I have a three week old Kiko/Boer doeling who got her back foot caught Monday night. She got a soft string wrapped very tightly around her leg from about just above the hock. When I found her, her whole leg hock down was stiff and cold. It did not help that the temperatures were below freezing by us. We brought her in by a warmer and dipped her leg in warm water. Now she just has swelling from her dewclaw to her hoof. She is still eating, puts a little pressure on it, and walks around with just a little limp. I do not think she can feel in her hoof. The skin down there is almost a darkish red. The vet said there is not much I can do for her except keep placing it in warm water and then drying it off completely. He gave us a prescription for meloxicam to help with swelling and pain. Has anyone else had experience with this? Does anyone have any other suggestions for me to implement? I am just scared that of the possibility of her skin all falling off there. Is there any cases where that has not happened?
Goat with frostbite
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frustratedearthmother
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So sorry for what happened to your doe. Wish I had an answer for you, but I have no experience with frostbite.
However, many years ago I had a wether get into an area he wasn't supposed to be. He managed to get into some construction material that fell and knocked him to the ground. He was trapped under it overnight and well into the next morning. I guess with the weight on him, the circulation was cut of to a spot on his shoulder and another spot on his hip. The skin sloughed off of both of those places I kept them clean and applied some topical meds and the skin eventually filled in and he was fine. Not exactly like your problem - but if it's "just" a skin issue it may fill in and heal.
Please continue to post and maybe some of us can learn something from this that will help in the future. Hope she improves for you!
However, many years ago I had a wether get into an area he wasn't supposed to be. He managed to get into some construction material that fell and knocked him to the ground. He was trapped under it overnight and well into the next morning. I guess with the weight on him, the circulation was cut of to a spot on his shoulder and another spot on his hip. The skin sloughed off of both of those places I kept them clean and applied some topical meds and the skin eventually filled in and he was fine. Not exactly like your problem - but if it's "just" a skin issue it may fill in and heal.
Please continue to post and maybe some of us can learn something from this that will help in the future. Hope she improves for you!
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Thank you for sharing about your whether. It gives me a little hope that my doeling will be fine. I will definitely keep you posted. I read somewhere that it may take two to six weeks before the skin comes off. I hope that if her skin comes off it will grow back. The thing that worries me right now is that when we are giving her the warm water and drying off her hoof it smells off, kind of bad. Her hoof is still swollen but it may take awhile for the meds to work.
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We are still giving her the meloxicam. The swollen part of her foot feels warm to touch. Does that sound like a good sign? Wouldn't it be cold if it was going to fall off? She runs around with her mother and fellow kids. Sometimes if she is scratching with her other hoof she will put a little weight on her affected hoof. When she is moving around she goes on three hooves.
Mini Horses
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Warm should mean blood flow to area, a good thing. Hot would indicate infection. Moving around is good. All things considered, I'd say it's going in the right direction. 
Just keep 
Just keep 
SageHill
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If she does slough the skin - at least it would be at a time when the flies are not around.
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Update on the doeling. The swelling in her hoof went down after a little over a week on meloxicam. She still walks on three hooves most of the time. Sometimes I can see her putting a little weight on her affected hoof. Her affected hoof turned a little grey and some of the hair is falling off of the part that was swollen. She has some small cuts where her hair fell off. We blue koted those cuts. Otherwise, she seems fine. She has a good appetite and definitely tries to keep up with her fellow kids.
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- #8
Update on the doeling. Yesterday, I noticed she has lost almost all of her hair on that part of her hoof. There were some cuts/scabs on it. I blu-koted it. Is there any other thing I could put on it to keep it from getting infected?
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- #9
Do you think blu-kote is okay for a topical prevention/treatment for her hoof? Should I look into getting something else. I just put it on to keep the cuts from getting infected. Even though most of the hair from the dewclaw down is off, she is putting on lot more weight on that hoof. So, hopefully she does not loose more than just hair.
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- #10
The vet took a quick look at her when he was checking on the other goats. He thinks she had a little fracture but it looks like it almost corrected itself on its own. He said the hair might grow back or it may not, it the hair heads died from the excessive swelling that was there.
