasture/browze) than you diary goats if yours were like mine. So the boers would show more defficency that you have locally in your area than the diary goats who have more food purchased for them from off??? Perhaps? Vicki

allenslabs · #3 11/21/06, 05:08 PM

Well the boers eat the same feed as the dairys but the dairys get to go inside their barn all the time and the boers stay out unless it's going to rain. I have a lot of mud unfortunately. And the boers have the same type of round bales as the dairy. I'm going to stick out some iodized salt tonight and the same mineral stuff as my dairy as the boers have a mineral protein block thing. But I will give it to em.
That might help. I'm gonna get everyone up again and do hooves ( I just did em last week but wanna see what all I can do for em anywho) and worm em all and put hoof n heel on.
I was looking into the Volar vaccine. A lady said she used it with success but I guess that does make sense about the strains. Thanks Vicki!!

Vicki McGaugh TX Nubians · #4 11/21/06, 08:31 PM

Just for what it's worth. I don't offer any other forms of salt to my goats other than their loose minerals. If you now put out more salt with iodine in it, they may go and eat it instead of going to their mineral salt which contains the extra copper they need. This means even less mineral consumed, the opposite of what you want.

Not a whole heck of alot of difference between boers and Nubians (I may loose my membership badge for saying that

so something is contributing to the problems in your boers...is it from overgrowth with too high of protein (horns and hooves are all protein) in your mineral sweet lick? Molassas binds copper absorption because of it's high iron content..do you also have high iron in your water? Feeding also red minerals (more iron oxide) in your mineral mix? Still more iron in your feed? More molassas....boy I am a broken record aren't I

It was just such a huge difference in my herd when we moved away from molassas (although I can see why the protein tubs are such a conveinence) more to grains, no byproducts to waste my money, and upping the copper to cattle/horse levels. Plummeting the protein in your adult herd who do not need protein anymore, helps soo much with overgrowth of hoof. Vicki

allenslabs · #5 11/21/06, 09:12 PM

Well I guess I'll just take away the protein block that's a 20% block from Orscheln. Then I can just stick out loose minerals and there is one doe who has an almost goiter looking thing develop at the throatlatch area and was told she could need iodine that's why I thought the iodized salt would be good for a few days. Then for 765lbs of feed there is about 30lbs of wet molasses in it. My feed is 16%. It has corn, oats, beet pulp, bean meal, molasses and minerals. They are fed timothy and clover hay in a round bale.
What would you do different???

allenslabs · #6 11/21/06, 09:15 PM

Here is my feed mix
312 corn
225 oats
138 bean meal
30 liq molasses
60 beet pulp
5lb kent goat minerals
That is right at 16% Is that a good boer mix??