What to do with CL

rachels.haven

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The pus needs to be tested if it is available. The tubes are just for looking for antibodies.
 

Augie

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rachels.haven

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If you vaccinate for CL the antibodies test will detect cl antibodies when you test whether your goats have CL or not for the rest of their lives. You will never know if your goats are really negative or positive and prone to sprouting abscesses internally or externally at random times forever. I suggest only vaccinating for CL only if your pus test comes back positive (or if an antibodies test comes back positive twice). It's more of a cutting your losses vaccine. I believe it mostly helps them not get it as badly rather than not getting it at all.
 

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If you vaccinate for CL the antibodies test will detect cl antibodies when you test whether your goats have CL or not for the rest of their lives. You will never know if your goats are really negative or positive and prone to sprouting abscesses internally or externally at random times forever. I suggest only vaccinating for CL only if your pus test comes back positive (or if an antibodies test comes back positive twice). It's more of a cutting your losses vaccine. I believe it mostly helps them not get it as badly rather than not getting it at all.
But I'd rather have a false positive than a positive positive. They only drawback to vaccinating is that you can't test?
 

rachels.haven

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You won't ever know if you actually have it as diseased animals won't always show abscesses. You won't be able to tell buyers your herd is healthy and tested clean. Many goat people don't want this. Most of the time this is fine for strictly terminal, non breeding animals for your use only for the most part (abscesses can condemn a carcass at the processor meaning you don't get the meat), but if you want more than that out if your herd don't vaccinate unless necessary. Cl cuts into your herd's outputs. The disease itself really does and gets into your soil so you're stuck with it.
 

Baymule

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You are being advised NOT to push the panic button and vaccinate. TEST the one with an abscess. Calm down, it may only be a abscess, not CL.

@rachels.haven i don’t know much about CL, it it detectable by a blood rest, it that what you were referring to when you said 2 positive tests? If so this may be the best way for the OP to go, testing the herd before vaccination.
 

Mini Horses

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Do you have a State vet lab near you? They can provide a tube, instructions, tests, etc, with very, very reasonable fees. I am fortunate to have one about 20 miles from me. They offer many services that a small operation may not even know about. Necropsy is one of many.
 

rachels.haven

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@rachels.haven i don’t know much about CL, it it detectable by a blood rest, it that what you were referring to when you said 2 positive tests? If so this may be the best way for the OP to go, testing the herd before vaccination.
The common thought in the goat community is that the antibody detecting blood test for CL is less accurate, but the pus test is always spot on. The chance of a false positive would be significantly decreased if the test were repeated. The pus test is just plain better.
 

purplequeenvt

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Do not vaccinate anyone until you have tested the pus and the blood. Once you vaccinate, there will be no way of telling whether your animal has CL or is just testing positive because of the vaccine.

Where was the lump? Are there more lumps? Sheep can get lumps for a million different reasons besides CL. It could be an abscess from getting stuck by something or, if it’s on the body, it could be a clogged sebaceous gland.
 
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