HELP ! ! ! We've got a goat emergency...

copperkid3 · #1 03/25/08, 07:58 PM

I'm going to try and state this plain and simple; without too much emotion and I'd appreciate it if everyone who takes the time to come back and comment, would do the same. That being said, here's the synopsis of the story at hand.
We left the homestead after feeding everyone and went into town for the day to take care of "other business". We were gone about 7 hrs. or so. Upon arriving home, I went to check on the animals and noticed that some of the young goats had jumped the fence (again) and were out and trying to figure out a way to get back in before "Daddy" got down there and yelled at them. Usually they are led astray by our pygmy (Maggie) who is no youngster; being about 5 yrs old......but this time she was not to be seen. Got the others back into the pen and realized that something was wrong......went looking for her and found her inside the barn in an open pen and kind of hiding in a corner. I was getting ready to get after her, when I noticed that it appeared like she was moving her back leg as if it was caught up in twine or something. It was a bit dark and at first I didn't notice anything ........and then I noticed the blood around her left rear ankle area. And that it was just hanging there and flopping back and forth.......at which point, ....the awful truth then hammered into my brain......she'd caught her hoof in the top portion of the fence and had been hanging there until she managed to "break" loose.......literally. Because when I scooped her up in my arms and brought her outside and laid her down......it became quite clear that this was NOT an ordinary broken bone.......it is just hanging there by the skin, just above the ankle area. I'm just sick about the whole mess......this is a special pet and I don't want to put her down; neither do we have the funds to take her to the vet and I'm pretty sure that they would advise also putting her down. I guess my question is, has anyone had any experience with a similar situation where the leg was amputated, bandaged and eventually healed and the goat was able to carry on a somewhat "normal" life? I've heard and seen 3-legged dogs and have been amazed at what they have been able to accomplish......can the same be said (and done) for a favorite goat? We've made a bed of fresh straw and she laid down in it, but we need to make a decision soon. Looking forward to your earliest replies. Thank you in advance.

meleahbee · #2 03/25/08, 08:08 PM

Oh dear! How scary! Although I am certainly not the most experienced (by a long shot) I am a pre-vet student and I work at a small animal (dog and cat) vet clinic. I just saw something similar today but on a dog. The dog had a compound fracture in one of it's legs - meaning both bones in the leg were completely snapped. The vet had to put a small pin in it and keep it bandaged and splinted for 5 weeks. He just took out the pin today and it healed great.

The problem it sounds like you're going to have is the connective tissue, ligament, muscle, and nerve damage. I've had this in my horse who got caught in a barbed wire fence (hate those things!) and tore her leg down to the BONE.
We've been working with her for a year to heal up the wound. It took nightly bandage changes for a few months, but we're finally getting her there.

If this injury sounds like what I'm thinking it is - I think there is hope.

If this is just happening, your goat is at risk of shock. Some other users on here might be able to tell you more about that.

Anyway, my final point is - PLEASE call a vet. Tell them your situation and ask what they think just from your description. They will almost definitely want to see the goat. Tell them your financial situation up front. Ask about billing or payment plans. *MOST* vets can be flexible - obviously this is an emergency - not something like vaccinations. I think that is your best option. Perhaps they can put in a plate or pins to hold it together.

I can only imagine how you feel right now. I will pray for you and your goatie. Good luck!

MisFitFarm · #3 03/25/08, 08:16 PM

I second what Meleahbee said. Call every Vet you can until you reach one who will work with you. Good Luck and God Bless. Keep us posted, we'll be thinking of you.

lyceum · #4 03/25/08, 08:16 PM

I would take her to the vet asap and have the leg amputated. I don't see any reason to have her put down. Goats can get around just fine on 3 legs. We have a Nigerian Dwarf that had his leg amputated 2 year ago. He gets around just fine and was even able to mount a doe last fall.

My vet would let you make payments, talk with your vet and see if they would be willing to let you make payments. Get ahold of them first thing in the morning if not tonight and let them know what happened. It is best to get breaks taken care of right away. She would need to be started on antibiotics asap to prevent infection.

I also work at a Vets office and have seen numerous dog amputations recently and they are now doing great.

Carisa

sungirl · #5 03/25/08, 08:17 PM

Ask your vet about payment plans, some have plans that run over 2years for large amounts.

I had a friend who had a toggenburg doe who lost her leg from her mother laying on it. She was fine and even had kids and raised them to weaning. She is dead now since it was over 10 years ago but she lived a long time.

fcnubian · #6 03/25/08, 08:18 PM

I would definately have a vet involved. Goodluck.

collegeboundgal · #7 03/25/08, 08:23 PM

I had a goat injure its back leg and, like you, asked about amputation. The vet said that with the weight of the body on the other leg (esp. a back leg) that it would cause the healthy leg to break down. Now, if this is a clean break, I would try and splint it and let it heal. But, if this is an uneven break, or a break that has lots of little fragments "floating" around, I have to encourage you to put her down.

-Melissa

Meg Z · #8 03/25/08, 08:32 PM

A vet clinic I pass every day on the way to work has a three-legged cow in the pasture. Rear leg is missing the lower half. This cow calved this past spring. I would think if a cow could handle the weight, particuarly in calf, that a goat could.

However, attempting a home amputation would be enough, I think, to put the goat into shock. You'll have jagged bone ends to deal with, which will require work with a sterile bone saw to smooth for skin to heal over it. Not to mention all the other tissues that have to be closed off properly for healing. None of that should be done without general anaesthetic and antibiotics. Not something that can be done at home.

I think your only reasonable choices are to put the goat down or take it to a vet to have the amputation done properly. It's a favorite goat; you don't want to cause it more misery.

Meg

Jan in CO · #9 03/25/08, 08:42 PM

My friend has a goat with it's hoof missing, and she does well each year, kidding with multiple kids. I think, unless you are able to handle the amputation well, I'd call a vet, explaining your finances and see what they say. Shock is an issue, so do so quickly if you want to save your pet. Let us know what happens, and good luck! Jan in Co

mpete · #10 03/25/08, 08:47 PM

keep her warm. If there is still any bleeding, apply constant pressure on it by wrapping a guaze on it. Call the vet.... with just an office visit fee they can see what your options really are... I am so sorry for your pain, and for hers...

mamajohnson · #11 03/25/08, 10:04 PM

Oh, I am so sorry your having to go through this.
Prayers for you and your goaty baby.
I would try a vet for sure, you never know what the outcome would be.
Waiting to here good news.

Milk n' Honey · #12 03/25/08, 10:24 PM

That is the most awful thing to have to come home to. My goodness. I am so sorry. I'm sure you want to do what you can for her. You might at least take her to the vet. It would cost you the office call but I have to tell you, amputation is going to set you back a hefty sum of money. You can't leave her in the condition she is in and I don't recommend trying it yourself b/c a goat just can't handle stress like that. You have a very difficult decision to make. I'd think a vet would tell you to put her down. It is probably the most humane thing to do for her at this point. I am so sorry for this. Whatever happens, I hope you can find peace with it. Good luck to you.

copperkid3 · #13 03/25/08, 11:27 PM

UPDATE ON "MAGGIE" - the pygmy goat........

Well, it's been 4 long hard hours since we got home and found her and I've been out to her pen a couple of times. The first was to check on her for shock and also to cover her up with a throw rug. She was still lying down where I had laid her and she seemed to be calm as I covered her with the rug.

The wife and I just now, went out again to check on her again and to administer some pain medication and a shot of penicillin. Image our surprise to find her up and over on the opposite side of the 8'x8' pen......and chewing her cud!!! :banana02:

The leg was still hanging uselessly, but it wasn't bleeding and she seemed rather unconcerned about all the fuss. The wife, prior to our going down to the barn, had broken up and dissolved (3) 200 mg tablets of Ibuprofen in 6 mls of water and then sucked the solution into a syringe. This was then administered orally to the goat.....though she only got about 2/3 of it down her gullet. We then gave her 3.5 mls of Durvet Pen-Aqueous (penicillin) subsutaneously. She immediately walked/hobbled over to the manger and began pulling out strands of alfalfa and eating. As far as stress or shock goes......it appears almost non-existent. Her "mom" and "dad" are the ones who are stressed and in shock and yet truely amazed at how well she seems to be and her handling of all this. Goats are creatures with constitutions that put the rest of the animal kingdom to shame!!! The ability to rebound from something that to most would be tramatic......is just a little impediment to the mighty goat!!!

Thank you all for your kind words of advice and encouragement. Hopefully things will look even better in the morning and we can then plan how best to proceed in this manner.

Cloverbud · #14 03/25/08, 11:33 PM

I have a 3-footed doe. She, too, miscalculated a fence-leap, and lost her leg just above the hoof. She rarely uses it, and last month my herd queen blessed me with twin bucklings.

My professional opinion is that this is worth a call to the vet, at the very least to see if they can smooth off the jagged bone ends and suture some skin and muscle over them. Just a guess but around here, you might be looking at ballpark $300. Five is still reasonably young for a goat, I think.

HELP ! ! ! We've got a goat emergency... - Goats

HELP ! ! ! We've got a goat emergency... - Goats

nehimama · #15 03/26/08, 05:42 AM

Copperkid, it's hard for me to imagine the shock you felt, coming home to this awful situation. I know you will make the right decision, and hope that everything will go well. Extra pets and skritches to your Maggie, and lots of good wishes and positive energy.

NeHi

goatsareus · #16 03/26/08, 06:00 AM

we had this very thing happen a few years ago. It had been raining and the goats were playing on a dead, barkless tree on the ground, it was very slippery on the tree. The kid slipped between a fork in the tree and was stuck. I did not know anything until I counted noses that night, one missing so we went looking. By the time we found him, he was in shock. He tried to get loose, and ended up almost detaching his leg. We carried him back to the house and cut off the one remaining tendon holding on the leg. It was not a clean break, but it did heal quite well. At first a piece of bone was sticking out of the wound, but that broke off and it healed nicely. We also were in shock. When we took him back to the barn, he dove for his mom's udder. That gave us hope that he would recover. He was quite remarkable with this trauma and recovery, a very very brave goat. We really did not treat the wound that I can remember. We kept it clean and watched the wound carefully. Animals, and humans, have a tremendous capacity to heal. We learned a lot from the bravery this goat showed us.

Just reading through the other posts, no, we did not call a vet, not really an option in my area.

Cygnet · #17 03/26/08, 10:12 AM

I have a goat with half a foot -- he's a large boy (over 200 lbs and not overweight) and he gets around okay. His, too, was a fence injury. He pulverized his foot fighting to get free -- ripped off the hoof capsule and had a compound fracture of the coffin bone.

Vet bills were $$$, with surgery, but the goat did live, and has had decent quality of life for several years. He did founder in the back afterwards, on the remaining toe and the opposite foot, but recovered and was sound for years ... He's just now starting to have difficulty getting up and down and appears to have something wrong in one of his stifles. (It's obviously unstable -- looks like he's ruptured some ligaments.)

However, he had several good years, so I'd say it was worth it.

Be prepared for hoof trimming to be a real issue. It takes some real manhandling to trim this goat -- he's over 200 pounds, and can't support himself on his bad leg! And isn't inclined to cooperate.

Backfourty,MI. · #18 03/26/08, 10:29 AM

[QUOTE=copperkid3;2967791]UPDATE ON "MAGGIE"rug.

The wife, prior to our going down to the barn, had broken up and dissolved (3) 200 mg tablets of Ibuprofen in 6 mls of water and then sucked the solution into a syringe. This was then administered orally to the goat.....though she only got about 2/3 of it down her gullet. Quote]

I didn't think goats could have ibuprofen, I had only thought Banamine, etc. from the vet or regular aspirin in high doses.
So glad she seems to be feeling better though. I would still probly see if your vet would set up a payment plan & take care of the part that is still dangling before she catches it in something & rips it again.

copperkid3 · #19 03/26/08, 10:46 AM

Further update on Maggie:

Called our vet this morning as soon as they opened (8am) and was referred to another vet who specializes in farm animals. We loaded her up; (along with a 2 month old bottle baby doeling who also has a case of coccidiosis) and made the 25 mile trip without event. Both goats took it all in and seemed none the worse for wear. The vet examined the injury and stated that we should have brought her in yesterday when it happened. When it was explained that by the time we found her, that that wasn't an option, then she said that we should have put a split on the break. Again, we didn't have the supplies, nor were we prepared......but she did state that the lower portion was still warm and while there was a lot of tissue damage, it might be possible to put a pin in and save the foot. IF, however, when they went in and discovered that it was beyond their ability to "fix".......she was suggesting that we consider amputation at the hip, because she felt that if it was cut off at the break, that the goat might try putting weight on it & using it and it would probably become a bloody stump and get infected!!!

After hearing the other reports on here on amputations and seeing the photos of Cloverbud's goat which has an identical break in the same place and same leg as Maggies', I'm inclined to think that that would be preferable to what the vet is pushing; having major surgery to remove her leg at the hip. Any ideas or suggestions on what I should say when she calls us back? I feel a bit better this morning, but this "alternative" is bothering me worse than the initial shock of seeing her with the broken foot at the ankle and considering taking it off myself.......and that was hard enough to consider doing. Will keep ya'll appraised of the outcome as we become informed. Once again, thank you everyone for your good thoughts, well-wishes and information/suggestions/common-sense advice. This forum is a blessing and we appreciate it immensely.

copperkid3 · #20 03/26/08, 10:59 AM

[QUOTE=Backfourty,MI.;2968609]

Quote:

Originally Posted by copperkid3

UPDATE ON "MAGGIE"rug.

The wife, prior to our going down to the barn, had broken up and dissolved (3) 200 mg tablets of Ibuprofen in 6 mls of water and then sucked the solution into a syringe. This was then administered orally to the goat.....though she only got about 2/3 of it down her gullet. Quote]

I didn't think goats could have ibuprofen, I had only thought Banamine, etc. from the vet or regular aspirin in high doses.
So glad she seems to be feeling better though. I would still probly see if your vet would set up a payment plan & take care of the part that is still dangling before she catches it in something & rips it again.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The wife claimed that she read it on some forum (not here), the amounts of either ibuprofen or aspirin that can safely be given to goats to relieve pain, inflamation, etc. and we followed that recommendation. We informed the vet of our "doctoring" and she didn't say anything regarding NOT doing so......but when we go back to pick Maggie up, I'll bring it up again and ask what she thinks/knows about it.
She did comment on our dosage of LA200 given to the 2 month old doeling and stated that it wasn't appropriate for goat coccidiosis and then prescribed and gave us the correct medication for treating "Blondie".......her temperature was slightly elevated, but her tail was wiggling constantly and she still has a good set of lungs as evidenced by her constantly "talking" to everyone who passed thru the waiting room!!! :banana02: