Vet books

[Jen H]

There aren't many vets out there who do an even ok job on goats. That leaves a lot of people who have to doctor their own animals. So, what are the vet books that everyone relies on?

Diseases of the Goat by John Matthews is the first book I turn to. It's written in fairly technical language so you might need a dictionary to figure some of it out. But it goes into everything from treating infections to surgical procedures.

The goatkeeper's Veterinary Book by Peter Dunn is another one on my shelf. I find this book to be too general, personally. The pictures of different disease problems are helpful, but the constant advice is to "call the vet." That advice just isn't any use when there isn't a goat vet anywhere close.

The Merck Veterinary Manual is pretty much the bible for drug dosages and interactions. Most medications are not labelled for goats so you have to extrapolate from the cattle or sheep dosages. This is the book your vet keeps around for a reference. You can find used ones on Ebay if the price of the new book gives you a heart attack (it sure gave me one!).

[tooltime]

It isn't as handy as having a hard-copy version, but Merck is online. Here's the link: http://www.merckvetmanual.com/mvm/index.jsp

[Jen H]

Thanks for the link! I'll have to check that out and update the info in my (old) book.

[AnnaS]

Not a specifically goat book, but I like "Keeping Livestock Healthy" by Haynes. Covers all hoofed livestock and has chapters on nutrition, restraint, and reproduction.

[Vicki McGaugh TX Nubians]

Goat Medicine, hands down, no equal anywhere.

Saanendoah.com had their med list up, it used to be here and is also at dairygoatsplus.com is better than Merck, easier to understand and goat specific.

Once you get past the basic's, you can simply keep a 3 ring binder, download information from sites, copy passages from books, this keeps all your information in one space...I keep all my notes in my goat medicine book, written in all the blank pages front and back...by the time you are in your 3rd season with goats, (about when folks get out if they don't stay) 99% of the books out there only have one or two new things in them that you don't know.........so don't waste money on books! Vicki