Infectious pinkeye

**mygoat** · #1 12/12/10, 11:01 PM

Noticed friday evening that one of my does had a weepy eye when I was doing her copper bolus/BoSe, and worming her. I pulled out a little piece of hay that was stuck in there, and gave her a shot of penicillin, hoping it wasn't pinkeye. It was still weepy yesterday, but I admittedly didn't look to closely at it, thinking the worst was past and that the hay was the culprit.

I've been studying like crazy for my exams and test that I have every day this week, and have been breezing through my chores quickly.

Today, her eye is clouded and still weeping, and puffy. Another doe in my herd that was fine on Friday also has a cloudy, puffy, weepy eye as well.

I've done a tad of research and wiped their weepy faces with alcohol. In this weather - windy, VERY cold, snowing - I do not have anywhere I can isolate them.

I will be getting LA200 tomorrow (or equivalent, hope I can find BioMycin instead). This evening I also put generic Neosporin+painkiller in their eye. I was hesitant to put the painkiller type in their eye but did it anyway - best I had. I found out that the ingredients to the opthalminic ointment is the same as triple antibiotic, so I figured it shoudn't be too terrible.

However, one of the does is about 70 days along in gestation. I was reading that LA200 should NOT be used in pregnant animals - any other options?

Cannon_Farms · #2 12/12/10, 11:13 PM

you shouldnt use the painkiller version of the neo, but you can use that alone and its typically enough to get rid of it.

Alice In TX/MO · #3 12/13/10, 07:37 AM

This is the pain relief med in Neosporin Plus. I don't think it's going to cause a problem.

http://www.medications.com/pramoxine-hydrochloride

**mygoat** · #4 12/13/10, 08:09 AM

I just hope the painkiller part isn't aggrivating the eye. I plan on getting non-painkiller today.

I think I'll keep the LA200 on hand, just in case the neosporin doesn't kick it.

I'll be putting the neosporin in the eye at least 2x per day.

Cannon_Farms · #5 12/13/10, 08:16 AM

the pain killer can numb the eye causing the animal not to blink as much and dry it out, can you imagine a numb eyeball, "shutters"

**mygoat** · #6 12/13/10, 10:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cannon_Farms

the pain killer can numb the eye causing the animal not to blink as much and dry it out, can you imagine a numb eyeball, "shutters"

It doesn't seem to be aggrivating the eye, but I don't want to do anything that MIGHT make this worse. I'll be picking up the new stuff tonight.

I can imagine a numb eyeball - not personally, but I had to watch a wether I had die of what I THINK after the fact was meningial worm, or maybe listeriosis or maybe polio. He started walking in circles, drooling uncontrollably, and lost control of his face completely. His eyes were open 24/7. I had to put eyedrops in and made him a hood to keep stuff from getting in his eyes. Vet misdiagnosed it as 'pneumonia'. What a joke. Ugh.

saanengirl · #7 12/13/10, 10:38 AM

Giving LA 200 to a pregnant doe is better than not treating the pinkeye. It is very difficult to get it to clear up with topicals alone. Even with long-acting oxytetracycline injections it takes a while to clear up pinkeye.

**mygoat** · #8 12/13/10, 10:45 AM

The article I was reading said the same thing, saanengirl.

What is the doseage and how often should I give the injections for pinkeye treatment?

saanengirl · #9 12/13/10, 10:48 AM

The dosage is the same as the swine dosage that will be on the bottle. You give it every 72 hours for at least two weeks for pinkeye.

Natural Beauty Farm · #10 12/13/10, 10:58 AM

Depends on type of pink-eye. We have treated it with just Neo.... and badly ie. did it when we remembered.... without a problem and it never came back. I'd treat it topically first, why take the chance of aborting doe. If it is chlamydia then the kids are already set to fail and you can treat after they slip.

Natural Beauty Farm · #11 12/13/10, 11:00 AM

**** all meds given to goats are 24hrs apart. Their metabolism is just that fast at processing things through

**mygoat** · #12 12/13/10, 06:36 PM

I can't find much information on chlamydial pinkeye. One of the does is NOT pregnant, thankfully, so I'll be using LA200 on her. I'm going to wait on the preggo doe to use LA200 to see if I can't treat it with just the triple antibiotic ointment - I bought the normal kind today, without pain relief.

Also, is pinkeye normally with BOTH eyes? I can't fnd out. Mine each have ONE affected eye. The other eye is normal. Last I checked (this morning), none of the others are affected. I'm keeping a close eye on them.

Cannon_Farms · #13 12/13/10, 09:18 PM

its not possible they where laying on the same side and debris got blown into their same eyes could it?
it can present in a single eye but highly contagious so even you can get it. Penicillin is effective I believe agains the chlamydia type but check on that, different species im basing that on

**mygoat** · #14 12/13/10, 09:54 PM

I'm assuming this started from the hay feeder, and debris getting the Mini's eye that way. From there, it transmitted to my Alpine. My barn is pretty much draft-free... and if it IS drafty, they lay in the non-drafty areas (IE, away from the door, LOL). The door opens towards the south, but is on the east side of the building so it's generally pretty well protected from north western winds. I only leave the door open enough for them to get through, to minimize drafts.

The infections are in opposite eyes - The left eye of my preggo American Alpine, and the right eye of the not preggo Miniature. The minitaure had it first.

The mini's eye has clouded over completely. She can still see a little, but I can tell she's struggling with that eye. Thankfully, the other is still clear and healthy. Also, it does not seem ulcerated (swollen). She can still close her eye.

I gave her a first dose of LA200 (off brand), and am still cleaning her face with alcohol and putting the antibiotic ointment in her eye 2x per day.

The alpine, which I started treating with the antibiotic ointment the first day I noticed problems is doing better, I think. Before her eye would weep and leave drips all down her face - now there's just a short track of tears as of the last two cleanings/ointment. I didn't give her LA200 yet, in hopes that it clears up with just the ointment. The clouding hasn't gotten worse that I can tell.

So far, nobody else has gotten it. Every time I put ointment and clean the faces, I clean my hands with alcohol immediately after, to prevent other goats and myself from getting it.

motdaugrnds · #15 12/13/10, 11:07 PM

I heard a few years ago that giving LA 200 over a lengthy period of time can ruin a goat's bones. Can anyone varify this?

Alice In TX/MO · #16 12/14/10, 03:36 AM

Why would you give it over a long period of time?

motdaugrnds · #17 12/14/10, 09:55 AM

Someone above mentioned giving it every 72 hours for at least 2 wks. That sounds like a long period of time to me. Of course, others may not think it too long.

**mygoat** · #18 12/14/10, 10:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alice In TX/MO

Why would you give it over a long period of time?

Because it's hard to kick, apparently. It's a time of about 2 weeks for a full round, preventing re-infection.

chewie · #19 12/14/10, 12:30 PM

very timely thread, i was coming here to post something of this nature!

i noticed 2 of my doelings' eyes are weepy. not goopy, just wet. we had horrible winter storms a few days ago, and that is when it started. so either hay blew in their eyes, or dust or just icy snow, but their eyes are irritated.

one has only one eye, the other has 2. i noticed yesterday she wasn't feeling well it seemed, now i see why. they look sore and the bottom lid is puffy and red.

since i fully believe this is from a debris cause, i think using neosporin w/o pain would be a good first thing to try? no? yes? i am trying to avoid shots since they are newly bred. (about a month)

sammyd · #20 12/14/10, 01:21 PM

we used neosporin and something called a nfz puffer that was recommended to us from several folks.
We had a doe that was practically blind and several that were headed that way last year. It cleared them up and we haven't seen it again.