Abcess on udder - tell me it's not a CL site. *UPDATE* pg 4

[Our7Wonders]

I think I'm preparing for the worst, but I certainly am hoping/praying for the best. At the link below, the first photo looks sorta like what Jasmine has, though it's hard to tell from the picture if that one is more under the skin than above.

http://www.aces.edu/pubs/docs/U/UNP-0085/

If it was ONLY the one I might be a little more optimistic, even with the thicker drainage, however she has the other one on her back too.

My other doe, Ariel, was missing a small section of hair when she first arrived. I asked thier previous owner if goats ever bite eachother, becasue the patch of hair was gone like she had been bitten there, but there was no skin trauma, just smooth skin. I didn't think anything of it becasue the skin looked healthy underneath The hair has since filled back in. When I was reading through what I searched on CL it said you can tell a previous abcsess site by the missing hair and the very smooth skin underneath. I would have never put the two together, but can't help but wonder now.

I'm clinging to a slight hope, but I'm a planner. I've never been good at sitting still and waiting. I'd rather get my ducks in a row just in case, much easier for me to accept it now, make my preparations, and brace myself for the results. Then if it comes back negative we'll have cause for some surprise celebration. I like surprise celebrations!

ETA: shoot, the link doesn't work but it does if you copy and paste. Sorry

Fixed the link

 

[adoptedbyachicken]

So sorry for your distress right now. Do hold tight, waiting for test results can be the worst I know. Regardless continue to decide what you will do with positive results, we all need to have plans and know what we will do in case of this or that.

These things are very personal decisions and only you can make yours right for you. You have my support no matter what choice you make.

I know in chicken pens heavy application of lime then tilled in is very helpful if you have had to cull for some diseases, no idea if that works for goats. Some reading I have done says these abscesses can be stopped with formaldehyde so they don't ever burst. Goal being to stop the contamination thus the spread, not to 'treat' that goat. I would sure look into the safety and effectiveness of that before I took that route, but it might be doable.

 

[ThornyRidge]

Here is some positive thoughts sent your way.. from what I have read and been schooled on the "pus" from CL type abscesses is typically a yellowish/green color.. and resembles "cheese"..hence the cheesy gland deal.. I have also been under the impression that for the most part animals that are positive typically show the abcess signs around head/neck area first.. an udder can be a location but I would have thought there would be other visible signs before that.. I am leaning toward a staph type infection abscess.. maybe an unnoticed wound, cut, scrape, bite from a kid, bug bite, etc.. especially since you described the contents as grey. whatever happens know your goat herd here is behind you!

 

[mossyStone]

I am so sorry you are going thur this.... I am praying for the best..... we are all here in support of each other.....

Sendig hugs your way!

 

[aggieterpkatie]

Why would you kill the babies? From what I've read it only really transfers when there's contact with an open abscess (or pus from the abscess). And I've been googling and have yet to find a picture of a CL udder abscess.

 

[chandasue]

I have no experience with absesses but hold tight until you get the results. Sending hopeful vibes your way...

 

[Our7Wonders]

No, I wouldn't KILL the babies if there's any chance to keep them healthy. And the reason I've started another thread asking for experienced CL info. But if there's NO chance to keep the babies from catching it from their mother or NO chance of completely clearing the disease from their environment then I'd rather let them all go peacefully and humanely by a vet before the birth then to have them be born and have my entire family, including myself, heartbroken over having to go through it all again. I simply cannot be a holding area for diseased animals. And I realize I'm going to face other issues but hopefully those other issues will be treatable (as in CURE-able issues), not just manageable ones.

I've not found any cases of it on the udder either. Which was why, even though I was worried, I was hopeful. Even when I found the second one on her back - however there was this:

Posted from TeneseeMeatGoats.com:

Udder abscesses in females can seriously deplete milk production. External abscesses are most common under the ears in the head and neck region of the goat's body, while internal abscesses appear most often in the lungs. In decreasing percentages of frequency, external abscesses are found under the ear, on the shoulder, on the flank, and in the udder/scrotum areas.

All abscesses on goats are not necessarily CL abscesses. The bacterium actinomyces pyogenes also produces a fast-growing nodule, but it contains a smelly, greenish pus. A simple and inexpensive test can be done on blood samples or pus (exudate) to determine the bacterium causing the abscess. Most nodules . . . as high as 90% or more . . . . . are CL abscesses.

I've not given up all hope, and I certainly won't do anything at all before I get test results - I'm just mentally preparing myself for the worst and making plans so that when/if I do get bad results I have a plan in place. I function much better with a "disaster management" plan. I don't do well at all flying by the seat of my pants. I'd love to be more like that, it's just not my nature. I'm still clinging to hope and more importantly, praying. I truely believe all things are possible through Him.

 

[babsbag]

I certainly understand your concern about CL and wanting to be ready for the worst. I am always one that thinks that way. I am sure you have read a bunch in the last few days, but if you missed this one on treating with Formalin it makes for interesting reading, especially when babies are on the way and you don't want an open abcess. I haven't done this, only read about it.

http://www.goatworld.com/articles/cl/formalin.shtml

When I first had a lump on my doe and a wether it was in the suspicious under the ear spot and my vet was sure it was CL. She couldn't get anything out of it to test and the blood test came back as negative and the lump went away and never ruptured. But there were a few days of torment to be sure.

When it comes to alternative meds or herbal treatments I am not much of a follower, but when we thought my goats had CL I started giving them a tincture called Life Cell Support sold by a company called Amber Technologies. It is supposed to cleanse the liver which would also be the lymphatic system. I would put it on a horse cookie treat and let it soak in and they would eat it right up. While they didn't have CL, they did have some kind of lymphatic inflamation and I really believed this stuff cleared it up. I DO NOT KNOW IF IT IS SAFE TO GIVE TO PREGNANT DOES !!!! I did give it to lactating does and I drank the milk.

Good luck

 

[Oat Bucket Farm]

Take a deep breath and try to relax, I know, easier said than done. I don't have any personal experience with it. However, that said, I think it looks more like a staph, or a splinter festering up or some such. I could be wrong, but its my understanding from doing a lot of reading that CL abcesses involving the udder are internal abcesses not external. So there is a very good chance that this is not CL.

 

[Our7Wonders]

Here's a copy and paste from my other thread regarding CL:

So guess what?! Just as I was hitting submit on my last post, the vet calls.

Preliminary report comes back negative for CL!!!!!!! So far the only thing showing is staph! He said we're not out of the woods entirely, but at this point it looks pretty good! He'll get the final report tomorrow or Monday!

While I had downgraded from panic to deep concern - now I'm super relieved and SO VERY HAPPY!!!!!!

And I'm totally ok with anyone who wants to say "I told you so!!!" I deserve it, so I welcome it!!!!

I'm gonna go hug my goats!