Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
12
Preferred Management Practices
L. J. Dawson , BVSc, MS, DCAT
KEY TERMS
Intramuscular—an injection directed into the muscle.
Subcutaneous—an injection directed under the skin.
Intravenous—an injection directed into a blood vessel.
Tattooing—needlelike projections into the skin for permanent identifi cation.
Ear notching—notches made on the edges of the ear for permanent identifi cation.
Microchips—implants or boluses transmitting radioactive waves placed underneath the skin or rumen.
Castration—making a male sterile, by either removing or damaging the testicles.
Disbudding—disrupting the blood supply to the horn buds, so they will fall.
Hoof trimming—removal of the excess growth on the hooves.
Weaning—process of removing the kid from her mother or removing a bottle-fed kid from milk.
OBJECTIVES
By completing this chapter, the reader will acquire knowledge on:
How to inject a goat
How to trim a hoof
Best time and methods for castration
Best time to disbud
Different methods to dehorn
Kidding management
Intervention during kidding
Colostral management
Raising orphan kids
Weaning management
Controlling fl ies
Keeping predators away from goats
INTRODUCTION
The goat population in the world is approximately
800 million. A large majority of these goats (90%)
are found in developing countries in Asia and Africa
(FAO, 2005a; FAO, 2005b). In Central America, the
goat population is around 13 million, and 10 million
of them are in Mexico. In the U.S., the goat population
has steadily increased and is around 3.05 million (Sahlu
et al., 2009). Often, the goat is the only source of high
quality protein food (milk and meat) and cash income
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