Urinary
Calculi
Stress Related
by Wythe
Quarles
I keep reading of goat owners
having calculi problems or
expressing concern about this
subject. So I thought it
appropriate that my first post to
the group be on this subject
since I am currently helping an
owner in GA work through a
problem with a young buck that he received via air about 2 weeks
ago. The problem started for his
buck about 10 days after
receipt.
My only personal experience
with this problem in 15 years of
raising Toggs occurred in the
fall of 1989, 10 days after
having a buck flown in from
NH.
My nutritionist and I agree
that these occurrences are quite
different from true calculi,
though the results are quite
often the same unless your vet
knows what to do.
The above events were simply
stress related. Six to fourteen
hours in transit will cause
stress. Stress produces cortisol,
which causes the breakdown of
body tissues - there is a change
in blood pH. Cortisol causes the
precipitation and transport of
metals in the blood. Added to
this is restricted water intake.
These free flowing calculi are
due to pH changes and show up as
"grit", that has precipitated in the urine. This event is akin to
an experiment in a chemistry lab
where a second type of solution
is added to a saturated solution
and visible precipitation drops
to the bottom of the beaker.
This type of calculi is event
driven i.e. the stress of
transport, an injury or infection
that alters the blood pH of the
animal.
The other type of calculi is
diet related and concerns
epithelial tissue. This is the
tissue which lines the tubes and
cavities of the body (has one or
more layers of cells) that aid in
the excretion of waste products
and the assimilation of
nutrients. A diet deficient in
vitamin A causes nidus to develop
where calculi can form in the
epithelial tissue. This process
is akin to a polyp developing in
the colon and is not unlike the
process that leads to a heart
attack. Healthy epithelial tissue
requires adequate vitamin A in
the diet. The change in the proteins of pelleted rations can
also contribute to this problem.
The heat generated in the
pelleting process causes the
proteins to become sticky and
adhere to certain areas. This is
especially true of soy. Lack of
adequate vitamin A in a buck's
diet is a much bigger contributing factor. Minerals
must be balanced in the ration
and of high bioavailibility. The
same is true of the mineral
mix.
I hope that these comments
have began to explain how these
problems are similar yet
different and how the outcome for
one, if properly treated, can be
different from the other.
We are working on the
formulation of a product that
will assist in the prevention of
the release of this
stress-related grit, especially
in transport.
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