Antibiotic Use on Goat Farms: An Investigation of Knowledge, Attitudes, and Behaviors of Missouri Goat Farmers

Overuse or inappropriate use of antibiotics in agriculture has been implicated in the development of antibiotic resistant bacteria, a significant and growing public health threat. In a previous study, we found that Missouri goats had a higher percentage of antibiotic residues at slaughter than predicted based on the national average, so we undertook this study to understand contributing factors. As farmers are typically the ones administering antibiotics to their animals, we set out to investigate Missouri goat farmers’ knowledge and attitudes regarding antibiotics, veterinarians, and antibiotic resistance using qualitative research interview methods. Our aims were to determine circumstances leading to farmers’ administration of antibiotics, farmers’ decision process resulting in the use of antibiotics, the role of veterinarians, and farmers’ perceptions about antibiotic resistance. The following themes emerged: how farmers detect illnesses in individual goats, herd health management, where farmers obtain antibiotics, and farmers’ thoughts about antibiotic resistance. Our findings highlighted the need for more emphasis on goat health management during veterinary education and the need for improved working relationships between veterinarians and farmers to promote appropriate antibiotic use and prevent the emergence of antibiotic resistant bacteria