does my goat have mites?

[chicken_lady_38]

Hey everyone, yesterday I went outside to check on my goats and make sure they were well and healthy. Thats when I noticed my doe had hair loss on her back legs. There was also scabbing. It looks like its only on the outside of her legs and its below her "knees". She doesn't seem to be itching. Is there any effective medicine that I can give them?

I am also afraid she might be pregnant because I haven't seen her go into heat in a while and she is usually pretty obvious. If she is pregnant will the medicine effect her baby(s)?

 

[EggSighted4Life]

If she is pregnant will the medicine effect her baby(s)?

Hi there, welcome to BYC!

It's possible scabs indicate mites. For most my animals and on most mites/lice I have used Horse fly spray, permethryn based... found in the equine section at feed stores or TSC under many names and ready to use or concentrated... I also used the following one. It was originally bought to keep mosquitoes off my goats before I discovered it also labeled for use in dogs, pigs, horse, goat,chickens and chicks, with no withdrawal time required for eating eggs or hatching. Not considered safe for cats.

I might also consider using Ivermectin... not sure if it's labels for use in goats and during pregnancy, so research that option before using it.

 

[chicken_lady_38]

Thank you I plan on going to Tractor Supply tomorrow. I will do some research on the Ivermectin.

 

[cassie]

I am not saying goats cannot get mites, but I have sever seen them. Lice yes, mites no. Without seeing a picture or the goat it is hard to say, but it is most likely she has a fungus infection of some sort on her skin. I once had a buck that lost most of his hair from a fungus. He was out in pasture so I didn't see him every day. When I did see him he was almost bald. When you go to Tractor Supply, get some BluKote. It is harmless to the animal and her unborn (if any) kids but it is very effective against fungi. Just spray it on. If the goat has a fungus you will see improvement in just a few days. If not, no harm done. It can't hurt her. I sprayed my buck and in just five days or so there was a marked improvement. He looked pretty funny there for a while. It isn't every day you see a purple buck.

 

[Birdsong 82]

My goat had a fungal infection and it was really bad on her legs and what you're describing sounds exactly like what she was dealing with