04/19/2026
noodling around at the black walnut while I contemplate conventional cocci management and kid raising.
This is where the gals like to stop and rest when moving between browsing the pond and their regular forest paddock. I’ve been closely watching the buck kid emulate the adults and while they gorge on sweet gum and oak leaves….and the odd walnut husk, he’s taste testing everything they select.
I got to wondering about the wide spread advice to incorporate coccidiostat into goat kid raising, where that advice is coming from, and how my management aligns or differs from those sources.
A brief web search yielded the following:
•Managing coccidia in goats through browsing involves leveraging the natural behavior of goats to eat tree leaves and shrubs, which reduces their ingestion of parasite larvae located near the ground. Specifically, certain tannin-rich leaves can help control parasite loads, including coccidia.
Merck Veterinary Manual
•Reduced Parasite Exposure: Worm larvae and coccidia oocysts are concentrated near the ground (usually within 2-3 inches or 5-7.5 cm). Because goats prefer to browse on leaves and twigs of shrubs and trees at a higher level, they avoid ingesting these ground-level parasites.
•Tannin-Rich Browse: Feeding on plants with high condensed tannin content - pine needles, sweet gum and oak on this property - has been shown to reduce coccidia oocyst counts in f***s.
In short, I believe I’ll take a pass on the medicated feed and let the goats natural preference for trees and shrubs do the work for me.
I could do some fecals to confirm my suspicions, but I bet the girls are not carrying much of a load and I also bet that facilitating browsing at an early age will allow this kid to bypass any problems.
Do you see Goat Kitty?
