The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Sheep => Topic started by: thenovice on November 27, 2011, 08:15:59 pm
-
I was wondering what peoples thoughts are on worming tupped ewes. Do they have to be so many months in lamb? Is it best to wait until the lambs are born? Is a flukicide safe to use? Thanks you lot
-
With any handling once tupped there is a small risk of the stress causing metabolic problems, even abortion. So if you do feel they need worming and/or fluking, try to keep everything as calm and stress-free as possible.
Of course, if you think they need both, use a combined wormer + fluker so it's just one operation.
We normally do worm and/or fluke before tupping, then copper and minerals a month or so after, fluke again and their clostridial jabs about 2-4 weeks before lambing. When driving and handling pregnant ewes we take it very steady and try to minimise stress.
HTH
-
Thats great, thankyou Sally :thumbsup:
-
Dont worm the ewes they will abort but dosing for fluke is ok
-
I have often wormed in lamb ewes with a variety of products, about causing abortion is rare in the extreme and is a sheep by sheep worry rather than a whole flock concern. Leaving ewes untreated if they have a gastro intestinal parasite burden will cause more problems than treating them.
Read the label, do for fluke at the same time if you are in a fluke area and try to leave as long as possible between tupping and worming to reduce the risk of absorption. I know it can be hard but if you take it real easy as you are dosing the ewes then the risks are very minimal.
If you have had a problem with the worm burden and the ewes have lost condition price up a mineral drench, it can give them a bit of a boost before the lambs start to burden them. Starting them on a wee bit feed if they are low can be a real help. The feeding will go into the ewe rather than the feotus IF you feed before the start of the thrid trimester. Once the last third of pregancy has begun the ewe will start to divert her resources towards the growing lambs so sometimes it is better to maintain the ewe and put up with smaller lambs that she can rear rather than feeding a huge lamb that will give more problems at the lambing.
Happy New Year, hope this helps you and all the best.
-
if you lamb indoors consider worming as you bring them in, they will thrive as they get more goodness out of their hay/silage