WORMS - WHERE TO BEGIN?

Resistance - Tolerance - Susceptibility

Goat producers are in a non-stop battle with internal parasites -- usually the stomach worm and more specifically Haemonchus contortus (barberpole worm). All goat breeds are affected by H. contortus. The purpose of this article is to provide producers with an organized method of controlling stomach worms.

Where to begin? Producers should not just randomly select dewormers. Get fecal counts done by a vet to find out which worms are present in your goats. You need to know the enemy you will be fighting. All goats have worms of some type and in some quantity. Their existence is necessary to stimulate the goat's immune system to fight them. If you want to do fecal counts yourself too, that's fine -- but get fecal counts done by a veterinary professional with whom you can compare results. This diagnosis is too important to leave to a producer inexperienced in performing fecals. The FAMACHA field test should be done in conjunction with with microscoped fecal counts; these two tests work well together to give the producer a good idea of the goats' wormloads.

Do you know why stomach worms are such a huge health issue in goats? Haemonchus contortus worms suck blood, producing severe anemia through their consumption of red blood cells. A heavy wormload is a life-threatening condition to goats. It is not unusual for goats to die from severe anemia caused by worm infection. Until the goat is deathly ill and usually too far gone to be saved, the animal will continue to eat and eat and eat . . . all the while losing ground to the damage being caused by the stomach worm.

Once the worm at issue is identified, choose the correct dewormer and use it until it quits working. Do not rotate dewormers. Use the FAMACHA field test every time a goat is handled for any reason. But remember that the FAMACHA field test is only good for identifying the Haemonchus contortus stomach worm, and in most of the USA, other worms can cause substantial production losses without causing anemia and death, making FAMACHA of limited value. It is important to know what worms your goats have and to continue to do fecal counts at regular intervals.

Most dewormers used with goats are "off-label," i.e. the manufacturer has not spent the time, money, and effort to test the dewormer for effectiveness, proper dosing, and withdrawal times and obtain government approval to label the product for use in goats. Safeguard/Panacur has been approved for use with goats, but in many if not most locations in the USA, this product does not kill stomach worms any longer. Morantel tartrate, a feed-based dewormer, has been approved for use with goats. Feed-based dewormers are not very effective when goats are fed in groups because the goat needing the medication the worst will also be the lowest in the pecking order and will therefore get the least amount of medicated feed. Goats need to be individually orally drenched with a weight-appropriate dosage of dewormer. (This same reasoning applies to medications put into water for liquid consumption.) Back drenches, also known as pour-ons, are not very effective with goats because of the hide structure of the goat species and are therefore not recommended.

Goats are dry-land animals who are very susceptible to stomach worms. Think of them as "first cousins" to deer in how they live, eat, and need to roam over acreage. They instinctively eat "from the top down" like deer. Goats made to graze on pasture will get infected with stomach worms, especially on short pasture. Do not think that tall grasses are the answer, because goats search for the newest and most tender sprigs which are obviously closest to the ground because they are the most nutritious. Unfortunately these new sprigs are also closest to microscopic stomach worms.

There is much discussion nowadays regarding the level of resistance, tolerance, and susceptibility to worms by different meat-goat breeds. Resistance refers to goats that have fewer worms than others and survive. True resistance should be genetically set. However, Dr. Jim Miller, parasitologist at Louisiana State University, told this writer in June 2008 that he knows of no scientific documentation proving any breed of goats to be genetically resistant to worms in the USA. This does not mean that no such breeds exist, but at this point in time none have been documented.

Tolerance describes goats that harbor in their bodies a worm level that kills susceptible animals; they tolerate the worm infection. Susceptible goats need to be culled and sent to slaughter.

Important: Goats that are tolerant of worms are not tolerant of every type of worm nor do they automatically carry that tolerance from one location to another. Repeat: Goats that are tolerant of worms are not tolerant of every type of worm nor do they automatically carry that tolerance from one location to another.

Tolerance is only against the worms that goats have been exposed to in their natural habitat, If that environment changes and different worms are introduced or if the goats are moved into a different worm's territory, all bets are off.

Producers must recognize that conditions change on the same property from month to month, year to year, and even from pasture to pasture in the same time frame. Regularly scheduled fecal counts are critical to keeping informed about what is going on worm-wise with goats.

Here comes that word again that too many producers ignore: adaptability. When moved, goats need time (months, not days or weeks, and sometimes longer) to adapt to the bacteria, viruses, worms, cocci, and other organisms that inhabit their new home. This is true of every goat that is moved, whether it be a breeding buck, doe, or kids. Bucks moved into field performance tests need at least six months and sometimes longer, depending upon the time of year they are moved and the differences between their old location and their new one, to adapt to their new environment to develop antibodies that keep them healthy and able to compete on a reasonably equal basis. Bucks who have lived in the area that the field performance test is being conducted have an enormous "home field advantage" because they have already adapted.

Do not move pregnant does -- period. Kids born at the new location may and usually will have reduced-to-sometimes-no protection via the mother's milk from the new organisms because the doe will not have had time to develop immunities to these "bugs" before her kids are born. In 2000, this writer moved only 125 miles from Buda, Texas to Lohn, Texas and bred the does within 90 days of arrival. The results were disastrous. An organism acquired at the new location infected many of the does. The very first goat purchased by this writer in January 1990 and her first-born daughter born in February 1991 died, in addition to other dams and multiple kids. Forty-five (45) weak kids were born that had to be bottled in order to be saved. It was a tragic and expensive learning experience which could easily have been avoided had breeding been put off for six to 12 months while the goats' immune systems adapted to the new location. Goats, like deer, stress easily when moved. Do not make it more difficult by putting demands upon their immune systems by insisting on immediate breeding.

This writer cannot stress enough the importance of culling poor performers, whether it relates to susceptibility to worms and/or other infections or whether the goat is simply of poor conformation. It is amazing what some producers consider to be a good meat goat. Culling never goes out of style, regardless of how long the producer has been raising goats.

A few words about management: Too many goats on too small acreage is a recipe for a parasite disaster. The number of goats that can be run on a given piece of land is determined primarily by how well the parasite load can be controlled and not by the amount of plant material available for the goats to eat. This is something each producer has to figure out for each herd. While bigger goats eat more plant materials, they may or may not be more of a problem in terms of numbers and worm control.

Here again is where culling matters.

Do not succumb to advertising that a certain breed is resistant to or more tolerant of worms than any other breed. This has not been scientifically proven in the USA. All breeds can be made "wormy" through bad management, overcrowding, and environmental conditions favoring worms.

Thanks go to Dr. Jim Miller, parasitologist at Louisiana State University, for his input and verifications for accuracy of the statements made in this article.

The author, Suzanne Gasparotto, hereby grants to local goat publications and club newsletters, permission to reprint articles published on the Onion Creek Ranch website under these conditions: THE ARTICLE MUST BE REPRODUCED IN ITS ENTIRETY AND THE AUTHOR'S NAME, ADDRESS, AND CONTACT INFORMATION MUST BE INCLUDED AT THE BEGINNING OF THE REPRINT. We would appreciate notification from any clubs or publications when the articles are used. (A copy of the newsletter or publication would also be a welcome addition to our growing library of goat related information!)

[GoatCamp™] [Tennessee Meat Goats™] [Myotonic Goats] [TexMaster™ Goats] [Which Breed is Right for You?]
[Ranch History] [The Present & Future] [Meat Goat Mania]
[Registry of Myotonics, Tennessee Meat Goats™ and TexMasters™]
[News & Events] [Health and Management Articles] [Links] [ChevonTalk Discussion List] [E-Mail] [Home]

All information and photos copyright © Onion Creek Ranch and may not be used without express written permission of Onion Creek Ranch. TENNESSEE MEAT GOAT ™ and TEXMASTER™ are Trademarks of Onion Creek Ranch . All artwork and graphics © DTP, Ink and Onion Creek Ranch.