Goiter

Kid is normal at birth but suddenly develops an onset of muscular weakness or ataxia at 3 to 10 days of age. Seemingly it happens in late kidding seasons, but this is only a supposition. The kids do not seem to be able to suckle but they can swallow, they are also in a depressed state.

Monkey Faced Lamb Syndrome

I think this one has me particularly involved as one of my new list members had this happen to her first angora birth this season, the twin was normal. A very unusual defect as it has various anomalies and can appear with or without a cycloptic involvement. This is caused by the doe eating CornLilly (False hellebore) which grows wild throughout the US. The unusual thing about this particular disorder is depending on which day of pregnancy ingestion of the plant took place will delegate what amount of degeneration there will be to the fetus. Ingestion of the plant on day 14 of gestation causes The Monkey Faced Syndrome- lack of nasal cavity, sometimes also a cycloptic situation (one central or offset eye instead of a pair of eyes), ingestion on 19th to 21st day of gestation will give more chance for cycloptic involvement as well as forelimb deformity- days 27 to 32 of gestation a marked shortening of forelimbs.

Tracheal defects (lateral flattening of the trachea throughout its entire length) when eaten on days 31-33 of gestation. The difficult thing about this poisoning is many times the doe does not show much in the way of outward symptoms of poisoning when she has eaten small amounts of this plant- therefore this can be quite a shock when the neonate is born with the defects.

Signs of Western False Hellebore Poisoning:

Poisoning may occur in 2 to 3 hours after an animal eats the plant. Marked signs of poisoning after eating 6 to 12 ounces of green stems or leaves.

• * Excessive salivation with frothing
• * General body weakness - animal may be unable to stand
• * Irregular gait
• * Vomiting
• * Fast, irregular heartbeat
• * Slow, shallow breathing
• * Coma
• * Convulsions

Click photo to enlarge
Photo of baby goat with mildly contracted tendons in the front feet -which is usually temporary and mild
This can usually be corrected by splinting either with large syringe containers split as shown in this photo or using vetwrap making sure not to place it too tight or it can cut off circulation- 24 to 48 hours should be enough to correct this.
I have also had success in placing the feet in the correct position each time I handle the baby and hleping it to stand- this seems to correct the feet as well as splinting them.

The next time you are the least bit disappointed in a set of twin bucklings instead of doelings, or the color is not exactly as you had hoped, keep these abnormalities in mind and Thank the Lord for your healthy babies.. and if your baby is one of the ones who are affected by one of these syndromes, then by all means do some study and offer what you find to the goat community so we may all learn from your little angel.