About the Author
Karen Kopf
Articles by Karen Kopf
Deep Freeze! How to Keep Goats Warm in Cold Weather
How cold is too cold for a goat? Temperature can be the least of challenges when determining how to keep goats warm in cold weather.
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The Fear of Fescue
Red bag, abortions, thickened placentas, founder, necrosis, failure to freshen — all are symptoms of fescue toxicity … and yet tall fescue is one of the most common forages for livestock in both pasture and baled grass hay.
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Listeriosis in Goats
Listeriosis, also called Circling Disease and Silage sickness, is a life-threatening disease caused by bacteria Listeria monocytogenes and Listeria ivanovii. Listeria is zoonotic and can be transferred to humans. It thrives in aerobic conditions and can withstand temperatures from 34-113 degrees F. It persists almost anywhere, including soil, manure piles, gastrointestinal
tracts, the top layer of silage, and moldy hay or feed. It is also commonly found in the feces of infected birds, animals, fish, and insects as well as sewage.
The Doe Code
Add to Favorites Oh, the game is strong with this experienced one… She knows the Doe Code all too well! Contractions about a minute apart. Why is our goat in labor …
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Boy Bands are Back! Banding Goats 101
Banding goats … it is how we castrate males that will not be used as bucks. Using a tool called an elastrator, a thick rubber band (green Cheerio) is placed on the scrotum above the testes, eliminating blood flow, so that the testicles stop developing, shrivel, and fall off.
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Listeriosis in Goats
Listeriosis, also called Circling Disease and Silage sickness, is a life-threatening disease caused by bacteria Listeria monocytogenes and Listeria
ivanovii. Listeria is zoonotic and can be transferred to humans. It thrives in aerobic conditions and can withstand temperatures from 34-113 degrees F. It persists almost anywhere, including soil, manure piles, gastrointestinal tracts, the top layer of silage, and moldy hay or feed. It is also commonly found in the feces of infected birds, animals, fish, and insects as well as sewage.
Goat Lice: Are Your Goats Lousy?
Goat lice are very common in winter months, and finding them does not mean you are a bad herdsman. If you don’t see them, it doesn’t mean they are not there.
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Goat with The Flow – Enthusiasts Rescue Goats From a Volcano
Add to Favorites This is the courageous story of volunteers donning respirators and donating land and equipment to rescue goats and other livestock from the 2018 Kilauea eruption. And it …
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Biosecurity and Goat Husbandry: What You Should Know About M. ovipneumoniae
Add to Favorites By Karen Kopf – At Kopf Canyon Ranch, just outside of Moscow, Idaho, we raise Kiko goats for meat and breeding stock. Our goat husbandry practice is to …
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