Humans are interesting creatures. We have pride, but we don't like to admit it. We will try things for the first time, without the proper knowledge, and without knowing the consequences of our actions.
I recently read a heart breaking story about two little goat kids who were dehorned improperly, and almost lost their lives because there was no knowledge or experience on the human's part.
What should have been an easy, fast experience that left only two copper colored rings around each horn bud, turned into a excruciatingly long period of pain and trauma. The vet didn't know what to do, and illegally let her assistant (who didn't really know what to do either) do the work. The burnt flesh in the picture is a third degree burn. The vet and assistant used a cow dehorner instead of a goat sized one, and not only did they NOT burn the horns off, they risked brain damage to the poor babies, due to the larger amount of heat coming from the cow dehorning iron. Last I heard, the goat kids were on the mend, but it still upsets me that something like this had to happen in the first place.
Lesson learned here: DO NOT use a cow dehorning iron on goats! Or dehorning paste for that matter... A nearby breeder is your best way to get your little babies dehorned properly, quickly, and almost painlessly. Not many vets have experience with goats, so using a vet is not always the best idea.
I recently read a heart breaking story about two little goat kids who were dehorned improperly, and almost lost their lives because there was no knowledge or experience on the human's part.
This is what happened.
What should have been an easy, fast experience that left only two copper colored rings around each horn bud, turned into a excruciatingly long period of pain and trauma. The vet didn't know what to do, and illegally let her assistant (who didn't really know what to do either) do the work. The burnt flesh in the picture is a third degree burn. The vet and assistant used a cow dehorner instead of a goat sized one, and not only did they NOT burn the horns off, they risked brain damage to the poor babies, due to the larger amount of heat coming from the cow dehorning iron. Last I heard, the goat kids were on the mend, but it still upsets me that something like this had to happen in the first place.
Lesson learned here: DO NOT use a cow dehorning iron on goats! Or dehorning paste for that matter... A nearby breeder is your best way to get your little babies dehorned properly, quickly, and almost painlessly. Not many vets have experience with goats, so using a vet is not always the best idea.
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