White muscle disease occurs in kids when there is a deficiency of selenium and vitamin E in the feed. The sick animal eats poorly, loses weight, cannot stand on its feet, limps, often falls and lies down all day. “White mouse” is often complicated by cardiovascular, gastrointestinal and respiratory system diseases. The young animals are sick for the reason that pregnant females consumed feed poor in selenium and vitamin E.
Causes of "white mouse"
White muscle disease is a dangerous disease that occurs in small goats. In another way, “white mouse” is called muscular dystrophy.The disease usually occurs with metabolic disorders, as well as biochemical and morphological changes in the muscles, nervous system, and internal organs.
Usually, young goats up to three months old, kept in stalls, get sick with white mouse at the end of winter or early spring. In 60 percent, the disease leads to the death of young animals. Kids who have been ill but recovered subsequently lag behind in growth and development.
The main reason for the “white mouse” is poor nutrition, that is, the food of pregnant goats and queens, which is poor in proteins, vitamins and minerals, while feeding their newborn babies. Complications can result from dampness, dirt, stuffiness in the goat shed, untimely removal of contaminated bedding, and crowded housing.
The disease develops when there is a deficiency in feed of minerals (selenium, iodine, copper), vitamins A, B, E, proteins and carbohydrates. “White mouse” occurs in animals that graze on floodplain fields and in lowlands, on peat and sandy loam lands, and on frequently flooded pastures. There is a lot of sulfur in such places, which prevents plants from absorbing selenium. The disease occurs if goats are not fed pine branches, finely chopped vegetables (beets, carrots), or a small amount of grain in winter.
Symptoms of the disease
White muscle disease appears in kids during milk feeding, that is, at the age of 2-3 weeks and up to 3 months. “White mouse” occurs in acute, subacute or chronic form. The disease can be recognized by its characteristic signs: immobility, weakness, loss of motor coordination.
Symptoms of the acute form:
- cardiac dysfunction (tachycardia, arrhythmia);
- cardiopalmus;
- dull and weak heart sounds;
- frequent, shallow, labored breathing;
- nasal discharge;
- foul-smelling stool;
- cloudy eyes with serous discharge;
- loss of muscle tone;
- poor appetite;
- Digestive problems.
The duration of the acute stage is 7-10 days. The animal has serious heart and digestive problems and muscle weakness. The baby goat barely moves, has difficulty standing on its widely spaced legs, its shoulder blades protrude, and possible convulsions with the head thrown back. The temperature is normal, but if pneumonia occurs, it rises to 40-41 degrees.
In the subacute and chronic form of white mouse, the symptoms are the same as in the acute stage, but only less pronounced.
A baby goat may appear healthy and then suddenly die. The duration of the subacute form is 15-30 days, the chronic form is 50-60 days. The highest mortality rate is during the acute course of the disease, when 6 out of 10 sick kids die. In subacute and chronic forms, the number of deaths is halved.
Important! The characteristic signs of white muscle disease are visible only after the death of the kid, during an autopsy. If the heart or skeletal muscle is cut open, diffuse or focal lesions may be seen. These new growths are white in color, have a dense consistency, and are similar to boiled chicken meat, but only drier.
Diagnostic methods
Only a veterinarian can make a diagnosis based on the clinical picture and laboratory tests. Blood and urine tests are performed on the sick animal. With white mouse, the number of red blood cells and hemoglobin decreases, and leukocytosis is diagnosed. There is an acidic reaction in the urine, the presence of protein, sugar, and increased creatine in it.
If possible, electrocardiography, radiography and fluoroscopy are done.Based on laboratory tests, rickets, malnutrition, and dyspepsia are excluded.
How to cure white muscle disease in goat kids
Treatment gives results if the disease is treated in the early stages, that is, while the animals are pregnant. First of all, pregnant goats are transferred to a dry and warm room, they are given higher quality food: green grass, sun-dried hay, finely chopped carrots, pine branches, oatmeal, pharmaceutical vitamins (A, E, B and D), minerals ( definitely selenium).
Drug treatment for sick goats is prescribed by a veterinarian. Usually, “white mouse” is treated with drugs containing selenium and vitamin E. Previously, white goat kids were treated with sodium selenite. This is a white powder from which a 0.1% solution for injection was prepared. As a rule, 0.1-0.2 mg was prescribed per kilogram of goat weight (subcutaneously or intramuscularly). Animals were injected with 0.1-0.2 ml of a 0.1% solution (diluted with distilled water).
Sodium selenite can still be used today. However, it should be remembered that this is a toxic substance, the dosage of which must be correctly calculated. It can be used in recommended doses. The lethal amount of the drug is only 1-2 mg per kilogram of goat weight. Abscesses often appear at the injection site of sodium selenite. It is recommended to inject the solution together with antibiotics.
Currently, instead of sodium selenite, various complex preparations are prescribed, which contain selenium, as well as vitamin E: “E-selenite”, “Ferroselenite”, “Seevit” and others. A drug such as “E-selenium” is used for young goats at a dose of 0.2-0.5 ml per ten kilograms of animal body weight.Injections are administered intramuscularly and once. This medicine can be injected into pregnant goats 30 days before lambing.
If pure sodium selenite is used, then the goats are additionally given injections of vitamin E (three times a day for 5-7 days in a row). Along with feed, animals are given useful mineral supplements (cobalt chloride, copper sulfate, manganese chloride), as well as proteins (methionine, cysteine).
Possible consequences
White muscle disease causes serious disturbances in metabolic processes in the body of animals. Changes occur in skeletal muscles, as well as in various organs. In advanced stages, the animal loses weight, its muscles atrophy, and it cannot even stand on its feet. This is an irreversible process that, as a rule, leads to the death of kids. The more severe the degree of damage, the less chance of saving the animal. The disease is treated only in the early stages, that is, during pregnancy of goats and in the first weeks of life of kids. Recovered animals will subsequently lag behind in development and growth.
Prevention measures
Preventive measures depend on the quality of feed and disease statistics in a particular area. In regions where there is a deficiency of selenium, animals must be given pharmaceutical preparations. As a preventive measure, pregnant goats are administered intramuscularly with “E-selenium” 30 days before lambing (once). It is recommended to inject this drug into goats aged from 2-3 weeks to three months, but only in a minimal dose and once.
The diet of pregnant animals includes fish oil, feed yeast, vitamins A, B, D and always E.As a preventive measure, goats can be given pharmaceutical vitamin-mineral complexes with selenium. Additives are mixed into food or drinking water.
It is recommended to give goat premixes to animals, especially in winter. The diet should contain hay and finely chopped vegetables (carrots, pumpkin, beets). In winter, goats are given pine branches, a little grain mixture, silage, and bone meal.
White muscle disease is a dangerous disease that occurs when there is a lack of minerals and vitamins in animal feed. White mouse does not affect adult goats, but is found in kids. If the female did not eat well during pregnancy, she will give birth to a weak animal. The main thing is to provide goats with high-quality feed, vitamins, minerals and, of course, selenium, then the young animals will not suffer from white muscle disease.
