Parasite Treatment for Milk Goats

Keeping milk goats healthy can be a bit of a challenge, because goats pick up many parasites. Use medicine, pesticides and changes in how goats eat to effectively treat many parasite infections. Keep goats in areas that allow them to freely roam, eating vegetation as they please. Often, this helps them build up a natural immunity to many local parasites.

  1. Common Parasites

    • Some of the most common parasites found in milk goats include worms, lice, maggots, and flies. Most goats have coccidia, a parasite of the intestinal tract. Coccidia can become problematic if an infestation occurs.

    Pesticides

    • Pesticides effectively treat a wide variety of common goat parasites like lice and flies. However, very few pesticides are approved for use on milk goats. Be sure to follow the directions carefully to avoid poisoning goats.

    Medications

    • Veterinarians may prescribe medication to treat intestinal parasites and worms. Monitor goats on a medicine regimen and be sure to administer the dosage correctly. Rotate medicines, using different brands, to avoid having goats develop resistance to the drugs.

    Diet

    • Goats on a varied diet with high nutritional values build more natural resistance to parasites than goats on a minimal diet. Feed goats foods rich in protein and minerals in addition to grass and other vegetation.

    Browsing

    • While sheep graze, eating mostly grass, goats browse and eat vegetation at many different levels. Browsing goats eat less grass and digest fewer parasites that live in the grass.