DON'T LET STONES GET YOUR GOAT

Image Gallery Urolithiasis,or urinary stones,is a devastating,often fatal, and all-too-common disease affecting goats and sheep. It is also largely preventable.

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Protect your goat and sheep from deadly urinary stones.

I get many calls every year at my clinic from owners whose goats or sheep have urinary stones. The initial complaints range from "my goat's not acting right" to "my goat's constipated" to "my goat can't urinate." I find these animals in various conditions, from almost normal to severely ill and unable to stand. Occasionally, they are near death by the time I am called.

If left untreated, urinary stones may eventually cause a complete blockage, and the goat or sheep will suffer (and perhaps succumb to) urine poisoning. But with a change in feed, you may safeguard your animals against this potentially deadly affliction.

How Stones Form

We see the formation of stones in ruminants fed high-grain diets or diets rich in plants containing oxalates, estrogens, and silica. Alfalfa hay is an example of a plant that contains silica, which is why we generally recommend decreasing the amount of alfalfa fed to goats and sheep.

Feeds that are high in magnesium, phosphorous, and calcium can also pose problems. Although these minerals are an important part of a ruminant's diet, they can also contribute to crystal formation if fed in excess.

The pH of urine is another extremely important factor. Basic, or high, pH favors stone formation, while an acidic, or low, pH urine helps to prevent solutes from forming. This information will be helpful later on when we discuss treatment and prevention.

The final ingredient necessary for crystal formation is a nidus — some object in the urine that can serve as the center or pit of the stone. The most common nidus in urine are cells that are shed from the bladder wall or urethra as a result of normal bladder regeneration, urinary tract infections, vitamin-A deficiencies, or high-estrogen feeds.

Urinary blockage is more common in castrated males than in either intact males or females. A female goat or sheep has a much larger urethra than a male and therefore, while she may develop stones or crystals, she is able to pass them easily. I'm rarely called to treat a female goat with this condition. By contrast, the small urethra, sigmoid flexure (or curvature) of the penis, and urethral process (a small piece of tissue at the tip of the penis) all contribute to the problems male ruminants may encounter. The urethral process is broken when a male goat copulates for the first time; therefore, if a wether never copulates, the urethral process may remain, increasing the risk of a stone being lodged at the tip of the penis.

Know the Symptoms

Once crystals form in the urine, there are several potential outcomes. In some cases, an afflicted goat or sheep may start to urinate more frequently. As the condition progresses, you will notice the animal straining to urinate until the flow is reduced to a dribble, then stops altogether.

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