08/26/2026
THIS! The number of people who reach out to us with these exact same issues, and my first response is often, “That goat needs dewormed.” From there, we help point them in the right direction.
Sometimes, it really is that simple! We run a f***l, but we also look at the goat as a whole and pay attention to the signs they’re giving us.
Parasites can kill. Don’t overlook the basics. Start there, assess the goat, and go from that point. 🐐❤️
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1EuEStSBZg/?mibextid=wwXIfr
Long post warning…but I believe what we learned is worth sharing if it might help save someone else’s goat. ❤️🩹
On July 1st, we drove the 1.5 hours to K-State Veterinary Hospital with our sweet Cookie, who was severely anemic.
We had treated her with Safeguard about two weeks earlier and Cydectin two days before the visit. We even hauled two of our wethers with us in case she needed blood—which she did.
They performed bloodwork, a f***l exam, scans and an ultrasound. Samples were also sent off to test for Johne’s disease.
We were told Johne’s was the likely diagnosis.
But we kept asking one question:
Could this be parasites?
Her f***l showed almost no parasite eggs, which everyone agreed was strange considering how anemic she was. We asked several times whether parasites could still be responsible, but that possibility continued to be dismissed.
Before bringing her home the next morning, we asked that she be treated with a three-dewormer combination just in case.
Within the next week, both Johne’s tests came back negative.
Again we asked:
Could this be parasites?
We were told they didn’t believe so and that something else was likely going on.
Two weeks later, our local vet performed additional bloodwork. There had been some improvement, but Johne’s was still suspected despite the negative testing. Parasites again were not considered the likely cause.
Several weeks later, because Cookie wasn’t improving the way we believed she should, we requested more bloodwork.
The determination was that we were probably seeing progression of an underlying disease.
Then came August 15th.
Cookie could no longer stand or take steps on her own. We hauled her back to the veterinary hospital.
That visit ended with the decision we desperately didn’t want to make.
We euthanized our sweet girl. 😭
A necropsy was performed.
On August 19th, we received the initial results:
Heavy parasite burden.
I couldn’t understand it.
HOW?
She had received multiple dewormers. She had spent this time inside because of the extreme heat. Her original f***l showed almost no eggs.
I asked them to please have additional people review the findings because none of this made sense to me.
On August 21st, we received another call.
The conclusion remained the same:
A heavy burden of barber-pole worms.
Utter frustration doesn’t begin to describe what I felt.
Cookie had been evaluated by veterinarians multiple times over roughly 45 days. We had repeatedly asked whether parasites could be responsible for her anemia, and each time that possibility was pushed aside because the f***l didn’t support it and another diagnosis seemed more likely.
But here’s the part I believe every goat owner should know if they don’t already.
A low or nearly negative f***l egg count does NOT necessarily mean a goat has a low parasite burden.
We learned that immature barber-pole worms can already be feeding on blood and causing anemia before they mature and begin shedding eggs. Recent deworming can complicate what shows up on a f***l as well. A f***l egg count is an incredibly useful tool—but it is only one piece of the puzzle.
Looking back, I can’t help wondering:
What if another f***l had been run?
What if parasites had remained on the list of possibilities?
What if the clinical signs had been given more weight despite the original f***l?
What if resistance to the dewormers had been considered sooner?
Would the outcome have been different?
We will never know.
And that’s the hardest part.
I could continue being angry. I could keep asking the “what ifs” and “should haves.” I could spend my energy trying to figure out who should be held responsible.
But none of that brings Cookie back.
So instead, I told them that my hope is that every veterinarian involved in Cookie’s case remembers her.
I hope the next time they see a severely anemic goat whose tests don’t seem to match what they’re seeing clinically, they remember Cookie.
I hope they reconsider the diagnosis.
I hope they run another f***l.
I hope they consider parasite resistance.
I hope they listen when an owner keeps saying, “Something doesn’t make sense.”
And I hope those of us who own goats learn from her too.
Don’t assume a low f***l egg count completely rules out barber-pole worms when the clinical signs are telling you otherwise.
Ask questions. Recheck. Look at the whole animal—not just one test result.
We’re sharing Cookie’s story not because we can change what happened to her.
We’re sharing it because maybe her story will help save another goat.
If that happens, then at least something good came from losing our sweet girl. ❤️🩹
Cookie deserved that much. ❤️
