Lecture 6: small ruminant medicine

What is a doe?

Female goat

What is a buck?

Male goat

What is a wether?

Castrated male sheep or goat

What is kidding?

Birthing goats

What is a kid?

Goat offspring

What is a doe kid / buck kid?

Youngster goat

What is an ewe?

Female sheep

What is a ram?

Male sheep

What is lambing?

Birthing sheep

What is a lamb?

Sheep offspring

What is an ewe lamb / ram lamb?

Youngster sheep

What are the 3 main parts of the small ruminant industry

- Milk
- Wool
- Meat

How many goats are there worldwide?

1.2 billion

How many goats are there in the US? On how many farms?

- 2.7 million
- 128,500 farms

What are the 4 classifications of goats?

- Meat breeds
- Pet breeds
- Fiber goats
- Dairy breeds

How many sheep are there worldwide?

1.2 billion

How many sheep are there in the US? On how many farms?

- 5.2 million
- 101,000 farms

What US state has the most sheep?

Texas

Describe hair sheep.

- Originate from hot environments (more resistant to heat stress)
- No need to shear
- Many are non-seasonal breeders
- Improved heat tolerance and parasite resistance (compared to European breeds)

Is dairy production mostly sheep or goats?

Goats

How does dairy production in the US make income?

- Dairy products
- Lambs/kids

Dairy small ruminants need how long of a dry period?

At least 60 days

How much do dairy goats and sheep lactate?

- Goats = ~1800-2100 lbs/lactation
- Sheep = 200 - 1400 lbs/lactation

What breeds of goats are used for fiber/wool? How often are they sheared?

- Angora goats (shear 2x/year)
- Cashmere (comb out several times/year)

When is the best time to sheer sheep?

Best in spring (so coat is long over winter and short over summer)

What is the typical production cycle for meat sheep/goats?

- Sheep = fall breeding, spring lambing
- Goats = same as sheep or 2 kiddings/year

What is the main difference in sheep vs. goat meat production?

- Lambs fed to market weight by producer OR sold as feeder lambs to continue being rose on a feedlot
- Kids usually fed by producer to market weight

Describe goat behavior (6).

- Like climbing
- Antagonistic behavior = sideways hooking motion
- Fighting = rear up on hind legs
- Alarm = high pitched sneeze
- Curious, not as easily frightened as sheep (but may scatter when frightened)
- Newborns — freeze some distance from mother, "lying out"

Describe sheep behavior (7).

- Grasslands, not climbers
- Antagonistic behavior = butt head-on
- Fighting = butt head-on
- Alarm = snort and stamp one forefoot, form a compact bunch
- When frightened = run in flock
- Stress results from isolation or unfamiliarity
- Newborns remain by ewe — "lying in"

These animals like to work in groups. What will you want to do if you want the animals to move forward?

Walk next to them in the opposite direction.

What do you want to do first with the physical exam?

Observation!
- Normal = alert, attentive, similar to group
- Abnormal = listless, not eating with group, poor BCS, lagging behind group, walking or eating on knees

How can you restrain for the physical exam?

- One hand under mandible + one hand behind neck or behind tail
- Can also grasp by horns

T/F: it is perfectly find to restrain by grabbing the wool.

False. You'll hurt the poor lil babes.

What might you hear on TPR in small ruminants that is normal in them but not other species?

Harsh bronchovesicular sounds

What are the normal TPRRc findings for sheep?

T = 101.5-104 F

P = 70-80 bpm

R = 12-20 bpm

Rc = 1-3/min

What are the normal TPRRc findings for goats?

T = 102-104 F

P = 70-90 bpm

R = 15-30 bpm

Rc = 1-2/min

T/F: serous nasal discharge is normal in sheep/goats.

True

What is one of the biggest causes of weight loss in small ruminants?

Teeth

How can you calculate the age of a sheep or goat?

1/2 # of permanent teeth = age

What is a common cause of culling sheep/goats?

Poor quality of udder

What lymph nodes should be palpated ?

- Prescapular
- Prefemoral

How can you evaluate the BCS?

Evaluate the spinous process and the transverse hypophysis

What is the BCS scoring system used?

- 1 = emancipated
- 2 = thin
- 3 = average ****
- 4 = fat
- 5 = obese

At a minimum, when should body weight be measured?

- Birth
- Weaning
- Deworming or when medicating

Describe the use of scrapie ear tags.

Required for sheep and goats (>18 month of age, unless going straight to slaughter), and for all sexually intact males, moving via interstate commerce.

When is it best to castrate sheep/goats if they are meat or fiber animals?

4 - 14 days

When is it best to castrate pet sheep/goats? Why?

>3 months
To reduce risk of obstructive urolithiasis

What should be done prior to castration?

- Vaccinate for tetanus (+/- antitoxin)
- Lidocaine +/- NSAIDs

What are the bloodless (closed) techniques for castration?

- Elastrator band (leave on for 7-10 days)
- Burdizzo emasculatome (cuts vas deferens)

What is the preferred castration technique for post-pubertal males?

Surgical castration

T/F: with a surgical castration, the scrotum should be sutured to prevent infection.

False — it should remain open to allow for drainage

What is the purpose of tail docking?

To prevent manure build-up in perineal area and fly strike

What sheep do not need tail docking?

Hair sheep

When is it best to perform tail docking?

2-7 days

What length hound the tail be for tail docking? What happens if it is too short?

- Should cover the vulva (ewes) or anus (rams); no shorter than the distal end of the caudal tail fold.
- If too short, it predisposes to vaginal prolapse, rectal prolapse, and perineal neoplasia.

When is it best to perform disbudding?

4-7 days

What nerves should be blocked for disbudding?

- Cornual branch of intratrochlear
- Cornual branch of lacrimal

How can you be careful with the lidocaine dose during disbudding?

- Dilute 2% lidocaine to 0.5% with sterile water
- Do not exceed 5 mg/kg (can result in convulsions)

What is the main method of disbudding?

Heat cautery to destroy horn corium — apply for 8 seconds to achieve a copper color ring.

What can happen if you disbud for too long with heat cautery?

Can cause brain inflammation

Males castrated before 7.5 months do not develop what?

Scent glands

In general, how often should hooves be trimmed? What areas may need it more often?

- 2x / year
- Heavy rainfall areas; areas with soft ground

If the dam was vaccinated for clostridium, when should the kid be vaccinated?

- 1-2 months
- Booster 3-4 weeks later
- Annual booster

If the dam was not vaccinated for clostridium/there was no colostrum injection, when should the kid be vaccinated?

- 1-3 weeks
- Booster twice at 3-4 weeks
- Annual booster

What is the core vaccine for small ruminants?

CDT

What diseases should only be vaccinated for if the herd has a problem?

- Contagious ecthyma (orf)
- Caseous lymphadenitis (CL)