Tammy: Okay. How does somebody know if their pygmy goat is sick? I mean are there some telltale signs?

Dr. Olcott: Sure. Sure. In large flocks of goats, the way we pick out the sick animals would be the ones that are laying off by themselves or the ones that are kind of dragging behind the herd because goats, they like to stay together as a flock, they’re really gregarious animals. For small groups of goats, let’s say a group of one, that criteria doesn’t work so then what we’re looking for is mostly just changes in their earlier behavior and the things that you’ll see from a distance will be their ears, instead of being prickier than a (unintelligible), there ears are a little bit drooped or a very drooped, instead of their tail being up, their tail is drooped down, their gait may be a little weak or shuffly, instead of coming up to greet you when you come out into the pasture, they may just stay over there in the shade because they have a fever and don’t feel well. So most of it is behavioral things that would be the big first thing that would alert you to something that’s going on with that goat. So that’s kind of your early system is that.

Tammy: So it’s important for people who have them as pets to spend time with them to be able to tell what their normal behavior is like?

Dr. Olcott: Yes that’s correct. And that’s usually not a problem. These people like to spend time with pygmy goats.

Tammy: Yeah everybody I’ve talked to that has them you can tell they’re just absolutely in love with them because they’re so cute and so sweet. What else do you think that pygmy goat owners aren’t aware of when they come to you for the first time in addition to making sure that they’re goats don’t get stones?
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