runninmommy Posted June 29, 2009 Share Posted June 29, 2009 I have asked this over at Dairy Goat Info but no response yet and I'm getting impatient. What is going on with my Nigerian Dwarf goat?? Her udders filled up completely like she is in milk but has no reason to be. They are huge! I have not noticed any signs of infection. She is not acting differently. Being pregnant does not make a whole lot of sense. I bought her 7 months ago. She was exposed to a buck when I bought her but a goats gestation period is 5 months, so she would have had it by now. We did move her in with our 4 month old pygmy buck about a month ago but even if they did mate (which I am really doubting) she would not already be filled with milk. Right?? What in the world is going on? I am going to post some pictures. They are graphic goat part pic.'s so don't scroll down if you don't want to see. The first two are of May, the goat in question, the last is of my other goat Ellie with normal udders to compare. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
runninmommy Posted June 29, 2009 Author Share Posted June 29, 2009 Bump... Anyone? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillieBoy Posted June 29, 2009 Share Posted June 29, 2009 4 month old bucks are very able to cover, but it still doesn't make much sense that her udder would fill so early. Could your buck kid have gotten to her earlier? I've heard that it is possible as young as 3 months. Is she tender? Have you tried to milk her? Very strange in deed. Good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soph the vet Posted June 29, 2009 Share Posted June 29, 2009 Could be pseudopregnancy. The only way to absolutely know for sure is do an ultrasound. Prostaglandin might bring her out of it, but if she IS pregnant you will lose the kids. Hydrometra (fluid filled uterus) may also be associated with pseudopregnancy so another reason to give prostaglandin after an ultrasound. If her udder is cool and non-painful it is not mastitis. Here is an article you might like: http://kinne.net/flspreg.htm Soph Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zaichiki Posted June 29, 2009 Share Posted June 29, 2009 I would wonder about pregnancy. A 3-4 month old male goat CAN impregnate a female goat. We have some houdinis over here... we've found evidence that they've jumped the fence and then jumped BACK. Would never have known about it without the evidence (a few berries hidden in the grass). If she shows no symptoms of anything negative, why not assume pregnancy? :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shelly in IL Posted June 29, 2009 Share Posted June 29, 2009 I ask, because is it is filling and going down each day, she could be a precocious milker who is self nursing - or the baby buck could be nursing. HOwever, I would think this behavior would be seen by you or someone. Just an idea... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
runninmommy Posted June 29, 2009 Author Share Posted June 29, 2009 Could be pseudopregnancy. The only way to absolutely know for sure is do an ultrasound. Prostaglandin might bring her out of it, but if she IS pregnant you will lose the kids. Hydrometra (fluid filled uterus) may also be associated with pseudopregnancy so another reason to give prostaglandin after an ultrasound. If her udder is cool and non-painful it is not mastitis. Here is an article you might like: http://kinne.net/flspreg.htm Soph Thanks Soph. That is an interesting article. She really has me guessing. Her udder/teats are a normal temperature. No discharge. It seems one teet is more full than the other. I have been trying to find a local vet that works with goats with no luck. There may be one an hour and a half away. I'll have to keep researching. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
runninmommy Posted June 29, 2009 Author Share Posted June 29, 2009 I would wonder about pregnancy. A 3-4 month old male goat CAN impregnate a female goat. We have some houdinis over here... we've found evidence that they've jumped the fence and then jumped BACK. Would never have known about it without the evidence (a few berries hidden in the grass). If she shows no symptoms of anything negative, why not assume pregnancy? :) It is possible she could be pregnant but if she is she would only be 3-4 weeks along. Usually, they don't fill their bag until the last 4-5 weeks of pregnancy. Unless she is just a weird goat? She has kidded once before I bought her. Does that make her more likely to fill her bag early? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
runninmommy Posted June 29, 2009 Author Share Posted June 29, 2009 I ask, because is it is filling and going down each day, she could be a precocious milker who is self nursing - or the baby buck could be nursing. HOwever, I would think this behavior would be seen by you or someone. Just an idea... This is the first time I have noticed. My son said he saw her udder full last night and I saw this morning. She usually looks just like our other one. We are going to check her daily and see if it gets bigger or smaller. I have not noticed the baby nursing on her or her self nursing. hmmm. I am so confused. :confused: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zaichiki Posted June 30, 2009 Share Posted June 30, 2009 She has kidded once before I bought her. Does that make her more likely to fill her bag early? Yes. (But not at only a month along... I wouldn't think. I've heard of it at four months along, though.) How long has the male been on your property? Check out this link: http://fiascofarm.com/goats/udder.htm#precocious Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
runninmommy Posted June 30, 2009 Author Share Posted June 30, 2009 She IS self nursing! I saw her do it this morning. There is creamy white milk coming out!! What to do????? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soph the vet Posted June 30, 2009 Share Posted June 30, 2009 You could try putting an E collar on her (Elizabethan collar, like dogs wear to keep from chewing on stitches or a bandage) but you'll have to make sure she can still eat and drink water with it on when you are not there. If you sprayed bitter apple on her udder that may deter her as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OHGrandma Posted June 30, 2009 Share Posted June 30, 2009 Soph, is there any reason why she couldn't just start milking this goat, then dry her off again in about 3 months in preparation for the next kidding? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
runninmommy Posted June 30, 2009 Author Share Posted June 30, 2009 :lurk5: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shelly in IL Posted July 3, 2009 Share Posted July 3, 2009 We once had a doe like that - I believe we eventually got rid of her. The Elizabethan collar could work, but it'll have to stay on awhile - perhaps she'll be distracted by her kids and forget. I think we even had some kind of harness to put on udders that had some kind of pokey things to cover her teats that made it very hard to nurse. I'll have to think on this.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shelly in IL Posted July 3, 2009 Share Posted July 3, 2009 http://goatconnection.com/articles/publish/article_16.shtml Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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