Red Urine in Angora Goats
By Dr Mackie Hobson BSc(Agric),BVSc

1. Disease Syndromes

The red appearance of urine in goats may have a number of possible causes.

The red to brown colour of the urine can be hematuria (blood), haemoglobinuria (breakdown of red blood cells) or myoglobinuria (breakdown of muscle tissue).

All of these possibilities will have a positive blood test on a urine dipstick.

To distinguish between these, your vet will spin down the urine (centrifuge).

• In haematuria, the red blood cells (rbc) will settle to the bottom, and there will be a clear supernatant, whereas, in haemoglobinuria and myoglobinuria, the urine colour will remain.
• To differentiate haemoglobinuria from myoglobinuria, evaluate the plasma colour; hemoglobinuria will have a pink to red plasma colour, whereas myoglobinuria will not.

1. Haematuria (blood in urine)

• Urine calculi, urolithiasis

https://www.angoras.co.za/article/bladder-stones

• Pulpy Kidney (Clostridium perfringens D)

https://www.angoras.co.za/article/clostrdium-perfringens-type-d

• Cystitis
• Pyelonephritis
• Contamination from reproductive tract
• Bracken fern toxicity
• Trauma

• Urethral causes of bleeding can include calculi, trauma, urethral infection and tumours.
• Bladder causes of bleeding can include tumours, calculi or cystitis.
• Kidney bleeding can be associated with infection (pulpy Kidney), trauma, calculi and vascular diseases.

2. Haemoglobinuria

• Copper toxicity

https://www.angoras.co.za/article/copper-toxicity-geelsiekte

• Eperythrozoonosis (Mycoplasma ovis)
• Clostridium haemolyticum- Bacillary hemoglobinuria. C novyi Type D
• Salt poisoning/water intoxication

https://www.angoras.co.za/article/salt-poisoning#405

• Leptospirosis

https://www.angoras.co.za/article/leptospirosis

• Plant toxicity: Brassica spp
• Phosphorus deficiency

3. Myglobinuria

Muscle breakdown from trauma or toxicity could be caused.

• Severe myodegeneration/myositis
• Prolonged recumbency
• Trauma