Experience Pygmy Goats Owners only?

I bought a pygmy goat yesterday.I know nothing about them so before I bought him I asked how to care for him.I was told to give him a bottle twice a day and to offer him water and hay and thats all I need to do.I asked how old he was and the owner did now know because she had pygmy goats of all ages for sale.This pygmy goat will drink about 4-8oz of the formula and will appear to be hungry a few hours later.He seems to choke while drinking from the bottle.He is skinny compared to the baby pygmy goats I have seen on the internet.He is also sneezing alot.I bought him for only $35.00 so I dont think he was taken care of good because pygmy goats on the internet sell for much higher.A vet is coming to my house Wednesday to examine him.Any idea what I am looking at as far as his health and was I told the right way to feed him? In 1 day he has become a big part of the family.My kids love him.I find him in the house more then outside.He has to follow everyone around.
Answers:
i raise goats, including pygmy goats, let me reccomend some good websites, and please email me and i'll be glad to help you out:

http://fiascofarm.com/goats/index.htm... (this is dairy goats in general, not just pygmys. remember pygmys are a little different. this is still an awesome site tho!)

http://kinne.net/articles.htm

also here's a very good website about orphaned pygmy goat kids, please see this one:

http://kinne.net/weakkid.htm

remember that a pygmy goat's stomach is extremely small, you can't feed it as much as a normal goat. also are you feeding a formula made for orphan goats?? anything else will cause problems.

it sounds like the goat is already sick. the vet should know what to do, and will probably give it a shot.

here's a link about pet goats, it has a lot of good information:

http://www.goatworld.com/articles/goatsa...

and another website about kid care:

http://www.sheepandgoat.com/lambkidcare.

once again, feel free to email me and i will help you out. there is a lot to tell you about it's care... they are very special little goats... barnyardqueen17@yahoo.com

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You can bet he wasn't well cared for if his previous owner couldn't tell you how old he is!! I raise miniature goats and I can tell you the birthday of every baby born here! You really need to know his age in order to feed him correctly. Check his navel.does he still have a dried up umbilical cord attached? Also, if his poop is mustard colored and thick like toothpaste, he is very young. Older babies start to have pellets and they darken in color as they start eating solid food. If so he is quite young. Also the fact that he isn't nibbling on hay and sipping at water makes me think he's under 3 weeks. I am currently bottlefeeding 3 babies. They are 5 weeks old and get 8 - 10 ounces of warm whole cows milk 3 times daily. Some goats have a very bad reaction to milk replacer and I personally refuse to use it. I will only feed real goat's milk or whole cows milk. The younger they are, they need smaller feedings more often. For example the first day I feed up to 2 oz. every 3 hours...and gradually build up to larger feedings less often.

Check him over for lice...they are really common this time of year and they will sap the health of a baby very quickly. They are NOT transmittable to humans but you need to get them off of him if he has them. Since he's a baby the best way to get rid of them is either with puppy %26 kitten flea powder, or puppy %26 kitten shampoo. If you bathe him be sure to dry him well so he doesn't get chilled.

Another thing to watch for is scours (runny diarrhea). Scours can kill a goat kid very quickly. Be sure and tell the vet if you've seen signs of diarrhea. Scours either mean he has coccidia or his diet needs to be changed.

The teeth grinding means he is having some kind of discomfort (my first guess would be that he is hungry). Choking when taking a bottle means that you are holding the bottle wrong. It's a very common mistake when learning to bottlefeed. If they aren't in the right position they will get milk in their lungs. Think of how he would hold his neck when nursing from his mom. They have to kind of crunch down in front, stretch out their neck, and usually turn their head. This is the position you want him in for taking his bottle.

GOOD LUCK and please feel free to email me if you have any other questions.