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inducing a miscarriage?

4K views 15 replies 8 participants last post by  Vicki McGaugh TX Nubians 
#1 ·
Hey folks, I'm pretty new to goats. Had them when I was a kid, got some French Alpines recently that are being managed by our farm hands at the moment. Anyway, came across some interesting lore that I wonder if there is any truth to (I hear lots of stuff from the old timers around here and I'm sure half if complete bull and half are pearls of wisdom...it's just deciding which is which!)

If you have a doe that has had an "unexpected visit" from a buck, are there herbs you can give her early on to terminate the pregnancy? This is of particular interest to us because we are getting Nigies and if an "accident" happened with a big boer buck, you would surely lose the doe while kidding (or so it would seem). I know there are vet administered drugs, but I've heard those have dangerous side effects and aren't worth it. Anyway, this just came up in a conversation and I'm curious now. Something to file away for future reference.
 
#2 ·
It is not actually true. My brother in law has pygmy's and his boer buck got one. She had no problems delivering.....however it started getting hularius when the baby was about the same size as the nanny and still sucking. It picks the back end of mommy up to suck very funny!! I can see your point though and probly would not want to have to worry. I have no idea about aborting in goats but I know a dog has to have it 48hrs or less after penitration.
 
#3 ·
If you have cows or horses, you probably have some Oxytocin (sp?) on hand anyways (it is also used in humans). It would make sense if it works with goats also. You give them in the muscle and it start uterous contractions. Helps deliver dead babies, clean/deliver the afterbirth, and we've used it to abort in horses. Talk to your vet about it.
 
#4 ·
just for starter, herbs used in the wrong hands, can and will have serious side effects and can kill a doe.
using the hormone lutelyse is very safe with no side effects at all.
even if there are some very view breeding mini to pygmy, it sure is not advisable.
built your fences good enough in the beginning that this will be prevented.
 
#5 ·
If you have cows or horses, you probably have some Oxytocin (sp?) on hand anyways (it is also used in humans). It would make sense if it works with goats also. You give them in the muscle and it start uterous contractions. Helps deliver dead babies, clean/deliver the afterbirth, and we've used it to abort in horses. Talk to your vet about it.
and if the uterus is not open, the doe will bleed to death. oxytocin is only given after the doe is totally dilated. to start the birthing process, you need to give lutelyse, 2cc intramuscular and wait until she is ready, usually after 36 hours.
 
#6 ·
and if the uterus is not open, the doe will bleed to death. oxytocin is only given after the doe is totally dilated. to start the birthing process, you need to give lutelyse, 2cc intramuscular and wait until she is ready, usually after 36 hours.
Ah, lesson learned ! I was not aware it affected goats differently, hence the "ask your vet". Good to know as my hubby is a cattle farmer (so is FIL) and would have reached for the oxy without a second thought.
Thank you.
 
#7 ·
using the hormone lutelyse is very safe with no side effects at all.
No side effects? Hmm, can't remember the name of the drug I was told about, but I was told it could almost as easily kill the doe as end the pregnancy. Well, if there is a safe alternative at the vet (i.e. the lutelyse), then that answers my question!

built your fences good enough in the beginning that this will be prevented.
Plan to! But you never know what is going to happen. I've heard story after story about how some buck bred a doe through the fence, by climbing a tree, child letting him out, etc, etc.

Thanks for the info guys!
 
#8 ·
Lutalyse is extremely safe. Looking at my insert, the only safety warning is that injection sites may rarely become infected- true in all injections- and that it may cause short term drooling in cattle and mild abdominal discomfort in mares. I've seen much scarier warnings on Vitamin B and penicillin injections!

Good fences are wonderful, but stuff happens. This year, I had a 250 lb buck crawl out of a 2' x2' feeder hole in a box stall and the neighbor kids take their new pet Pygmy billy "visiting" because he was lonely. Glad I caught that one.
 
#10 ·
I'm mostly a lurker on here. I do love this site though! I've learned a lot in the couple of months I've been here.

I used oxytocin a lot over the 15 years I raised dogs. Infact, I always kept a bottle of it in my fridge. It sure saved me a lot of after hour office calls. I only used it on my vets advice and only during labor. I've had two different vets tell me that it can cause the uterus to rupture if you don't know what you're doing. I've had several goats over the last 30 years but never had one to kid for me so I really don't know anything about that process (yet). We always bought does fresh for the milk as we didn't have room to raise them. Please talk to your vet BEFORE you give anything to this poor girl. It's not worth taking a chance.

Penny
 
#14 ·
the abortion would be in the last trimester and only if high amount of Jeffery-, Ponderosa, or Juniper pine needles are consumed. not something to use to abort a pregnancy ;)
if goats have a well balanced diet, will not eat enough to cause any problems.

edit to say, it only caused abortion in cattles but not in sheep or goats.
 
#16 ·
You would think that persumably alot of things would effect cattle, sheep, llama and goats, all being ruminants, but nothing is further than the truth. And single stomached medicine has little to do with ruminante medicine. Shoot even the best cattle vets are about worthless when it comes to goats. Vicki
 
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