COCCIDIOSIS

Coccidia in goats is a disease that is caused by  a protozoan of  the  genus Eimeria.  It is  not  caused by worms and does not  respond to treatment with dewormers.

Cocci is highly contagious and spreads through a goat herd quickly.   Passing by fecal-to-oral contact,  Cocci  is species specific, which means that Cocci in one species does not transfer to other species.  The long-held belief that chickens can transmit Cocci to goats is untrue.

The first symptom is usually,  but not always,   diarrhea. Along with diarrhea always comes dehydration and sometimes fever.

Fecal testing is necessary to diagnose Coccidiosis. Coccidia oocysts are easily identified in fecal samples placed under a microscope. Learn to do fecal counts on your goats to monitor the health of your herd. My article explaining an easy and inexpensive fecal-testing procedure appears on the Articles page of my website www.tennesseemeatgoats.com.

Diarrhea in kids does not always mean Coccidiosis. Fecal testing can  identify the cause. Diarrhea is a symptom of an illness and not an illness in and of itself. See my article on Diarrhea for additional information.

If treatment isn't begun immediately, permanent damage will be done to the intestinal lining and the goat won't be able to absorb nutrients from its food. Weight loss is substantial and  often chronic (cannot be cured).  If the goat lives, it will  always be unthrifty.  In advanced cases of Coccidiosis, diarrhea can be watery, and may contain mucous and blood. Bloody diarrhea is blackish in color.

While adult goats can contract Coccidiosis (particularly does that are stressed from having recently kidded), young kids' immature immune systems make them susceptible to this disease. Kid goats pick up and "mouth" everything in their surroundings. Some of those objects are goat "pills" (feces) that are coccidia-infected.  This parasite  quickly takes  up residence in the kids' intestines.

Dewormers neither prevent or cure Coccidiosis.   There are several products that prevent and treat Coccidiosis.   Only two are   currently available over the counter, and one of them is sold via  Internet website.     The rest are prescription only.

* CoRid is one of two  over-the-counter products for treating Cocci.  I don't recommend it because its active ingredient, amprolium, is a thiamine inhibitor. and some strains of Cocci have developed resistance to CoRid.   If you have to use it, give sub-cutaneous injections of Vit B1 (thiamine) along with it.   Administer CoRid directly from the gallon jug for 5 days in a row into each goat's mouth.  Don't rely on medication working in the drinking water.   Follow the dosing instructions for curative and preventative treatments on the product label.    Jeffers (1-800-533-3377 or www.jefferslivestock.com) carries CoRid.

* Albon  (generic equivalent Sulfadimethoxine 12.5%  marketed as Di-Methox 12.5% oral solution) and 40% Albon injectable.

* Sulfamethoxazole with Trimethoprim.  Comes in liquid form, which I prefer to use with kids, and big but easily dissolvable boluses for adults.    I keep both liquid and boluses on hand.

* Primor (sulfamethoxine with ormetoprim).  Tablet dosing based upon animal's weight.* Marquis and  Baycox  are marketed as one-time only treatments for Cocci, but are expensive.

*Toltrazuril is the second over-the-counter treatment for Cocci.  The only source I know  is via  the website   www.horseprerace.com.    I have never used it.  Marquis and Baycox are close relatives of this medication.  Oral dosage for toltrazuril is 1 cc per 3 lbs bodyweight (curative) and 1 cc per 5 lbs (preventative) one time. If already infected with coccidia, administer 3 to 5  cc's of undiluted liquid Di-Methox 12.5%

I prefer using the Di-Methox 12.5% solution.  It is  a  generic of Albon, available in gallon jugs that require no mixing,  and is less expensive.   Although Di-Methox 12.5% comes in both liquid and powder, the liquid is easier to dose properly. To treat a herd that is already infected with coccidia, administer 3 to 5  cc's of undiluted liquid Di-Methox 12.5% orally to each kid daily for 5  consecutive days. For adults, dose at  8 to 10  cc's in the same manner. Orally drench each goat individually to insure accurate delivery, even if the herd's water supply is also being medicated. The goat who needs the product the most is likely to be on the bottom of the pecking order and will get the least if you try to mass dose via water only.

Di-Methox 12.5% can also be added to drinking water; follow package directions. Limit access to the water source being medicated. Automatic waterers must be turned off to maintain correct dosage strength.  Preventative dosage is usually one-half the curative dose; read product label.   Do not  dose solely via drinking water.  Orally drench every goat individually daily for 5 consecutive days to cure this disease.

Pat Cotten of Bending Tree Ranch in Arkansas uses  40% Albon injectable given orally.    She doses as follows: 1.56 cc per 25 pounds bodyweight for Day 1, then .78 cc per 25 pounds bodyweight for Days 2 through 5. Give it orally. Mix it with molasses or fruit juice as it is nasty tasting in concentrated form, making goats likely to spit it out.

Primor dosing:   Administer one tablet orally in the morning and the second tablet by mouth in the evening of the first day -- and then one tablet orally each day thereafter -- for a total of 5 consecutive days. Primor comes in body-weight dosages, and the tablets are scored so that they can be split in half for accurate dosing.

Products that help calm the gut should also be used:

* Endorsorb  is a  prescription tablet that calms the gut and  dissolves readily in electrolytes like Bounce Back or Resorb or in water for easy oral dosing.

* Tagamet 200 is an over-the-counter gut-calming medication that can be given to goats.  Kid dosage is is one-half of a Tagamet 200 tablet daily for 5  consecutive days. Use one Tagamet 200 tablet daily for adult goats.

* Pepto-Bismol given orally may be used to coat the lining of the stomach and reduce gut irritation, but it is not as effective as Endorsorb or Tagamet 200.

Products that  control life-threatening watery diarrhea:

*  Sulfamethoxazole & Trimethoprim Oral Suspension 200mg/40mg per 5 mL (prescription) is excellent. Given orally, the dosage is 2 cc per 100 pounds bodyweight. Dose accurately, as overdosing will constipate the goat.

*  Biosol (neomycin sulphate) may be used (if it is still available, perhaps under a different brand name).

* Banamine is an excellent prescription medication for both calming the gut and bringing down fever. Normal goat body temperature ranges from 101.5 degrees F. to 103.5 degrees F. Banamine should be administered intramuscularly (IM) or sub-cutaneously (SQ) at a rate of 1 cc per 100 pounds of body weight. A newborn kid would receive .1 - .2 cc (one-tenth to two-tenths of a cc) of Banamine. Banamine should be used sparingly as it has the potential to cause stomach ulcers.

* Baytril 100 tablets are the ultimate treatment for watery diarrhea.  Tablet dosing is weight-based.   NOTE: Some jurisdictions prohibit use of Baytril  100 in food-production animals because withdrawal time is unknown.

Diarrhea of the consistency of pudding doesn't worry me much as much as watery diarrhea UNLESS  it lasts for multiple days and/or has blood in it.

Electrolytes are required when goats are dehydrated.

* Bounce Back, ReSorb, or comparable cattle electrolytes should be given   via  an oral drench  (or stomach tube) and in the  water supply. Gatorade or Pedialyte may be used in place of cattle electrolytes in emergencies.

* Lactated Ringers Solution  (an inexpensive vet prescription that you should never be without) should be given under the skin (SQ) at both shoulders warmed to body temperature.   Dose 30 cc per shoulder SQ for kids. A 60 cc syringe (with an 18-gauge needle to  tent the skin)  should be used for this procedure.

Keeping the goat hydrated with electrolytes and Lactated Ringers Solution (LRS) is critical to the animal's survival.

Rehydrating an adult goat that won't drink on its own requires stomach tubing in order to get enough liquid into its body. No amount of oral drenching syringe-by-syringe will rehydrate an adult goat. See my article on Stomach Tubing Goats on www.tennesseemeatgoats.com.

GREEN LEAVES   are the best natural product to feed to a sick goat, regardless of the illness. Green leaves will be the first food that it will eat, followed by hay. Don't offer sacked/processed grains to a sick goat; they are too difficult to digest. A goat will begin eating sacked or processed grain feeds only when recovery is well underway.

TREATMENT EXAMPLE

This article provides information on a variety of medications for use with Coccidiosis. Do  not  try to use them all at one time.

Faced with Coccidiosis in a goat, I would start treatment with Sulfamethoxazole & Trimethoprim Oral Suspension in an animal with very watery diarrhea, then switch to Di-Methox 12.5% liquid oral solution when the stool begins to achieve a "pudding-like" consistency. On non-watery diarrhea cases  of Coccidiosis, my choice would be Di-Methox 12.5% liquid oral solution.

If fever exists, a Banamine injection would be given. If fever is not present, either Endorsorb, Tagamet 200, or Pepto-Bismol would be used. If Di-Methox 12.5% liquid oral solution didn't work after five days of treatment, then Primor tablets(prescription) would be dosed.  The prescription antibiotic Baytril 100 would be used as a last resort, when no other treatment has worked, but only with vet approval and under vet supervision.

Lactated Ringers Solution would be given SQ at the shoulders to a kid who is not drinking on his own. In all cases, electrolytes would be used to treat dehydration in both kids and adults. Green leaves, if available, should be offered to all sick goats old enough to eat solid food.

You will need to determine what combinations of medications work with your herd.

At the completion of the (minimum) five-day antibiotic treatment, re-populate the goat's gut with live bacteria by dosing with an oral probiotic. Do not give probiotics concurrent with antibiotics. Give probiotics only after you complete the 5 consecutive day antibiotic treatment.

PREVENTION OF COCCIDIOSIS

When kids begin eating solid food at around 2  weeks of age, you should offer a goat feed containing a coccidiostat to prevent a coccidiosis outbreak. The general timeframe that kids are at risk for Coccidiosis runs from about two weeks of age (when they begin to pick at solid food) and through 8 to 10  months of age (when the immune system is somewhat developed). Weaning is a particularly stressful time as kids no longer have antibody protection from their dam's milk; kids are suddenly on their own immune-system wise.

Feeding a coccidiostat-treated  feed will not overcome over-crowding and filthy living conditions. Once goats are infected, coccidiostat-treated feed will not cure Coccidiosis.

Some types of coccidiostats are toxic to  farm animals.    Monensin (marketed as Rumensin) is toxic to dogs and horses.   I am hearing from some goat raisers that monensin   is causing problems  with their goats.   Reports include anorexia, poor weight gain, labored breathing that mimics pneumonia,  liver problems if the antibiotic Draxxin is used on goats being fed monensin, and  toxicity reactions  in the blood and liver if used long term.   This information is coming to me from show-goat raisers, who are known for pushing grains on their goats.  I have no personal experience with monensin.  I have used Deccox in the feed that I give to all my goats for over 25 years and it has always worked well for me.     Do your own due diligence before you use monensin or  any coccidiostat.

Prevent Coccidiosis by keeping pens and bedding clean, water fresh, goats uncrowded, and areas dry. Wet and dirty conditions are incubators of Coccidiosis for both kids and adults.  Clean, dry,  and uncrowded pens and pastures are necessary to avoid outbreaks of Coccidiosis.

Suzanne W. Gasparotto, Onion Creek Ranch,  Texas      8.1.23

The author, Suzanne Gasparotto, hereby grants to local goat publications and club newsletters, permission to reprint articles published on the Onion Creek Ranch website under these conditions: THE ARTICLE MUST BE REPRODUCED IN ITS ENTIRETY AND THE AUTHOR'S NAME, ADDRESS, AND CONTACT INFORMATION MUST BE INCLUDED AT THE BEGINNING OF THE REPRINT. We would appreciate notification from any clubs or publications when the articles are used. (A copy of the newsletter or publication would also be a welcome addition to our growing library of goat related information!)

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