Goat abortions?

farmerjan

Herd Master
Joined
Aug 16, 2016
Messages
10,194
Reaction score
38,741
Points
748
Location
Shenandoah Valley Virginia
You won't see anything with the ligaments, this is not a kidding or a birthing. Most times you won't even find the fetus as it will be very tiny. If you have to help or pull then they were much further along and if you only got that male then that is impossible. And if they are that far along, then aborting is about the worst thing you can do because they will not be ready to pass that big of a fetus. They won't dilate.... so be glad they got a shot now and other than watching them for something unusual, just let it go.
And yes, she has to be a minimum of 11 days after suspected breeding; Usually we will wait for a 21 day cycle to make sure that they don't just come in heat again and a previous breeding didn't "stick", with the cattle; the lute will cause the CL to disolve and then they will go through a cycle that their body is telling them they are getting ready to be bred. The CL is what causes the heat/ovulations to stop and helps to protect the pregnancy. Progesterone is what is needed for a viable pregnancy, and the CL is instrumental in that. Lute causes the hormones to shift, the CL dissolves, and then they will abort and then will come back into heat.
 

chickens really

Herd Master
Joined
May 8, 2017
Messages
1,864
Reaction score
5,453
Points
363
Location
The Funny Farm
Your absolutely positive they were pregnant? How far along were they? Did the Vet ultrasound them or what method was used to confirm pregnancy?
I hope everything goes well for you and the young Doe kids. :hugs
 

Duckfarmerpa1

Herd Master
Joined
Oct 30, 2019
Messages
1,798
Reaction score
3,370
Points
313
Location
Kane,PA
Well nothing has happened with the kids so I took them all to the vet to do bloodwork...so now we wait. Hopefully the P-Test was wrong and just picked up hormones? Last year it worked great, but the vet said they aren’t 100% accurate....fingers crossed. If they are pregnant..we do the shot again and then a steroid
 

bethh

True BYH Addict
Joined
May 29, 2018
Messages
514
Reaction score
1,143
Points
233
Location
Duluth, GA
I’m so sorry for your struggles. It’s been a difficult few months. Hopefully either they abort or weren’t pregnant. One of my does aborted triplets that were at various stages of development. Best guess, it was 6-8 weeks early.
 

farmerjan

Herd Master
Joined
Aug 16, 2016
Messages
10,194
Reaction score
38,741
Points
748
Location
Shenandoah Valley Virginia
3 days is hardly long enough for the drug to work and them to abort.Takes a couple of days for the lute to conteract the CL and progesterone. And blood work at this point will be mixed results... possible pregnant with a shot that was supposed to cause the "pregnant hormone" to diminish..... I am not sure I understand what your vet is doing......
 

frustratedearthmother

Herd Master
Joined
May 7, 2013
Messages
7,972
Reaction score
14,368
Points
623
Lute usually works on goats within 36 hours. I've used it several times for abortions and to schedule deliveries and it rarely took longer than that. Maybe cows are different?
 
Last edited:

farmerjan

Herd Master
Joined
Aug 16, 2016
Messages
10,194
Reaction score
38,741
Points
748
Location
Shenandoah Valley Virginia
Interesting....Did not know that it was supposed to work that fast on goats. We figure 24 to 72 hours with the cows on average... so at least 48 to 60 (2 to 3 days).... most of the time.... and honestly, you seldom see the results anyway unless she is fairly far along and you happen to find a small cat sized fetus.....And then you will often see a "false heat" a day or 2 after the aborting.... but not always. Again, most farmers don't sit around and watch them that close. And with cattle, if they are over 100-120 days, lute will sometimes not work.....so maybe these poor little goats got bred the first day the male got there even though they were only just over 2 months? Don't know the breeds.... most lambs don't show much of any type of heat before 3-4 months, so you try to have the males and females separated by then. Glad that I don't have goats to deal with.
 

Duckfarmerpa1

Herd Master
Joined
Oct 30, 2019
Messages
1,798
Reaction score
3,370
Points
313
Location
Kane,PA
My vet is running the blood work...if they are actually pregnant...then we will redo the shot and then the steroid. Ok..topic closed until the results are in....thank you all.....
 

E an J Dixon

Chillin' with the herd
Joined
May 15, 2016
Messages
3
Reaction score
3
Points
26
@Duckfarmerpa1

No judgement, accidents happen.
Glad you took care of it!
Hope & prayers that things get better for you soon.
 

Nommie Bringeruvda Noms

Loving the herd life
Joined
Sep 19, 2019
Messages
70
Reaction score
159
Points
113
No judgement. Just a lot of empathy. I'm so sorry your whole farm feels like it's exploding with ick. It doesn't mean you're bad farmers - just means you're going through one of the hardest parts of being farmers. ~hugs~
 

Latest posts

Top