8 Days from fawns and Doe is staggering and looks sick

I am 8 days from Sundowner/Flip fawns and the doe is looking sick. This is not one of our tamer does and she is always the fist one to move away from us at feeding time. Not that she is wild but just a little shy. Anyway, yesterday I noticed she looked a little different so I got closer to examine her a little better and after 20 minutes of watching her from about 10 ft I notice she was staggering on her back legs a little. I watched her eat and drink. Today I checked her first thing this morning and could not find her until I took the third pass around the pen and she had laid down, and I mean all the way down with her head down also. When I made the first two passes I was with in 15 ft of her and she never moved. I got her up on the third pass and she was staggering again. This time she started to eat and she almost fell down, like she tripped over her own feet. I was wondering if you think selynium deficant or something else. I have the vet coming in the morning around 10:30 and may do a c-section because I do not want to loose these fawns. Any suggestions? Should I do c-section or something else. I have heard of a few does doing this when they are having fawn problems from a couple other farmers.

Midwest Deer Sales, I don't have any advice to give(not enough experience) but I wish you the best of luck with whatever you and your vet decide. It sounds like those will be same great fawns and I hope mamma makes it too. Best Of Luck

Nick Biser

Team Biser Whitetails

Gosh if she's not already pushing trying to fawn it almost sounds like a calcium problem to me . Could even be Toxemia or Ketosis . Let us know what your vet tells you !! JUST a thought !!

I believe Steve Laughlin had a very similar problem a year or 2 ago, not sure if it was twisted gut or twisted uterus, may want to contact him, they waited too long and I believe lost the doe

Since we are just guessing here my suspitions are Listeriosis. Guess is because I just spent weeks working on a doe of a friend that started with with similar symtoms. She finally when down with the rigid neck, tremors, temp and teeth grinding. She lost a lot of weight and aborted the fawns but is making her way back. Not sure that is what`s going on in this case but I`d like to know the outcome. We can never learn too much.

Thanks for the posts guys. Well, the vet came out this morning and we put her down. Big mistake. I will never put a doe down again that is that stressed. Not saying it was the vet or anyones fault. I had a similar experience about two weeks ago with two breech fawns, and we put the doe down and she never woke up either. These deer just can not take the drugs and the stress all at once. I would not recommend putting any doe giving birth down unless it is the last resort. I don't feel one in a hundred will make it. Just my opinion. Anyway back to the reason she got like this in the first place. The fawn (she only had one in her) had his neck turned back, and she was not going to have the fawn no matter what on her own, so the vet says. The fawn it appears had been dead for at least 24 hours or longer. She had server Toxemia, and the vet warned me she probably would not make it. I feel if you think you have a fawning problem either make a call to put her down right when you notice it, or figure out another way, but, and I REPEAT I would never let a doe that is giving birth go to long. They will not make it. I have learned a valuable lesson, and that is part of being a deer farmer, do what your instincts tell you. You are the only one responsible in the end. I can handle making a bad judgment call, but making a bad judgement call after making a bad decision is a double whammy. Either save the fawns or the doe early, or probably loose them all. Just my opinion.

Midwest, I am so sorry to hear that. You are right, that is part of being a deer farmer and everyone learns from their mistakes. Sorry to hear that.

Gosh Midwest Deer Sales I'm sorry to hear you lost her . It's pretty hard to almost impossible to bring them back around from severe Toxemia . Often times when an animal woobles or staggers they'll even prop them selves up against a tree or building or post . Toxemia can lead to Ketosis and Acidosis as well . Did your vet try any calcium ? Sometimes a quick shot of calcium either in the juggler or milk veins will help but not very often . Again sorry you had to loose her .