I have a young friend who is in her first year with goats. She emailed me today, that her goats are scratching alot and have rubbed hair off in places. She is afraid they have lice. I have been fortunate not to have had this problem that I am aware of. What do all of you recommend? Thanks, Julie in OK

-- Julie (okwilk213@juno.com), March 24, 2002

Answers

Julie I just inject Ivermectin under the skin 1cc per 110 pounds like it says on the bottle. There are several feed store de-lice products, even 5% sevin dust from Wallmart works on lice, just whatever you do tell her to not only treat the goat but the bedding, and repeat everything in 21 days. I have asthma so I am not able to use powders, dips, pourons etc. on my goats. Vicki

-- Vicki McGaugh TX (Nubians) (vickilonesomedoe@hotmail.com), March 24, 2002.

quick question to go along with the first question (from a different Julie)... Can people get lice from goats? Is it the same lice people get? Thanks

-- julie (dabanks@harbornet.net), March 24, 2002.

Julie,

We use Durvet powder in a shaker. Treat the goats and the bedding. Vicki, is that why Joe's asthma gets worse???

Hmmm other Julie, "I read somewhere" that people don't contract the same variety of lice as goats. Not definitive, but others will surely contribute.

Dennis

-- Dennis (westwoodcaprine@yahoo.com), March 25, 2002.

Typically lice are "species specific" which means goat lice prefer goats & human lice prefer humans and so on. If you handle a goat with lice they can get on you but won't stay on you more than a few hours. The best thing to do is wash well after handling a goat with lice. I would treat the entire herd now and then treat again in 10-14 days.

-- Sharon in AL (sharonspaws@aol.com), March 25, 2002.

Another question on the lice issue. We just bought two kids, maybe a week old. It seems that they have lice. Can we treat these kids with sevin dust?

-- Kim Krueger (kruegerkc@yahoo.com), March 12, 2003.

Well, you can but I wouldn't. It's not all that great for their lungs. Lice are not a great big deal in goats. They won't infest humans, just other goats. A shot of Ivermectin (wormer) injected sub Q will kill off the lice, but wait until they're a little older, and do everyone. Then clean the barn out well, to get rid of any lice that might be on the bedding.

-- Rebekah (daniel1@itss.net), March 17, 2003.