Our three year old Alpine has been bleeding for the past 4 hours and appears to be suffering a miscarriage. She is up and eating slightly.We are checking on her every hour. Does anyone have advice? We thought we would try to let nature run its course but want to be wise about it. Is the vet needed??

-- Sandy Ray (SPARKY526@msn.com), December 12, 2001

Answers

Sandy, How much is she bleeding? If it is a copious amount then call the vet. If it is a small amount, then I would wait and see how she is doing. by copious, I mean running down her legs and onto the ground, by small amount, I mean just staining her backside. Could she have been bred earlier than you thought and is just in labor? Okay lets see, there is a web site called goat world where you can get expert advice. I have never had any of my goats hemorrhage, so I would err on the side of caution. At least call the vet and put him on standby alert. Good luck and let me know what happens.

-- Karen in Kansas (kansasgoats@iwon.com), December 12, 2001.

Sandy if you are truly alarmed than call the vet. There really shouldn't be anymore blood than a womens period, usually all that is seen is a wet tail and wet rear end, no blood at all except some strings. The kids even at 3 months are no bigger than shrimp. She will come back into heat next month and you should get her rebred. Remember to worm her just as if she kidded. Vicki

-- Vicki McGaugh TX (vickilonesomedoe@hotmail.com), December 13, 2001.

How far along is she?

-- Rebekah (daniel1@itss.net), December 13, 2001.

I would check to see if any of your hay is moldy. Even a little bit can cause this. I've had one do this, and I had the vet look at her. I though she had another baby, but turned out she was just fat. An iodine bolus is usually what they are given. Hope your girl is allright.

-- Cindy in KY (solidrockranch@msn.com), December 13, 2001.

Thanks everyone for your help. Our Annabelle completed her miscarriage several hours after my question. She appears as if nothing happened. I'll worm her again and see if she rebreeds next month.

-- Sandy Ray (SPARKY526@msn.com), December 14, 2001.