What to do with bloating in a kid, first aid and treatment of tympania
When a kid is bloated, many do not understand what to do. It must be remembered that the cause of the disease is a huge amount of gases that do not go outside. The animal needs help with gas evacuation. Massaging the abdomen and pulling the tongue out of the mouth helps induce belching. If the cause of the swelling is a blockage of the esophagus, it is necessary to insert a hose lubricated with petroleum jelly inside and push a solid object.
Causes of bloating
Tympania, or bloating, in the kid occurs if the animal eats food that causes fermentation in the rumen and increased gas production (alfalfa, cabbage, clover, legumes, peas, corn cobs, cereals). However, problems only appear when goats overeat or graze in the rain. Bloating is the result of inappropriate feeding.
Tympania often occurs in a young goat or lamb grazing in the pasture in the morning after dew or immediately after rain. Drinking water after feeding, sucking milk and swallowing large amounts of air can lead to bloating. Tympania occurs in kids when they are abruptly transferred from milk feeding to plant nutrition (succulent green grass). You can prevent the disease. You just need to prevent your animal from overeating, not feeding it in large quantities with legumes and protein-rich plants, and also excluding food with mold and rot.
The disease occurs due to a disorder of the mechanisms of belching and gum. Spasms of the pancreas and esophagus can lead to gas retention. This happens when the rumen overflows, that is, due to overeating. The weakening of the functions of the muscles can occur due to the eating of poisonous plants (hemlock, buttercups). Foreign objects that close the narrow lumen of the esophagus, for example, large pieces of roots, apples, pears, often lead to a violation of the belching mechanism. Vegetables and fruits can be given to animals, however, only in crushed form.
Tympania is primary (accumulation of a large amount of gas in the rumen) or secondary (blockage of the esophagus).There is also foamy, which occurs when animals eat plants with saponins that have the ability to increase foam (soapwort, violet, adonis, horsetail, licorice, marshmallow), as well as legumes and grains. In a healthy kid, gases are constantly formed in the stomach, but they are expelled outside during belching or pass into the lower parts of the alimentary canal.
Signs and symptoms
Tympania is impossible not to notice. A sick animal has an enlarged abdomen, especially on the left side. The disease develops rapidly, is observed immediately (within 60 minutes) after feeding. When tympanic, the kid loses appetite, there are no chewing movements, profuse salivation is possible.
At the very beginning, the animal has a stomach ache due to spasms, then the reduction of the scar stops. The kid constantly looks at the belly, which is greatly swollen, hits it with its hoof. The animal bleeds constantly. Later, after the scar swelled and began to grow, there is a blue discoloration of the mucous membranes, ears, and also breathing with an open mouth. The pulse quickens, the limbs of the body become cold. If you do not provide help to the kid in time, he may die from suffocation and heart problems.
Diagnostic methods
Swelling of the scar is determined visually: the abdomen increases in size and becomes tense (this is detected by palpation). The goat breeder must recognize the type of tympania. It is necessary to conduct a thorough examination and find out the cause of the disease. During the diagnosis, first aid is provided to the animal in parallel.
A possible cause of bloating is excessive flatulence from improper nutrition. In this case, the kid's head is thrown back up and the tongue is pulled forward. After such a procedure, gases immediately escape.
If tympania is caused, for example, by a blockage of the esophagus by some object, then you need to probe this organ and examine the pharynx. The abdomen may become distended if the gas exit is blocked. In this case, tension is noticeable in the area of the hungry fossa. With percussion (during tapping), a tympanic (drum) sound is revealed (due to increased gas formation).
In the foamy type of tympania, when saliva comes out of the kid's mouth, they listen to the stomach. Noises are heard inside, sounds of bursting bubbles. The hungry fossa is palpated: abdominal tension is observed. No contraction of the pancreas. There is no drum sound during percussion (tapping).
It is advisable to use a food probe to clarify the diagnosis. A rubber hose with a diameter of less than 1 cm is advanced down the esophagus into the scar. During such a study, you can encounter various violations. For example, the hose does not move well due to strong muscular activity. These are esophageal spasms, and they caused the absence of belching.
At the entrance to the scar, the hose may rest against something solid. This means that the esophagus is clogged with a foreign object. When the hose, having passed through the esophagus, reaches the rumen, a profuse discharge of gas can occur. In the case of foamy tympania, the probe will become clogged with foam.
Treatment and first aid for tympania in a goat
Bloating can kill the animal. Tympania is treated independently, without waiting for the arrival of a doctor. Immediately, measures are taken to remove excess gases from the rumen. The goat's tongue is rhythmically pulled out or pressed on its root. This procedure promotes gas evacuation and belching.
If the cause of the bloating is gases at the top of the scar, then it is easy to remove them. You can lift the kid by the front legs, placing it on the hind legs. In this position, you need to massage your stomach for several minutes. This procedure will release gases from the rumen.
To stimulate peristalsis, the kid is doused with cold water on the sides or driven into the river.The cold stimulates the contraction of the rumen and leads to the rapid passage of gases. You can massage the left side of the goat (for 5 minutes) and make it run. It is advisable to repeat this procedure several times.
Increased gassing can be dealt with with a thin hose. It is inserted into the esophagus and advanced to the scar. The probe is mainly used to remove gases. It is possible to induce an eructation by sticking a stick into the goat's throat, irritating its palate or base of the tongue. When foam, gases, feed masses come out of the mouth, the rumen is washed, that is, they give the kid to drink two liters of water, adding a little salt or soda.
A decoction of herbs is poured into the animals' mouth to stimulate intestinal motility (wormwood, flax, yarrow, chamomile, dill, valerian root, buckthorn bark). Sunflower or castor oil accelerates the evacuation of gases. As a treatment, the animals are given adsorbents (210 ml of milk, water with 12-20 tablets of activated carbon). Fermentation is stopped with lactic acid. To stimulate the motor activity of the stomach give "ASD2".
The pharmacy sells a special remedy for tympania - "Tympanol". It is advisable to buy this drug in advance. "Tympanol" is diluted with water and injected into the rumen. This agent reduces gassing and increases the rate of gas evacuation. To destroy the foam, you can stock up on a drug such as Sikaden.
If the esophagus is blocked, a rubber tube is also used. A regular hose is lubricated with petroleum jelly and carefully inserted into the scar. With its help, solid food masses are pushed inside.
Important! In emergency cases, a puncture or surgical opening of the scar is made. This procedure can only be performed by a veterinarian. The puncture is done without anesthesia in the most swollen part of the abdomen (in the center of the left hungry fossa).
At the injection site, the wool is cut, the skin is treated with alcohol or iodine. The puncture is done with a trocar or a thick needle. The instrument pierces the skin and abdominal wall, slowly releasing gases from the scar.
How to avoid problems?
Tympania is a disease that occurs when animals are not properly fed, more often when they overeat. Food for kids is given only of high quality, not wet, without mold and rot. Goats are fed 3-4 times a day, in small portions. It is forbidden to take animals to the pasture after rain and frost.
In summer, it is advisable to graze goats on forbs; legumes and cereals should be present in the diet equally. For the prevention of esophageal obstruction, it is recommended to give the animals only finely chopped vegetables. It is necessary to ensure that the goats do not eat rags, apples, foreign objects.
