PULPY KIDNEY: THE SILENT KILLER 2025

“Because Pulpy Kidney leads to sudden mortalities, there are hardly any signs producers can be on the look for. Kids & lambs with acute pulpy kidney can die within two hours.”

To find dead lambs or kids in your kraal when they were seemingly healthy the previous day is not a pretty sight, and leaves many producers perplexed. Sudden mortalities among sheep and goats may have several causes, of which pulpy kidney is one of the most common. In Southern Africa, pulpy kidney is one of the most prominent diseases in sheep and goats. Although sheep and goats of any age can contract the disease, it is mostly found amongst lambs and kids between the ages of three weeks and three months, or between six and twelve months. When pulpy kidney occurs in goats it can cause chronic diarrhea, which can lead to the goat dying or becoming emaciated.

Main Causes:

Sheep and goats that are suddenly moved from poor grazing to good pastures such as Lucerne, rye grass or green oats, (change of diet or stress at weaning) is one of the major causes of the disease. When stock is weaned they are under stress and they get pulpy kidney if not vaccinated at least 10 days prior to weaning.

Symptoms to look for:

If animals are in the very early stages of the disease: animals appear listless, grind their teeth, kicking movements and fall down. Some animals have mild diarrhea. Young kids and lambs have colic and can become bloated before they die. Sick goats can make a hissing sound due to pain.

There are other diseases that can lead to sudden mortalities in the herd, such as prussic acid poisoning, lamb dysentery, blood gut, pasteurellosis and heart water, to name a few.

Prevention and control:

Pulpy kidney is such a common occurrence, that a modern sheep or goat farmer cannot function properly if he or she does not have a proper planned vaccination program for his sheep or goats. Young sheep & Goats need to vaccinated at least a week before weaning in January with Oil Based Pulpy Kidney Vaccine. Second Vaccination of Pulpy Kidney (Alum) should be given in April and again in September as the new green grass come through. This applies to both adult sheep and goats before lambing or kidding and again at 6 – 8 weeks and thereafter again at least one week before weaning of lambs and kids.

There are good quality products available on the market to control pulpy kidney. Namely Pulpy Kidney (Oil), Pulpy Kidney (Alum), Multivax P plus, Ovi–Clos P, Multiclos, Ultra Choice 8 & Covexin.

VERY IMPORTANT: ALWAYS READ THE INSTRUCTION ON THE LABELS OF WHEN THEY SHOULD BE APPLIED AND THE DOSAGE RATE PER ANIMAL. Look at the Expiry Date on the bottle. Always take a cool box to buy & collect ANY VACCINE

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