Chat
03-05-2015, 01:22 PM
It's not just a matter of putting up a second fence along that property--I'd actually have to put a double fence around two sides: their side and the road side. Since our property is triangle-shaped and those are our two longest sides, this presents a financial impossibility. I'd also have to quit walking our goats on Clennin road, which is where we take them nearly every day. The Boer herd also travels this road for most of the year, so my goats and theirs are already sharing the same turf and nibbling on the same roadside brush and weeds as they go along. I'd never given much thought to CL before, but now that I have I'm wondering if it's just a matter of time before I start dealing with clinical cases. I can't keep my goats in a glass bubble.
I don't want to make it sound like my neighbor is irresponsible. He has goats for a specific purpose, which is to mow down brush on his ranch. This means the goats roam all over the roadway and countryside surrounding (and sometimes on) my property. He was here first, and I admire his attempt to clear the land in the most environmentally responsible way possible. He tried using a giant brush hog and started a forest fire two years ago which is why he got back into goats. I fully understand why it would be impossible for him to test a herd that size and keep it clean. From his point of view, CL is nothing more than a minor inconvenience since most goats don't die from it.
The realization that my goats are almost certainly coming in contact with contaminated soil and forage is what prompted me to consider vaccinating. If the vaccine were more effective, I doubt I would think twice. But 80-85% isn't impressing me much so I do wonder if it's worth it. On the other hand, while my goats are probably coming in contact with CL, it's not like they're wallowing in it all the time. I wonder if vaccinating would boost their immune systems enough to prevent problems in this situation.
Other than the dodgy effectiveness and not being able to test for CL again, are there any other down sides to vaccinating? Do ya'll know anyone who does it? I wonder if I should also put this question to the folks over at TheGoatSpot. Maybe some of them have faced the same dilemma.
I don't want to make it sound like my neighbor is irresponsible. He has goats for a specific purpose, which is to mow down brush on his ranch. This means the goats roam all over the roadway and countryside surrounding (and sometimes on) my property. He was here first, and I admire his attempt to clear the land in the most environmentally responsible way possible. He tried using a giant brush hog and started a forest fire two years ago which is why he got back into goats. I fully understand why it would be impossible for him to test a herd that size and keep it clean. From his point of view, CL is nothing more than a minor inconvenience since most goats don't die from it.
The realization that my goats are almost certainly coming in contact with contaminated soil and forage is what prompted me to consider vaccinating. If the vaccine were more effective, I doubt I would think twice. But 80-85% isn't impressing me much so I do wonder if it's worth it. On the other hand, while my goats are probably coming in contact with CL, it's not like they're wallowing in it all the time. I wonder if vaccinating would boost their immune systems enough to prevent problems in this situation.
Other than the dodgy effectiveness and not being able to test for CL again, are there any other down sides to vaccinating? Do ya'll know anyone who does it? I wonder if I should also put this question to the folks over at TheGoatSpot. Maybe some of them have faced the same dilemma.