HEEL MITES CAN RUIN THE HARD WORK YOU’VE PUT INTO YOUR LAMB OR GOAT’S SHAG

You’ve been working the hair on your goat or lamb’s legs and have it looking great. Don’t let that work get derailed by heel mites!

As you’ve assembled your show string for the year make sure you didn’t inadvertently bring heel mites home and get the problem handled right away.  Heel mites or Chorioptic sp are slower reproducing than some other mites. They lay one egg per day just like a chicken.

 Heel Mites can fester along for some time before your lamb or goat show any outward signs of itching. I’ve seen cases that were far along and the animal didn’t appear bothered by it at all.

Next time you have your goat or lamb on the stand check all four feet. You’re looking for any scaly, crusty, or scabby skin between their dew claws or down on the pasterns but they can also occur higher up the leg and occasionally around the tail head.

 If you find any suspicious areas treat all the goat and lambs in your show barn with ivermectin.  For the affected areas we mix 1 pint of mineral oil, ½ oz Provilli, and 7cc Prolate.  We wash the area with put that mixture on the affected area let it sit for a few minutes then blow it in and then for lambs wrap the legs. We recommend sticking to wraps rather than socks so the elastic doesn’t irritate the spot.