Over eating on Thanksgiving

One of the traditions of Thanksgiving among the humans that celebrate it seems to be over eating.   Usually that means loosening up the belt, a nap after dinner and maybe popping some antacids.

Over eating in goats often leads to bloat which can be fatal.  And unfortunately Bekah decided in the spirit of the day to give the bucks and the chickens extra food as a treat.   I'm not sure just how much extra she gave them, but there was actually food left in the pan so it must have been quite a bit.   The older bucks seemed to handle the extra ok, but poor little Donavan who was just finally healthy got very sick.   He was very bloated and having extreme diarrhea.

I g ave him a baking soda solution and probotics and then did a lot of making him walk around the pasture.  My goat mentor brought me some essential oils to rub on his rumen to aid in getting his rumen functioning properly again and to stop the diarrhea.   

I hadn't eaten breakfast yet when Bekah told me Donavan was sick, and I missed Thanksgiving dinner by an hour.    I was so hungry by the time I did have a chance to eat that I didn't even bother to heat up the food and it still tasted wonderful!

I am very thankful to report that Donavan is looking and acting much better today.  I am also very thankful for friends that will drop their own holiday preparations to come help me with a sick goat and for my husband and parents that took care of cooking and the children while I was busy outside.

Donavan