# Reasons for thick amniotic sacks



## DostThouHaveMilk (Oct 25, 2007)

The amniotic sacks this year seem tougher and thicker. Most kids are being born without the sacks breaking and you really have to tear to get them open.

What can cause this? I'm sure deficiency of some sort. Copper? Selenium?
The does are being boostered with boSe a week before their due dates and the deliveries are going smoothly but the amniotic sacks are tough.


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## leslieh (Oct 25, 2007)

I had this years ago. They were tough, it was all I could do to tear the kids out of them.

I found out it was copper and how I was feeding.

What kind of minerals do you have out? Check the levels of copper. 

I changed to a cob mix without molasses and threw away the purina goat minerals I had and changed to a good cattle mineral.

The placentas are now extremely thin and break if you just look at them.

Leslie


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## Sondra (Oct 25, 2007)

could be both but Selenium is a prime culpret or should say lack there of.


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## LynninTX (Oct 25, 2007)

interesting so this is bad in goats... thinking GOOD in humans


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## Feral Nature (Oct 26, 2007)

I think it is selenium too. And the BoSe is given earlier than 1 week prior to kidding so it can "sink in" and do some good. Five weeks prior and then 1 week before kidding for a second dose.

Also i believe Roseanna has copper bolused her herd so it should not be copper deficiency.

Lynn, it is bad in goats becuase the amniotic sac is meant to break on impact with the ground so baby can breath


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## wheytogosaanens (Oct 26, 2007)

LynninTX said:


> interesting so this is bad in goats... thinking GOOD in humans


I was thinking the same thing! Actually my youngest was born "in the caul".
I freaked and was screaming at my poor midwife to "get him out!" (Good thing she is so CCC) With a goat in the sac, they can't breathe, so I guess I instinctively reacted to the amniotic sac...
My DH still teases me about this. 

Camille
P.S. I was told for goats that it is usually a copper issue.


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## NubianSoaps.com (Oct 26, 2007)

It was this copper issue that got me testing. The blood test, when asked about it, that my vet ran, we found out later was meaningless. Without being there to assit we would have kids born in sacs, with busy moms with triplets, they simply can't get to all the kids. Vicki


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## BlueHeronFarm (Oct 26, 2007)

We had one thick placenta like that last year - and two others that did break on their own, but that I still had to pull away and found them a little "rubbery" for lack of a better word. That was before we started bolusing - the girls had only been ours for about 3 months then, and I don't know what the dietary copper levels were like where they lived before. It will be interesting to see what kidding is like this year by comparison.


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