Dodgy CL results-- Advice?

[Dave-Trinity-Farms]

Grats Nanno! Good job and good idea. The syringe method is the easiest by far. You even get to see the video I make on how to blood draw? I just use a normal syringe.

[Nanno]

Yes, I watched your video before I drew blood. You should post a link to it here in the health section. I could even make it sticky.

[Taffy]

"Taffy, did the goats have nasty reactions to the goat vaccine specifically, or just in general? I've been gathering info from as many folks as I can who have used it, and so far I've mostly heard people's experiences with the sheep vaccine. The goat vaccine is so new on the market that people don't generally seem to have much experience with it."

The reactions I mentioned were all from other goat owners I was corresponding with. Most had shot knots, some had goats go lame temporarily and only a couple had abscesses that became an issue.

Yesterday a local goat owning friend who raises and shows Boer goats came for a visit. She has used the goat CL vaccine with good success. She said she had some shot knots, one goat go lame temporarily and none developed abscesses.

We were discussing your situation with the Boer owning neighbor and the liquid offal from his pens running into the road and your driving though it thus bringing it onto your property. That concerned her a lot more than Lilly's test results.

I'm glad you were able to draw Lilly's blood yourself. I have never been able to do it alone. I end up having to have 1 person hold the goat while I draw blood. I shave the neck where I'm going to draw blood because it makes it easier to see the artery. Practice makes perfect!

[Nanno]

Thanks for the info, Taffy. I'll be calling WADDL probably Friday and ask them some questions. I'll let ya'll know what they say too.

I'm glad you were able to draw Lilly's blood yourself. I have never been able to do it alone. I end up having to have 1 person hold the goat while I draw blood. I shave the neck where I'm going to draw blood because it makes it easier to see the artery. Practice makes perfect!

I didn't do it alone. Phil held Lilly for me.
Her neck was already shaved from when the vet drew blood last month, so I didn't even have to guess where to find a spot along that vein.

[IdahoNancy]

Taffy just for clarity it is a vein you are looking for not an artery. Sorry to be so picky but I just did not want anyone confused. If the blood vessel is firm and has a pulse (a heart beat that you feel) it is an artery. Do not put a needle in it, bleeding could be profuse. If the blood vessel is one that you can squish or flatten when you push on it with your finger and you do not feel a pulse that is a vein. It may bleed a little but with pressure it will stop.

[Taffy]

Thanks for catching that, Nancy! Thanks for the clarification.

[Nanno]

So I heard back from Dr. Evermann at WSU (WADDL) today. We don't have Lilly's latest test results yet, but I discussed my situation with him and he thinks that in my case it would probably be best to go ahead and vaccinate. Even if the effectiveness of the vaccine is not particularly stellar, he thinks it is probably better than nothing since I can't eliminate contact with the disease. He hasn't heard too many things one way or the other about the new Texas Vet Labs vaccine. I plan to call and discuss the safety and effectiveness with them (although as product salesmen I expect a fairly rosy review). They may have some good tips about how to avoid lumps and reactions in any case.

One more reason to vaccinate is that I want to encourage a better vaccine to be developed. The best way to show demand for a product is to lay money down on it, and maybe more labs will get to work if they see green in it.

[Dave-Trinity-Farms]

Sounds like it was a good chat. Agree

[Nanno]

Well, got Lilly's second CL test back and it doesn't look good. Titer has doubled to 1:128. I plan to do one more test, but I'm not too hopeful at this point. Still no lumps, bumps, or coughing and I'm keeping a close eye on her so I'm sure she's not infectious. I didn't think I'd be glad about her not getting pregnant, but this does eliminate one more thing to worry about. Makes it easier to cull her too if that's what we decide to do (most likely). After Finn, I sure was hoping to get at least one more boy out of her, but that's not looking likely at this point.

I plan to order CL vaccinations this week. I'll keep ya'll posted how that goes for us. I'll be calling Texas Vet Labs to get any information I can on how best to administer the vaccine for the least adverse reactions. I also need to ask them about vaccinating pregnant does since I have two ready to kid in May.

[Dave-Trinity-Farms]

Ah Nanno, very sorry to hear that. I commend you on the cull decision. Its not a easy thing to decide to get rid of a beloved goat. Doing it for the health of the rest does make it easier though. Keep us posted.