What would you do?

[CJBegins]

I have a doeling that is 8 months old this month and very pregnant. I assume she will kid within the month due to her udder development if not sooner.

I suspected she was bred a couple of months ago and watched other thread about young doelings getting pregnant and decided to leave the pregnancy alone. Not so sure that was the best option for her but here I am.

My problems is her front legs are bowing and she is uncomfortable due to how she is walking with her hooves. If I let this go she will be walking on the sides of her feet.

I am very tempted to splint her legs and have been researching that using pvc pipe cut in half lengthwise. I realize splinting will cause muscular weakness but if I don't do something I am afraid her legs will be bowed permanently.

I have been watching her nutrition closely and she gets alfalfa pellets daily, replacimin plus weekly, 500mg calcuim with vit d chewable daily. I have been giving her Caliann's goat gatorade also.

Carla

[MaddieLynn]

Try doing corrective trimming on her hooves.

[Backfourty,MI.]

I don't think I would splint her legs. I would check her hooves over really good & trim if needed. Her hooves are most likely the culprit in the bow legs along with the added baby weight.

[CJBegins]

Tomorrow in the light I will take detailed pictures of her feet. She has been trimmed only a couple of times most recently about 3 days ago. She is wearing her hoof walls down abnormally from the way she is walking but if it is something I have done to her I am really gonna need help figuring it out.

I have trimmed all my goats feet regularly for almost 2 years and have done my horses hooves for a long time. I guess I am going to google goat feet trimming and hope that I am missing something.....

Carla

[JBarGFarmKeeper]

Make sure she is getting Vit. C also. You can give chewables from WM. Does the Replamin have adequate Vit. C in it?

[Alice In TX/MO]

Replamin Plus Gel - 300cc

[JBarGFarmKeeper]

Thanks, Alice. I see NO Vit. C. I saw a breeder in IA at the Expo that gives chewable Vit. C to her milkers as a treat when she finished milking. I know it is good for udder health. It's water soluble and I would think a growing body under stress would need it for immunity issues if nothing else.

Furthermore, CJ, is you girl still on milk? Caliann had hers on milk until she kidded, I feed milk until 6-8 months just for good measure. She may need more calcium. Just thinkin'...

[CJBegins]

Gena, I am glad you mentioned the Vit C. I can't see in any of her supplements that she is getting vit c. I will get her some today.

She was weaned at 6 1/2 months due to the stress on her mother. Her mother is the goat that I posted about loosing her teeth due to lack of calcuim. I am beginning to wonder if there is something bigger going on that this newbie isn't seeing. Her mother had lots of nutritional problems and she is clearly having an issue.

My other doe is a nigerian and has no issues. She is also very heavy pregnant.

Are my problems coming from the fact that the doeling and her mother come from heavy milking lines or is the a constitutional issue?

Carla

[Waiting Falcon]

She definitely needs calcium. When a young doeling like that breeds early she is stressing her body due to this being her main growing time. Now she is stripping her body of her own much needed calcium to make bones for her kid(s).

[Alice In TX/MO]

I give chewable Vit C to does with udder issues, too.

You can topdress her feed with dolomite to get more calcium into her, but it may not be absorbed as well as other sources.

Would calcium ascorbate help? It's calcium with Vit C.
NOW Foods Calcium Ascorbate 8 oz Pwdr - Swanson Health Products

[southerngurl]

This is a symptom of copper deficiency. Do you bolus? I would probably give her a shot of multimin (vet prescription) and then a bolus (since the bolus takes about 3 or 4 weeks to work.

[Waiting Falcon]

We used calcium gluconate or Mfo calcium.. kept them both on hand

You do not usually think about the importance of calcuim. It is necessary for the muscles as well as the bones and teeth . The heart is a muscle.

We had a most comformationaly correct little doeling that won her junior leg over doeling twice her size . She was beautiful and endearing even if she was small.
She kidded with twins as a yearling with her legs bowing -we drenched her with calcium- if you want to call it that. she would see the bottle coming and reach for it , drinking it out of the bottle.
She was one of the 3 of our milking trio that won first place. She died the following year due to heart failure- autopsy proved .

Some lines require more calcium -or other minerals- than others.

I do not know, Alice, about that particular calcium. We ordered ours from Jeffers

[southerngurl]

Another thing to consider with calcium is that feeding a lot of grain, or even more so, feeding a lot of pellets, is acidifying to the rumen. This acid has to be buffered with alkaline minerals, like calcium. So it can pull calcium and other minerals from the bones.

[CJBegins]

Okay, I have pictures......













I scrubbed her feet and trimmed the hair back so I could get a good view of the coronary band and the angles. I just can't see what I need to do differently with trimming unless they are overall a little long.....I am open to ideas

The last picture just breaks my heart and it's so uncomfortable for her.

[CJBegins]

The gatorade that I am giving has cmpk, molasses and water in it.

The chewable calcium tablet has:
Calcium 600mg
Vit D 200 IU
Magnesium 40mg
Zinc 7.5 mg
Manganese 1.8mg
copper 1mg

She gets Replamin Plus weekly(which I hope meets her copper needs), all the alfalfa pellets she can eat twice a day, a cup of dairy 16% twice daily and I also give her BOSS daily. She was copper bolused in September. Her fecals are good, no anemia...inner lids nice and pink.

DH is picking up chewable Vit C after work today.

[mammabooh]

I'm certainly no expert, but those hooves look really long. I keep my girls' hooves probably half that long. They don't look to me like they are poorly-shaped, just long. I've very curious what everyone else thinks.

[Sherry in Iowa]

mommabooh I'm with you. They are too long and it looks like they are making her stand on her toes (see first picture) which would really stress the muscles/tendons. At least that's what it looks like to me. CJ..this is not meant to offend..but it actually looks exactly how a horse hoof would be done.

I too am curious what others think. By the way...I really like your doe. I would really keep her grain to the light side..you don't want those babies so huge that this young doe can't deliver them.

[CJBegins]

Sherry, no worries about offending....I want input from others. Maybe I have trimmed a few too many horses. But, what specifically do you mean about the horse hoof.....the length or angle?

My understanding to angle goal is parallel with the coronary band.....although there is a curve in the her band.

[southerngurl]

Yes, they are too long. They need to be trimmed until you see a faint idea of pink that shows the corium is near.

[Sherry in Iowa]

Hey CJ..we all have to learn. I found a picture or two herehttp://www.greengablesmininubians.co...-trimming.html

Look at the front feet pics before and after. I hope someone comes on and corrects me if I'm wrong, but I think the pics of your hooves are too long in the heal and tips her on her toes. The side walls seem to long too.

If you don't see a difference in the pics on that link and yours..don't hesitate to ask and I'll try and find something better. Like I said..I could very well be wrong..and someone will hopefully correct me.