How do you know when to be concerned about a snotty nose on a goat?  To me, it depends on the situation.  A baby with snot gets attention real quick.  A mature doe, well, I’ll check her later and see if she is clear.  

      When it comes to the show wethers, we take a “wait and see” approach.  First, it isn’t uncommon for any animal to have a little bit of snot early in the morning.  If we see a wether that has some snot, we first answer some questions.  Is his head down?  Does he act lethargic?  Is he wanting to eat?  What color is the snot?  Clear, white thickness or the green goo.  The green goo is normally pretty serious.

If the goat looks and acts fine and is wanting to eat, then I won’t medicate.  We will wait to see what he looks like later in the day.  I want to give as few injections to show animals as possible.  

     Now, if the goat acts sick and acts lethargic, then I will immediately give 2 ccs Baytril IM and 1/2 cc Draxxin subq.  Of course, if you are close to a drug test show, be careful with the Baytril.  Pay attention to withdrawal times and extra-label usage.  Most meds are extra-label when goats are concerned, but you dang sure need to be aware of withdrawal times.  

      If I was a grade school teacher, at the first sign of any snot, cough, flu acting symptom, I would want to send every snot nosed brat home to get healed up so we didn’t take a chance of spreading it throughout the school.  Maybe even give them a shot of Baytril and/or Draxxin as they leave the school.  Or if it is a problem kid, a shot of Nuflor.  

Have a good day and a better tomorrow.