Hair loss in kid?

merkleroot

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Hi! I'm new so hopefully this is the right place to post.

I have three goat kids all were bottle babies (1 still on the bottle). One of the older kids (Cookie) has been weaned for about a month, she's growing like a weed, eats like a champ, and is healthy and very very active, lol.

She's been getting these marks, they almost look like streaks. I've seen something similar from time to time in the past when a goat kid jumps off another and kind of rubs the hair with a hoof or something. But that was just 1 mark from time to time and short lived.

So I can't tell if this is excessive jumping on her by the smaller 2, hair loss, or white hair coming in. Her coat does seems coarse and shorter in places, but up close I'm not seeing bald skin and 100% no skin irritation. She's not itching, no hair loss anywhere else just those marks on her body. I can't tell if she's being jumped on/off, she's shedding to a spring coat, lossing her baby coat, if this is the start of hair loss from something medical, or if she's just turning in a roan colored goat. The whole thing is driving me nuts. And I have no idea what I should try if anything.

They get high quality soft grass clover mix hay
Purina grower pellets
Sweet feed 16% for goats
Alfalfa pellets
Pasture access
Loose goat mineral (can't recall the brand)
Baking soda (if wanted)

No fish tail
No goiter
No flakey irritated or dry skin
No itching
Recently dewormed and no pale lids
Normal healthy poops
Normal appetite, activity, behavior

The other 2 kids she's with have no coat issues
 

merkleroot

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Alaskan

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Huh.


That does look like a "something"

You said no fishtail... but my first guess would still be copper deficiency.

It looks Ike there is some hair thinning around the eyes... and if there are zero parasite signs... I think you are then stuck with copper being the issue.

Is copper low in your area?

The only other guess.... but i think unlikely since it looks like it is a little here... and then there.... not one specific spot.... would be a fungal something.

For fungal skin things I really like the Schreiner's herbal horse spray

This one:

SmartSelect_20220131-174732_Samsung Internet.jpg


It has worked great for me on mystery whatever skin things, as well as clear rain rot.
 

Mini Horses

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That product is great! I used it on a severe (almost 8" long) cut on the leg one of my horses to heal and prevent proud flesh! When a stallion tried to cut his leg off....where bandage was almost useless. Even vet was amazed. No scar, hair back same dark black. 🤗. Worth the $20-25 a bottle.

Another thing I've used on fungal rain rot and hot spots, Listerine. Only original gold.
 

merkleroot

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Thanks for the replies, Im probably going to try the spray. She actually has good hair around the eyes just that lilacish grey weird color here and there, it's around both eyes and a bigger spot on her neck. She also has a ridge of curly hair down her back which doesn't help the coat look better 🤣 I was thinking about copper but I was worried about giving a kid that's only a couple months old a copper bolus (they are the ones for goat kids) but I'd read a few things and was leery about it. We do have a LOT of iron in our well water.
 

Alaskan

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If you know your area is low in copper, you should give her the copper bolus.

As soon as they are old enough to take a treat/eat solid foods they can easily be given a bolus.

Odd color hair, odd curly hair... those can all be signs of copper deficiency.
 

merkleroot

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Interesting, I had no idea curly hair could be a sign, I was aware of the fish tail, rough coat, and rust but didn't know curly hair. I'll give her and her sister one and see if we see any improvements. Thanks :)
 

merkleroot

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So I think multiple things may have been going on. I did copper bolus her. And she is getting white hairs all over and she's getting moon spots 😍 dark ones and white ones. I'm pretty happy about that as it was 100% unexpected.
 

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Alaskan

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So I think multiple things may have been going on. I did copper bolus her. And she is getting white hairs all over and she's getting moon spots 😍 dark ones and white ones. I'm pretty happy about that as it was 100% unexpected.
Hair looks way healthier!
 
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