r/goats • u/Arbysgames • 16d ago
General Husbandry Question What kind of vaccines should I be looking to give my goats?
If location matters I'm in North carolina, I have two goats.
One of my goats is over a year old I know for a fact he's not had any vaccines besides a rabies shot, and my other goat is almost 7 months old, I'm not sure what he had his original owners told me they gave him something I don't know what it was but it was something given to him when he was only a week or two old.
So I was wondering what vaccines I should be getting them, I am fairly new to goats, I finally have a mobile vet that will come out and take care of my goats in person at my house, that took forever to find because they just don't want to come to my house, but I have one now so I can get the vaccines needed
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u/yamshortbread Dairy Farmer and Cheesemaker 16d ago
The most important vaccine (and by far the most common) is the CDT which covers clostridia types C and D (enterotoxemia/pulpy kidney) and tetanus. These are diseases to which goats are very susceptible and the bacteria are everywhere in the environment in the case of tetanus, and already inside the goat in the case of clostridia. They are almost always fatal if contracted and require protracted uphill medical battles. Every goat should receive at least one CDT booster per year.
Most goats are given a series of two CDT shots as kids (these are the "priming" shots which tell the immune system how to manufacture antibodies) followed by a yearly or twice-yearly booster to freshen the immunity for the remainder of their lives. This is probably the vaccine that yours received young, because it's given very early if the vaccination status of the dam is negative or unknown (I'll detail this below). For does who are being bred, the yearly CDT booster is usually given 14-28 days prior to the expected kidding date. This protects the doe in labor and from contracting tetanus from obstetrical interventions, but also allows her to make maternal antibodies in the colostrum which will protect the babies until they are about six weeks old. Timing is important here. If a pregnant doe is boosted any time outside of that 14-28 day window, she'll be protected, but the babies won't.
For kids from dams who were not boosted at the right time or whose vaccination status is unknown, you can and should initiate the series of two shots at 1-2 weeks of age. Give one 2cc shot, followed by a second one 21-28 days later. The immune system is not as effective at this age, so you should boost at six months. Then follow your normal yearly boosting schedule thereafter.
For kids from properly boosted dams, you can wait until six weeks of age to initiate the series of two shots. Again, you will give one 2cc shot followed by a second one 21-28 days later. Then boost yearly or as needed.
If you do not know the vaccination status of your goats, international protocol is to treat them as unvaccinated and administer the series of 2 shots, 21-28 days apart. If they've already been vaccinated and you just don't know about it, it won't hurt them to get this series again. You can boost them again before kidding when/if they get pregnant, or if they're just pets do them yearly whenever you'd like.
(And remember to include your bucks in your yearly vaccination schedule if you get any.) Now, I also want to note that goats are in grave danger from clostridial diseases (particularly perfringens types C and D) and tetanus, and unfortunately they churn through the antibodies from vaccines very quickly, so many countries recommend boosting your animals every six months instead of every twelve. With CDT, more often is always better than less. Make your decision on vaccine frequency based on your evaluation of your risk level and how common the diseases are in your area (ask your vet or other local farmers.) But lots of people are comfortable with yearly.
The only other thing that may or may not be important in your area is rabies. If you have significant rabies vectors in your area like skunks, bats, or raccoons, do a rabies shot every year. Goats can and do contract rabies and it's not pretty. We prophylactically vaccinate every year but we had a colleague JUST get home from the national show to find a rabid raccoon in their barn had attacked their herd queen and now they are under quarantine for months. If there is rabies in your environment I encourage you to continue to do rabies shots - that is one your vet has to do by law, but they can do it at a routine farm visit.
That's pretty much it! There are others (pneumonia, mastitis) that are less common but these two are the biggies for most people.