Runaway or dumped goat

thaiblue12 · #1 12/03/12, 01:58 PM

So I go to the farm this morning to feed and check on everyone and I see an extra goat!
My first thought is it is a male and I just luted everyone and could cry, but it is a large white female Saanen with a collar.
She seems to have given birth or miscarried in the past couple of weeks according to the cooch check.

I called animal control and the local vet and no one has reported a missing goat. None of my neighbors have goats but I called, left messages and knocked on doors, all who answered said it is not their goat.

I am worrying that she is diseased and if no one claims her I am going to have her tested to see, if they do claim her I would like to see paperwork that she is CAE/CL free. I did feel her over for lumps, checked her knees and etc I found nothing but I still do not like this.
I wonder if some idiot even seeing what is left of my house thought it was ok to dump their goat on my property

Her feet are in awful condition and it looks like she had been laying in pee.

Her ear is tattoed so do I call ADGA and AGS and see if I can find her owner that way? She was giving me grief about handling her ear so I could not take a picture but it looked like MJC I thought there would be numbers as well?

She ate with the herd and then layed down like she belongs there. My fence has been taken apart in some areas and placed in others so right now I have no way to keeping her separate

I am so not in the mood for this.

**mygoat** · #2 12/03/12, 02:02 PM

Put her on a dog tie out in your mowed yard - so there shouldn't be much of anything for her to get tangled around if she's in your mowed backyard and away from trees/brush. Not ideal, but much better than hanging out with your goats. Your goats are more valuable to you than she is. Abortative diseases can spread through kidding fluids as well... Good reason to isolate her.

Dreamgoat Annie · #3 12/03/12, 02:04 PM

Ah, poor girl. She almost surely was dumped.

It's happening everywhere and with all sorts of hay-eating animals. The day we voted I sat next to a woman who was fuming because someone dumped two mules with her horses the day before. Opened the gates and let them right in.

Sue

Backfourty,MI. · #4 12/03/12, 02:10 PM

Poor Girl, You & the goat! All you need is 1 more thing to worry about & that poor goat needs a trim bad. I don't know how people can just drop their animals off at someone else's farm like that!
I hope you find her owner.
Huggs!

CaliannG · #5 12/03/12, 02:11 PM

Ugh! Oh Thai! That's horrible! That poor goat! Poor you!

Can Animal Control come and get her? While it is obvious she aborted (since she isn't going into milk), there are many things that cause abortions...yet, there are diseases you don't want in your herd that cause it too!

Freak! I wish I still knew folks out there...maybe someone has quarantine areas.

Sorry this happened to you, on top of everything else! I acquired a new horse in this fashion...I am still doctoring the poor thing's nose where the halter had started growing in on him.

thaiblue12 · #6 12/03/12, 02:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mygoat

Put her on a dog tie out in your mowed yard - so there shouldn't be much of anything for her to get tangled around if she's in your mowed backyard and away from trees/brush. Not ideal, but much better than hanging out with your goats. Your goats are more valuable to you than she is. Abortative diseases can spread through kidding fluids as well... Good reason to isolate her.

Oh jeez that makes me feel even worse.

I am currently staying 6 miles away with friends since the insurance company has us in limbo. If I tie her out my goats can still get to her and I have no way of knowing what is going on since I am here and they are there.
We blocked them off from the remains of the house using any and all spare fence I have. I could toss her in the buck pen but that is the only place I can keep her away from my does. But they would be at her hind end as well. Are they less likey to catch something or is it about the same?

If I call the brand inspector or animal control and they take her away I can't get her tested. Well I did call animal control they told me to check around, yes so helpful.

If I find out that she was dumped I am going to be so mad!

andabigmac · #7 12/03/12, 02:24 PM

I'm so sorry. I would call animal control or put a free ad on CL. The good news is that her nose doesn't look runny and her eyes look clear. Hopefully she aborted early from lack of care and not disease and never came into milk because she wasn't full term.

Is she in the pen with your goats?

KnowOneSpecial · #8 12/03/12, 02:26 PM

She looks like a Saanen to me! She reminds me of my Saanen.

I'd get her tested ASAP and trim her hooves. If she's clean I'd rejoice that I had a new pasture marshmellow!

CaliannG · #9 12/03/12, 02:27 PM

~sighs~ The faster she is gone, the less likely she can spread...

...ummm..hold on...lemmee check Colorado.

Colorado is still a brucellosis-free state, so that is a relief.

Trichanomis is another that causes abortions, but it is a bacterial infection, treated with antibiotics.

~sighs~ I wouldn't put her with the bucks, as they will be at her and might get bugs on their wee-wees, not to mention it would just be plain cruel to her.

Draw blood today and get it in, is the best I can think of...see what she (may) have. She has been there long enough to infect some grounds, but unlikely an abortive disease will spread unless the bucks are at her, at least for a little (few days) bit.

~grumbles~ If it isn't one thing, it is another.

thaiblue12 · #10 12/03/12, 02:30 PM

My goats aren't penned they have run of the 7 acres, only the boys are penned. She is mostly staying right by the buck pen, not with the main herd but she can still be around my herd

They can't reach her they are all little dudes

but I will not put her in there. I have no idea when she was dropped off, sometime between when I left at 4:30 pm and when I showed up at 9 am this morning.

I called ADGA and gave them that number, she looked them up, called them and left them a message and she will get back to me if they return her call.

Otter · #11 12/03/12, 02:51 PM

I hope you can track her owner and that they come for her. Poor old girl. And poor you!! You don't need this. Crud.

Anyone in CO have a few cattle panels to loan Thai??

Minelson · #12 12/03/12, 02:59 PM

The idea of someone dumping this goat on you leaves me speechless. I so hope that is not true.

(((hugs)))

Oat Bucket Farm · #13 12/03/12, 03:24 PM

So sad for the poor girl.

She definitely needs some love and care, but at the same time, I can understand your worry.

AuntKitty · #14 12/03/12, 03:37 PM

Even if the boys can't reach her, they might run her to death trying. She's had enough stress, poor thing. So sorry this has added to your burden!

Kitty

CaliannG · #15 12/03/12, 03:41 PM

She doesn't look that old. At least from her udder. Good udder without much stretching...a bit lopsided, but likely from bad management. On the skinny side, with a rough coat, and of course those feet are in DESPERATE need of some TLC.

My guess would be that she is about 3 years old, and that this would have been her second freshening. If she is disease-free, I would say that she isn't a horrible thing to have dumped on you.

**mygoat** · #16 12/03/12, 04:13 PM

Brucellosis, Q Fever (coxiella), Leptospirosis, and Listeria are all abortative diseases, too. Probably a few others that I'm not remembering.

If this happened to me, I'd consider doing a feed through of chlortetracycline to all does exposed during their last 6 weeks of pregnancy. 200mg/head/day. I'd do a 5 day (at least) antibiotic regimine on the drop-off doe, just in case. When I had a doe die of brain listeria and then another doe abort a day later, I figured I might have listeria contaminated haylage, and started everybody on chlortetracycline, just to be safe.

You do NOT want to put her in with the bucks if she aborted... unless you know why. Some abortative diseases are STI's, I would guess that for whoever dumped her, the abortion was her 'last straw'.

I would do anything you could to isolate her if at all possible. Borrow cattle panels from friends to build her a separate pen, or tie her up and build a pen around her so she can't go nose-to-nose. Usually it's suggested to keep new stock apart for 30 days with at least 30' between them. Or better yet, do you have any friends with sheds/outbuildings that you could build a pen around on a different property? Maybe where the people have no other livestock? That would do until you can get her test results back. Heck, even if you have to keep her inside in a shed or horse stall, that would be better than in with your group. She'd be perfectly fine if allowed free choice hay. No access to outside isn't ideal, but better than nothing.

animalfarmer · #17 12/03/12, 04:42 PM

I guess I would advertise her to all the appropriate people or agencies,or as many as you wish to trouble yourself with.
I would then as soon as possible,before you know if any one will claim her or not,put her on as much feed as she can safely stand.
I would feed her out for about four weeks and see how she looks.
If nobody claims her by then,I would slaughter her.
By that time she should produce a fair carcass. Age her for about ten days in the refrigerator and then try the meat.
If it's good,great! If not she will still make great pet food,and any risk to your herd from her will be gone.
If you don't want to wait,you can simply slaughter her now and use her for pet food.
I hope it works out for you.
I really don't like folks who dump animals rather than slaughter them.
Best of luck.

CaliannG · #18 12/03/12, 04:50 PM

Hmmm, animalfarmer, unless she turned up diseased, I don't think I would slaughter a tattooed, and therefore registered, Saanen dairy goat. Dairy goats don't tend to grow out for much of a carcass, anyway.

And it's kind of moot anyway. I seriously doubt that thaiblue is going to slaughter a *healthy* milk goat. Euthanize her if she is diseased, quite likely. But if she came back clean, it would kind of be a waste of her genetics. She was bred to make milk, after all.

dbarjacres · #19 12/03/12, 06:37 PM

Oh, poor Thai! Oh, poor Saanen! I hope all turns out well, she tests clean and you find her a home.

Hollowdweller · #20 12/04/12, 10:38 AM

How old is she? What is the year of birth letter does she have in the left ear?

My buddy has alpines and he and his wife work. Their barn is right beside the road.

Similar to you one day a stray goat showed up and shortly aborted after. Probably because the alpines beat her.

Anyway she was white, but with curley breeches and vague facial undertones so he called her the "Soggenburg"

I advised isolation esp since she had aborted but he did not and the doe is really old now and never gave his herd anything.