Sick Goat

Hannah, one of our Nigerian Dwarf does, seems to have pneumonia. Her temperature spiked to 105.5F and she has a hacking cough. I was very worried for our little girl and so I got all my goat books out and began trying to figure out what to do. I started out giving her a dose of Nutri-drench, some vitamin C, and Echinacea, all to support her immune system. I then called the vet to bring in some professional help on the matter. After talking it over with her we decided to go ahead with a course of antibiotics, penicillin in this case. I do not like to use antibiotics on a regular basis on our farm, but when needed I will make use of them. In this case with Hannah running a fever above 105F for over 24 hours it was definitely time to bring in the big guns and give her the help her body seemed to need to fight off this illness.

After just one dose of the penicillin Hannah’s temperature dropped to 102F, which is in the normal range for goats. She still has her cough, but hopefully after a few more days of the antibiotic her body will be able to fight off the illness. I am continuing with the vitamin C and Echinacea as immune support.