Boer goats should have a complete veterinary examination at least once a year, and because Boers are raised for growth, most herds benefit from added parasite-focused checks during the grazing season. A meat goat that stops gaining is losing money and possibly health at the same time, so the Boer schedule leans on weights and fecal results as much as on the calendar.
The annual Boer exam, focused on growth
Your vet should condition-score does, bucks, and replacement doelings separately, because each group fails differently. Feet need trimming assessment on a meat breed that carries real weight, and mouths matter: a doeling with a poor bite will not convert pasture like her sisters. Bucks should be checked for breeding soundness before the season, including feet, legs, and condition, since an over-fat buck is a sluggish breeder and an injured one may settle nothing. Fecal testing at this visit sets the baseline for the season's parasite plan on your ground.
Scheduling the main exam before breeding lets culling and pairing decisions use fresh information instead of last year's impressions. Replacement doelings should pass through this exam as a genuine selection gate, not a formality: mouths, feet, udder structure in young females, and growth against their contemporaries all predict whether a doeling will hold condition through her first kidding. A doeling that is already behind at selection rarely catches up under the load of pregnancy, and your vet's outside eye helps make that call before she is bred rather than after she fails.
Why Boers need mid-season parasite reviews
Boers have a reputation for hardiness, but internal parasites remain the most common reason young meat goats stall, scour, or fade in summer pasture. Rather than waiting for visible trouble, arrange fecal checks and condition reviews partway through grazing, weighted toward kids and first-time mothers, who carry the least resilience. Pale eyelids, a rough coat, bottle jaw, or a kid that stops gaining on good feed are all reasons to bring a vet into the conversation that week. Testing before treating keeps your vet's advice specific to what your herd actually carries, and slows the resistance problems that come from guesswork.
Kidding and kid season for Boer does
Does should go into kidding in moderate condition, and any doe that labors without progress, seems unwell after kidding, or rejects kids while acting dull needs prompt veterinary help. Boer kids are born ready to grow, so a kid that nurses weakly, stays hunched and cold, or scours repeatedly should be seen early. A herd check shortly after kidding season closes lets your vet review which does struggled, which kids thrived, and what that says about the mineral and feeding program before the next breeding decisions are made.
Call sooner when a Boer changes
Goats mask decline until it is steep. Sudden appetite loss, labored breathing, bloat, inability to urinate in bucks and wethers, or a goat that separates and stops chewing cud all warrant a same-day call. Rapid weight change in either direction in a growing kid deserves a look within days, since growth curves are the whole point of the breed and deviations are information.
Tracking each Boer's weights, fecal results, and kidding record in a KinsLe Pet Passport keeps that growth story attached to the animal, so your vet can compare this season against last at every visit.