COMMON GOAT DISEASES
BY DR. KARA BARRETT

Caprine arthritis encephalitis or CAE- A viral infection affecting goats worldwide.
-Transmission occurs most commonly by feeding kids milk or colostrum from infected females that has not been pasturized. Infected goats should not be housed or milked with healthy animals. Transmission can also occur by contact with contaminated oral and nasal secretions, oral or aerosol exposure to infected milk in milking parlors, and re-use of blood contaminated needles and syringes. -There are 6 forms of clinical CAE.
a) Neurologic- Most commonly seen in kids 2-6 months of age but, can be seen at any age.
b) Respiratory- Chronic progressive pneumonia affecting adult goats.
c) Udder or mastitis- Noted in young does, described as a hard udder with lack of or decreased milk production.
d) Arthritis- Occurs in mature animals can have a rapid or slow onset and can affect all joints. The most common joint is the carpus.
e) Progressive weight loss
f) Subclinical- Animals are infected but show no clinical signs.
-There is no treatment for CAE. Once an animal has CAE it will always have CAE. Therefore we strive for prevention of the disease by culling or isolating infected animals and feeding only heat treated or pasturized milk to kids.

Johne’s disease or Paratuberculosis- Johne’s disease is a bacterial infection of wild and domestic ruminants. It was first described in cattle in 1895 and goats in 1916.
-Transmission occurs mainly by oral ingestion of contaminated feces. Young animals are more susceptible to infection then older adult animals. Transmission to the fetus from an infected doe is also possible. Any animal in a herd know to be to have affected animals is considered to be at high risk for aquiring the disease. This is due to the fact that the organism can remain in the environment for extended periods of time and the disease can remain dormant in infected animals for prolonged periods.

Back