I had a friend come over this morning to help me with vaccinations and hoof trimming. She had never done either before, but really enjoys working on the farm.
We started with vaccinations. I gave all of the goats their first shot of Covexin 8 - a combination of several vaccines including Clostridium chauvoei, Cl. septicum, Cl. novyi Type B, Cl. haemolyticum (known elsewhere as Cl. novyi Type D), Cl. tetani and Cl. perfringens Types C and D. It's made for sheep and cattle, but works just fine for goats. My friend even did a few of the injections.
We used a 20 gauge 1/2 inch needle. Each injection was 5 ml. We gave the injections just behind the front elbow...a place that is accepted by dairy goat owners. Sometimes the vaccine will leave a lump, so if you make sure to give it in this location, everyone knows that it is probably from your vaccinations and not from an abcess.
After each goat had been given their vaccine, I trimmed their hooves. I like to make sure that all of my goats have their hooves trimmed BEFORE there is a problem...so for most, I trimmed only a quarter inch off the sides. The only goat that we didn't do was Asha. She doesn't have a collar and J was busy replacing the brake pads on the car at the time, so we'll just catch her tomorrow.
In about three weeks, we will give everyone a booster (except Lilo who has already had Covexin 8 before and only needed an annual shot). This will protect them for an entire year.
When our new Nubian buckling gets here in July, I will give him his vaccine as well as a booster. He is just over three months old, but has not yet been given any vaccines. It's a slight chance to bring an outsider in without vaccinating beforehand, but the herd he is coming from is very well cared for - she just doesn't believe in vaccinating.
We have vaccines for the pigs, but we will wait until Hammy Fae and Ruby are closer to farrowing.
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