Alaskan

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So after using the FAMACHA….. Which dewormer do you use?

Fendbendazole?
Ivermectin?

What’s the dosage for the dewormers you use?
The parasites that you might have vary wildly from one area to the next.

Also, the parasites in some areas are resistant to some dewormers.

Because of that I strongly recommend finding a knowledgeable vet (which I realize might be close to impossible), and spending the money to talk to them.

Ask what the local parasites are, and what will kill the local parasites.

Ask what you need to look for, if you can bring in fecal samples for egg counts, how to do that, etc. Etc.

The entire time I had goats I had the vet out only once. But I asked all of those questions, and many more.

For my area, where we have few parasites, he said all I needed was injectable ivermectin. He showed me how to administer, and I wrote down the dose.

:idunno
 

Katrina Anon

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While FAMACHA is a useful tool and an expedient one, OSU seems like they would rather use a fecal count over exclusively FAMACHA.

One of their experts explaining the difference between that method and using the fecal count, is that in some goats FAMACHA may show a strong indication of anemia and yet when a fecal count is run the egg count is in the normal range and not at the point where treatment is warranted or even wise. In other goats it may show a normal amount of anemia due to the physiology of the goat and yet a fecal count may show a severe case of worm eggs.

I think using both methods as part of your herd management plan is what is necessary. If you have a series of goats that according to FAMACHA are showing problems with anemia you still ought to confirm with a fecal egg count. The fecal egg count is more definitive however depending on how you collect it may yield false positives instead of the true number.

I had heard that this was true but it was never explained how it happens, but it frequently depends on the way and time of year you collect samples. One of the main ways to miscount eggs is possibly during the Spring Time when pollen count is high. If you sample instead of directly from the goat but from the droppings which is perfectly logical and might simplify things somewhat, you need to be aware that pollen may get mixed in with your sample and give you a false positive when truly the goat is normal. So you need to know how to discriminate between fecal eggs and pollen and depending on your equipment and your skill that could prove difficult.

Getting a false positive and treating the goat depending on the type of anti-wormer you use could take your doe out of production and you might have to wait until she has been freshened before you can start milking her again.

I am not sure if using a FAMACHA card makes the testing any more reliable, I would think probably not, but testing your herd with both methods would reveal if your FAMACHA is indicative of a true worm issue in the herd also historically it might reveal when to expect worm issues, and with it being so easy to do compared to fecal egg counts learning how to use both is probably quite worthwhile.

For dewormer I think I would rather use something that doesn't take my lactating goats out of production for maybe 60 days. Because that's really more like 5 to 7 months unless you're going to continue milking them and throwing away the product as advised.
 

Alaskan

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Also, just found out that two of my goats have biting lice…..Don’t know how long it’s been there (since I’ve owned them for a shorter period of time) Could that cause the low FAMACHA score?
Yes, enough lice can make them pale...

And... ivermectin is usually good for lice... so, since they got ivermectin, and still have lice... that makes me worry that maybe the lice are resistant???

I never had lice on my goats... yes on the chickens... for scale lice on the chickens I use ivermectin, drops on the back, 10 days later a second dose. If the case is bad, then they also get legs scrubbed and medicated and greesed up every few days for a month to 6 weeks. For mites etc. on chickens I use permethrin spray, high concentration (like for horse flies), and spray them and coop, then repeat on 10 days.


At this point, YES, the FAMACHA score should have improved.

I really think you need to call around until you find a vet that will take a fecal sample and tell you which parasites you have.

It would be easier to help them... if you knew what you were trying to kill.
 

Katrina Anon

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@Alaskan @Katrina Anon
I gave them Safeguard Liquid Goat Fenbendazole wormer about 1ml and 1-2 weeks later finished with a dose of Ivermectin (since I read that it is good to use two different wormers as a treatment). Their Famacha appears to be the same, which is between a C(3) and a D(4).

How long does it take for the goat Famacha to improve, after treating?

So, apparently the Safeguard Liquid Goat Fenbendazole is not working.

Does anybody know the dosage for Moxidectin QUEST Gel Dewormer and Boticide for Horses, 14.4gm?? Its way cheaper than Cydectin
I have not done a fecal egg count.However, most the advice from professionals (like OSU) suggest that using FAMACHA alone is not a good way of determining if your goats have a large load of worms or even if they need treatment.

They have advised using at least both FAMACHA as well as fecal egg count together to determine when to start treating for worms, possibly in conjuction with the fecal count of worms for the herd.

Some goats are more tolerant of worm load than others and could have a large egg count but a good FAMACHA indicating that they are not anemic. Some of OSU advice is to take another sample fecal egg count sample and see if there is still a egg count.

Changing pasture may reduce the whole herd's egg count average and of course the goal is not to use antibiotics to avoid parasite immunity to commom antibiotics.

They are also recommending that when you determine certain goats are more resistant or tolerant of such parasites consider breeding these goats first.
 

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