Posted by Leah on November 19, 2002 at 09:45:10:
Hi all,
One of my does got her mouth stuck on the fence the other day. I wasn't home to see it, but my hubby saw her stuck there and went to free her. He noticed that the fence was poking into her cheek, but she "seemed okay" so he went on about his work. Of course, he didn't tell me about it until later, when I went out to feed, and I noticed that she had developed a very large lump there (on her right cheek, just above her mouth).
I gave her a Tetanus Anti-Tox and waited a couple of days to see what would happen. That was Sunday. Yesterday, the lump was down in size but still noticeable.
This morning, I decided enough was enough and using clean techniques (and latex gloves), I lanced the abscess. I was able to extract only clear, watery fluid and a bit of tissue that could have been a "core" as in a boil or adipose (fat) tissue. There was no foul odor, or cheesy exudate. One of my reference books states that this type of discharge indicates a streptococci bacterial infection. Naturally though, I am worried about CL.
At this time, I have isolated the doe (who is very young...about 7 months) from the rest of the herd. She was not isolated until today, though. My question is this: Should I keep her or cull her? She is an "okay" doe, but certainly not my best. What would you do?