Diarrhea in kids: how to treat at home, medicines and folk remedies

Diarrhea is the release of softened or liquid feces associated with indigestion. Normal goat feces look like hard balls, but with infectious diseases of the digestive tract, poor-quality feeding and maintenance, feces change their consistency. In adults, diarrhea reduces milk production, and young animals can die from intoxication, so it is important to know the causes of diarrhea in kids and goats than to treat a sick animal.

Causes of diarrhea in goats and kids

More often goats suffer from diarrhea. Their digestive tract is not yet adapted to the conditions of existence, so even insignificant pathogens provoke a malfunction of the stomach and intestines. Adult goats already have immunity from a common infection, goats have not yet developed it.

But even an adult goat can get diarrhea. The disease becomes inevitable when the owner feeds the animal low-quality, moldy food, does not vaccinate in a timely manner. Often, diarrhea is observed in pregnant and giving birth goats, which is associated with depletion of the body and weakening of the immune system.

Improper feeding

Although goats are not capricious in nutrition, but poor quality food is the most common cause of diarrhea. Moreover, diarrhea can be both an independent pathology and a symptom of a malfunction of the digestive organs. Diarrhea in kids and adults occurs due to:

• mold and rotting food;
• presence of dirt and debris in the stern;
• traces of agricultural pesticides in forage grass;
• disinfectants and other household toxins in feed;
• the presence of poisonous herbs in the pasture;
• dramatic autumn and spring diet changes;
• excess in the diet of silage and other succulent feed with high acidity;
• Insufficient inclusion of hay in the diet.

Inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract

Kids can be abused in the event of gastritis, colitis, enteritis and other non-infectious inflammatory pathologies of the digestive tract.

These diseases occur due to:

• bad food;
• presence in the diet of foods that cause fermentation in the digestive tract;
• a high percentage of silage in the diet;
• drastic change in diet;
• premature transfer of kids to adult food;
• feeding kids with milk from a goat with mastitis;
• exposure to stressors;
• sunstroke, body overheating;
• retinol (vitamin A) deficiency;
• drinking dirty and cold water.

In sick kids and goats, appetite decreases, or even disappears altogether. Diarrhea is periodically replaced by constipation. Feces look like cow cakes with blood and mucous clots, food particles.

Non-infectious inflammatory pathologies are not accompanied by fever. Body temperature is slightly elevated, sometimes even slightly below normal.

Infectious diseases

Diarrhea in kids can be accompanied by dangerous infectious pathologies listed in the table.

enteritisfeces with blisters, mucous and blood inclusions, reddish color of urine pasteurellosislightning fasttrembling, falling to the ground, death in a few minutes acute subacute rhinitis, inflammation of the lungs, swelling of the chin and neck, after 2-3 weeks a transition to a chronic form is possible anemia, wasting, inflamed joints of the extremities °C, rapid breathing, tachycardia, poor appetite, blood streaks and white lumps in the feces, death occurs after 3-5 days lack of appetite

Disease	Current form	Symptomatics
colibacillosis	septic	body temperature 41-42°C, rapid and shallow breathing, redness of mucous tissues, grinding of teeth, foaming at the mouth, convulsions and paralysis
	lethargy, poor appetite, temperature 41-42 °C, mucous and purulent nasal discharge, cough, convulsions, death in 3-5 days
		chronic
		subacute

Worms and parasites in goats

The goats infected with helminths and protozoan parasites are vilified. Infection occurs alimentary: infected individuals defecate feces with microorganisms, and he althy goats eat food that has been infected with a parasitic infection.

For adult animals, helminths do not pose a great danger, only periodic digestive disorders with a decrease in milk production are possible. But infected goats face severe malnutrition.

The table shows common helminths affecting goats and kids.

Provocative parasitesLocalization and features of the lesionmonieziosis tapeworm up to 8 m flatworms that cause jaundicelive in the bile ducts, diarrhea is dark in color due to the presence of bilirubin paramphistomatosishelminth larvae, the main host of which is molluscssource of infection is grass, adult helminths infect the stomach and duodenum dictyocaulosis adult helminths inhabit the lungs, larvae migrate to the intestines strongyloidiasis

Parasitic disease
	jaundice larvae	affect the liver
fascioliasis
roundworm up to 15 cm
filamentous nematode	o beats in the intestines

Signs of disease

The main sign of diarrhea in kids is frequent defecation, which results in mushy or watery feces. There may be other symptoms depending on the cause of the diarrhea:

• nausea, urge to vomit;
• pain when touching the belly;
• poor or no appetite;
• lethargy, drowsiness;
• frequent and short breathing;
• tachycardia, arrhythmia;
• excess gas;
• high or low body temperature.

Diarrhea is a dangerous condition for both an adult goat and a kid. It leads to dehydration, metabolic disorders, intestinal microflora and the functioning of the nervous system.An adult animal loses weight, gives less milk. If a newborn kid swears, then he begins to become intoxicated, and if left untreated, the animal dies.

When a goat's loose stool is infectious, the feces are dark or green in color with blood streaks, exude the smell of decay. If the diarrhea is non-infectious, then the color and consistency of the feces are different, mucous and foamy inclusions, food particles are possible.

Methods of treating the disease

A sick animal is not fed for about 8 hours. Every 3 hours give a glass of warm saline or oak broth. It is advisable to give the goat 2-3 tablespoons of castor oil. Similar first aid is given to a kid, only castor oil should not be given.

The sick animal is isolated, as diarrhea can be a symptom of an infectious lesion. And the room where the goat was located is being disinfected.

Medications

Against infectious diarrhea, use a 1% solution of the antiseptic "Rivanol" or 0.1% antimicrobial drug "Furazolidone". Antibiotics "Biomycin", "Levomycetin", "Biomycin" work well. The dosage is prescribed by the veterinarian. Goats can be given the antibiotics Sultasin and Ftalazol. Dose - 200 mg per 1 kg of body weight.

Drugs against helminthiasis in kids:

• from moniesiosis - Panakur (22 mg per 1 kg), Cambendazole (25 mg per 1 kg);
• from fascioliasis - "Polytrem" in feed (0.14 g per 1 kg), "Ivomek" subcutaneously (1 ml per 50 kg);
• from paramphistomatosis - drugs "Panakur" and "Kambendazol";
• from dictyocaulosis - "Ivomek" subcutaneously (0.2 mg per 1 kg) and "Panakur";
• from strongyloidiasis - "Nilverm" (100 mg per 1 kg).

Folk methods

The first remedy for diarrhea in goats at home is oak decoction. A tablespoon of bark is poured into a glass of hot water. Put on a steam bath, hold until the liquid acquires a rich brown color. The solution is filtered, boiled water is added to 300 ml. The product is watered to the goat 3 times a day until it can be fed.

You can use rice water. A glass of rice is soaked in water for 10 hours. Pour 1 liter of water, s alt, boil for 1 hour over low heat. Filter, pour 50 g of sugar into the liquid, bring to a boil. A sick animal is given a quarter cup of decoction every 2 hours.

It is recommended to drink small kids from diarrhea with chamomile decoction. It is prepared in the same way as oak.

Prevention measures

To prevent diarrhea in kids, observe the following rules:

1. Competently compose a diet for animals. They provide high-quality and balanced food.
2. Keeping the barn clean and tidy. Cleaned monthly.
3. Give kids clean and fresh drinking water.
4. Provides a comfortable temperature and ventilation in the barn. Goats should not suffer from cold, stuffiness, high humidity.
5. Change the diet of kids gradually.
6. Wetland grazing is not organized.
7. To strengthen the immune system, goats are given vitamin and mineral preparations.

What to do with milk from sick goats?

Diarrhea negatively affects not only the quantity but also the quality of milk. It contains few nutrients, so it is better for kids to feed milk from a he althy goat.

If the diarrhea is caused by an infectious disease, then the pathogens may be contained in the milk of a sick goat. This product is best disposed of. If it is a pity to do this, then you can use it only after boiling.

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