Lambing is a big burden on the animal organism. If the pregnancy is the first goat, then artiodactyl should be constantly monitored. Farmers and breeders often notice swelling of the udder in the goat during pregnancy or after childbirth.
Causes of udder edema in goats This is largely due to the organization of the artiodactyl organism, however, in some cases, the udder may become denser due to improper launch or disease. These problems can lead to milk loss. Swelling of the udder in a goat after lambing may occur in case of improper milking. This can happen due to non-compliance with the preparation of the animal for childbirth.
Causes of swelling of the udder
Swelling of the udder is called the hardening and swelling of the mammary ducts in the mammary glands in connection with a hormonal disorder in the artiodactyl organism. Typically, this kind of nuisance happens to animals during pregnancy or after lambing. The most common causal edema of the udder is considered to be the absence of movements and walks during pregnancy, as well as too much silage and succulent feed in the daily diet of females. Breast edema may not be associated with pregnancy and lambing, in which case its cause is non-compliance with sanitary milking standards or illness. A few days before lambing and the same number of days after the udder of the animal can swell due to a strong blood flow. However, edema during pregnancy or a month later is not considered normal. This may be due to toxicosis or weakening of the heart and kidneys during pregnancy.
It also depends on the age of the goat. If this is the first lambing in an artiodactyl, then edema can occur a week or two before childbirth, since the circulatory system adjusts to the animal organism.
Signs of swelling of the udder in goats
First of all, the disease affects a quarter or the entire back of the udder. The skin on the swollen organ is coarse, thick, when pressed with your fingers you feel a seal. If help was not provided, then over time the swollen udder becomes so coarse that it is impossible to press it with your fingers. In this case, skin coatings become cold due to pressure on blood vessels. Edema begins with the nipples of the animal. Such nipples become shorter and rougher than not swollen. Next, the edema affects the subcutaneous tissue to the vulva. Sometimes not only the udder swells, but also the stomach to the chest. The liquid that fills the udder compresses not only the milk ducts, but also the gastrointestinal tract, as a result of which the goat may stop eating. Pressing the blood and lymph vessels can violate their integrity and lead to necrosis of the udder. In some cases, postpartum edema leads to mastitis. Body temperature and overall goat health may be normal.
Edema of the udder affects the quality of milk. It becomes watery and poorly squeezed due to constriction of blood vessels. As a result, the amount of milk yield can decrease dramatically, even in the postpartum period, goats have the best lactation.
Sometimes you can get more milk from the swollen part of the udder than from normal. It depends solely on the location and effect of the fluid on the vessels.
In the case of postpartum edema, it can resolve itself within a few days after lambing. If the udder is in a swollen state for several weeks, then this is a sign of postpartum complications. Such goats have impaired lactation, they may even refuse to feed the kids.
Swelling of the udder in artiodactyls after childbirth is considered a physiological phenomenon, but it can not be started. With swelling of the mammary glands, the tissues of the udder begin to stretch, the animal’s immune system decreases, which can lead to complex inflammatory processes. One of the unpleasant diseases that can affect a goat due to swelling of the udder is mastitis.
Mastitis as a result of udder swelling
Sometimes antibiotics cannot be avoided
Goats, like many large animals on the farm, are kept for meat, wool and milk. To get each type of product in full, you should provide the animal with proper care. The most unpleasant disease for dairy owners is mastitis. It significantly reduces daily milk yield and causes discomfort to the animal. Very often, the cause of mastitis can be advanced swelling of the udder. To properly prescribe a course of treatment, you need to be able to distinguish one disease from another. With the defeat of the udder by mastitis, each subsequent milk yield forces the milk ducts to tighten. The udder becomes denser and very hard. The temperature of the affected area is rapidly increasing.
With mastitis, the nipples can be clogged with flakes, and the milk itself becomes thick and may contain blood. If you put the milk of a sick goat into a jar and leave it for several hours, then a granular precipitate will fall to the bottom.
To accurately determine whether your goat is sick with mastitis, watch it for a day. If, after milking, the udder begins to become much tougher and when pressed with fingers on the skin does not remain deeper, then, most likely, the animal is ill with mastitis. In the treatment of this disease, the main efficiency is, since the affected udder becomes the habitat of harmful bacteria.
Mastitis is treated with antibiotics. Medicines are administered exclusively intramuscularly. Such drugs are suitable for the treatment of this disease:
- Benzylpenicillin (1 million ED) - administered twice a day for five days. Before injection, the drug is diluted in proportions of two to four per adult.
- Streptomycin - administered twice a day for five days. Before injection, the drug is diluted in proportions of two to four per adult.
- Cefazolin - administered twice a day for five days. Before injection, the drug is diluted one to two per adult. This medicine is not stored in diluted form, it should be used immediately.
Treatment of postpartum udder edema
You can avoid swelling with massage.
Most often, swelling after lambing last for a week and does not require medical treatment. If the udder is still painfully dense even after a week, and the goat is worried and gives little milk, then certain measures should be taken to reduce fluid in the body:
- in the daily diet, the norm of silage and juicy feed is reduced;
- the animal is limited in water;
- increase the number of movements, the goat can be driven around the pen twice a day;
- frequent milking of the animal - from three to five times a day;
- the goat should be separated from the general herd to avoid unnecessary injuries;
- should massage the udder every day before milking and after.
A special massage of the udder is done with warm hands in continuous movements from the nipples to the base of the udder. Do not use irritating creams or solutions. In some cases, experienced farmers recommend using petroleum jelly or baby cream. Drug treatment of prolonged edema of the udder of the goat after lambing occurs with the help of special drugs focused on the restoration of blood vessels. To do this, you can use such drugs:
- A solution of calcium chloride - 150 ml is administered intravenously twice a day.
- Calcium Glucanate - 100 ml is administered intravenously once a day.
- Sodium caffeine benzoate - 20 ml is administered once a day to improve heart function.
To edematous fluid subsided faster, use poultices of their grass dust and warm wraps.
If the udder sagged under the influence of gravity, then it must be tied up with a dummy. Keep an eye on this - the goat can seriously injure the skin if the udder drags along the ground. In some cases, veterinarians advise anti-inflammatory ointments of the company Rieghen. These drugs are suitable for many animals.
In addition to external treatment, the diet of artiodactyls is also changed. In the daily menu add laxative salts or magnesia, as well as diuretic decoctions. List of plants that are suitable for such infusions:
- Juniper berries - 100 g per liter of water. No more than 100 ml is given per day.
- Buds of birch - 50 g per liter of water. A teaspoon per day.
- Horsetail - 50 g per liter of water. A teaspoon per day.
With the help of complex treatment, edema can be removed in a week or two. However, if the tissues of the udder continue to fill up with excess fluid, you should contact a specialized hospital. Remember that the milkness of the animal depends on your actions. Sometimes with severe inflammation, not just swelling, but an abscess can develop.
Prevention of udder edema in goats
In order not to encounter this unpleasant consequence of childbirth, certain preventive measures should be taken. First, follow the rules and deadlines for starting a goat before lambing. The universal launch schedule looks like this:
- The first week is to milk once, the amount of milk is reduced to one liter.
- The second week - milking occurs once a day and a half, the amount of milk is reduced to half a liter.
- The third week - the milk yield takes place once every two days, the amount of milk is reduced to three hundred grams.
- The fourth week is to milk only when necessary.
However, remember that for some dairy breeds, the schedule needs to be adjusted individually.
In addition, a pregnant female should be provided with walks. The animal should not be standing in the stall at all times. Reduce the amount of succulent feed and silage in the goat's diet - these products are dairy. Artiodactyl nutrition during pregnancy should contain an increased amount of concentrates and minerals.
To avoid mastitis, the room where the goats are kept should be warm and without drafts. Follow sanitary rules for maintenance - clean the crib every two days, and the litter should be changed every day.
Once every six months, the stall must be completely disinfected. During milking, special hygiene should be observed - wash the udder and hands with boiled water, massage the animal and properly dispense. Sometimes the cause of edema may be the remains of milk in the udder. After giving birth, the goat should be kept away from the herd for some time so that the goat on the hunt does not accidentally injure the female.
