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Feet on buck getting worse with all our rain/mud.
We just gotta find a way to handle that big boy. Our horse farrier suggested using those.calming gels for horses. I remember using one on Hubby's horse, trailer.crazy when we first got.her, to.transport her to Minnesota and back. It worked pretty fair.
You put it in her nose. Can't remember name except I think "CQ" was part of name. Any one know if these are.safe for.goats.and.can recommend a brand name? Thanks.
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I don't know. I have no idea what is in those calming gels for horses. You'd probably need to read the ingredients and see if any of them are dangerous for ruminants. Even if safe, they may not be effective for ruminants. Can you ask your horse farrier to trim the goat for you? I've known a couple of people who have hired their farrier to trim a large and unruly goat. Another idea is to contact the 4-H in your area and see if they have any strong, experienced kids in the goat program who could trim your goat. Or if you could bring your goat to one of the big Boer ranches in your area they have special stocks made specifically for hoof trimming. They clamp the goat in securely and then lay it over so the feet are in the air and secured. They're designed for trimming large goats that have never been handled without traumatizing the goats or endangering the handler. I'm sure someone in your area probably has one (Texas is major Boer country), and your local 4-H may be able to help you out. I think this is likely to work better than calming gels, even if they are safe and effective for goats.
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Our farrier will not do it..already asked.
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10-26-2018, 02:45 PM
(This post was last modified: 10-26-2018, 02:47 PM by Ms_Mudd.)
I am a goat newbie, but a horse woman of many years- most of the calming pastes I have seen on the market for horses seem to work on the principle that the negative behavior is a result of vitamin, amino acid or mineral deficiency. I think they are probably the product of clever marketing and likely have little effect on a horse.
The only thing that really worked for me when clipping my difficult pony was vet sedation. I understand that sedating goats is a much trickier and dangerous business, so Nanno's suggestion of finding someone with some appropriate stocks (us Aussies call them a 'crush') sounds like a safer plan for all.
Good luck
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Just a though, I would be cautious of bringing any goat that has exposure to packgoats to a large meat goat operation. The presence of MOVI (mycoplasma ovipneumonia) in these operations is more likely. MOVI is spread by close contact, theoretically does not live on inanimate surfaces very long. If you could get your goat in and out with no exposure to the meat goats that would minimize the risk.