Chat
05-04-2015, 12:32 PM
Update on CL vaccinations:
Delilah and Snickers got their first shot two weeks ago and their booster today. I thought they were going to be reaction-free when they showed no lumps or sore spots for a week, but apparently this vaccine can have delayed reactions. Snickers developed a hard lump on his neck after 5-6 days which slowly went down over the next 5-6 days. There's still a little hard knot but no longer noticeable unless I'm feeling for it. Delilah had an even longer delayed reaction. She was fine until about three days ago or so when I noticed she was acting slightly "off" and seemed to be holding her neck a little funny when she would turn her head. But I saw no swelling and she was eating well, so I thought nothing of it until this morning when I brought her in for her booster and I took a really good feel of her neck. Today I could actually see some swelling on that side and the whole muscle on the left side of her neck is very stiff and hard. I can't believe it would take this long for the injection to cause a reaction, but I can't think of any other reason why she'd have a problem in that spot.
When I did boosters today I gave them higher up the neck on the opposite side. I read that it's recommended to give this shot SQ "as high as possible on the neck," so I gave them over the muscle behind the ears. There's actually a nice little spot with very loose, soft skin up there, and the goats reacted less to the needle poke there than with the shots I usually give lower down. I hope it's an ok spot to give an SQ injection.
I also gave first shots to all the other goats except Jezebel (who is pregnant) and Petunia (whose milk we're drinking). Cuzco will have to be done again. He was the only goat who did NOT have soft, thin skin high on his neck. I pinched some up and barely got any. I went for it anyway and ended up getting the needle all the way through and squirting the vaccine all over the outside of his neck. I'll try him again next week and try to find a softer spot. The problem with Cuzco is his skin is so thick and tight everywhere that it's hard to give SQ injections. I almost always do IM with him. On the plus side, he's so tough he doesn't even notice when I give him shots no matter how thick the needle or the serum. He's the only animal on my place that doesn't care if I give him penicillin shots. Go figure that "Mr. Ornery-About-Everything" is the easiest one to give shots to!
Delilah and Snickers got their first shot two weeks ago and their booster today. I thought they were going to be reaction-free when they showed no lumps or sore spots for a week, but apparently this vaccine can have delayed reactions. Snickers developed a hard lump on his neck after 5-6 days which slowly went down over the next 5-6 days. There's still a little hard knot but no longer noticeable unless I'm feeling for it. Delilah had an even longer delayed reaction. She was fine until about three days ago or so when I noticed she was acting slightly "off" and seemed to be holding her neck a little funny when she would turn her head. But I saw no swelling and she was eating well, so I thought nothing of it until this morning when I brought her in for her booster and I took a really good feel of her neck. Today I could actually see some swelling on that side and the whole muscle on the left side of her neck is very stiff and hard. I can't believe it would take this long for the injection to cause a reaction, but I can't think of any other reason why she'd have a problem in that spot.
When I did boosters today I gave them higher up the neck on the opposite side. I read that it's recommended to give this shot SQ "as high as possible on the neck," so I gave them over the muscle behind the ears. There's actually a nice little spot with very loose, soft skin up there, and the goats reacted less to the needle poke there than with the shots I usually give lower down. I hope it's an ok spot to give an SQ injection.
I also gave first shots to all the other goats except Jezebel (who is pregnant) and Petunia (whose milk we're drinking). Cuzco will have to be done again. He was the only goat who did NOT have soft, thin skin high on his neck. I pinched some up and barely got any. I went for it anyway and ended up getting the needle all the way through and squirting the vaccine all over the outside of his neck. I'll try him again next week and try to find a softer spot. The problem with Cuzco is his skin is so thick and tight everywhere that it's hard to give SQ injections. I almost always do IM with him. On the plus side, he's so tough he doesn't even notice when I give him shots no matter how thick the needle or the serum. He's the only animal on my place that doesn't care if I give him penicillin shots. Go figure that "Mr. Ornery-About-Everything" is the easiest one to give shots to!