[FriesianLambs]

I've got a week old foster lamb with watery mouth, which started wednesday. She's usually quite alert, but refusing to feed. in these cases I tube feed, but for some reason this lamb is refusing every cooperation. The tube seems to be going into the windpipe more often than in the esophagus.

Tube feeding is the quicker way to feed lambs, but we're struggling for an hour at least at every feed and I don't understand.

If I try to have the lamb swallow it, she locks down, backs up and shakes her head until the tube is gone again. Then I use my finger to pry her mouth open and it goes down easy, but I keep hearing raspy air and the lamb struggles again.

I've always tube fed the weaker lambs without problems, but for some reason this lamb isn't feeding...

She has been treated with duplocillin and I feed her every 3 hours, 1oz of electrolytes with 2oz milk solution based on 17 gr per 100 ml. I've also given her something to reduce the bloating.

She was bloated yesterday and today she 'slims' down towards the next feed. She also bleats as feeding time comes near, stretches when waking up and also shakes herself off. Sometimes she opens her mouth with a weird smacking sound.

Does any one have any ideas on how to deal with this?

[FriesianLambs]

Update: I didn't know my post had to  be approved...

I stopped the tube feeding and feed the lamb from a bottle, whilst holding her. Today there were moments she would suckle. She's not salivating as much any more, bleats and is starting to follow me.

[Hevxxx99]

Sounds as though you're winning!    Good luck.

[FriesianLambs]

Thanks. I really hope so, but I remain pessimistic with these cases. It could still go awry.

Just put her in her 'IC' box for the night and she tried to suckle my finger. Wait and see tomorrow

[linnyhead]

When i tube lambs i put a towel over my legs and then clutch them by their shoulders between my knees and let their bodies dangle down and then hold their head still. Always introduce tube into side of mouth over tongue and pop finger into opposite side to encourage suck and swallow approach. good luck.

[trish.farm]

good luck, hopefully you are heading in the right direction! 

[devonlady]

Good luck with your lamb

[SallyintNorth]

Best of luck, sounds like she may have turned the corner

I generally don't force watery mouth lambs to feed, just give 'em daily Pen & Strep until they start to get better.  Then bottled electrolytes for 24 hours, then start to reintroduce milk.  I know they ought to die through not feeding for 24-48 hours, but they don't seem to, somehow.  But I quite understand if you don't want to take that risk!

If you are wanting to tube another similar, I wonder about one of the squirty paste or gel electrolytes?  You can use rehydion straight onto the tongue, I think, and there's another type you can get in squirty plunger tube, I think?

[FriesianLambs]

I did treat her with duplocillin LA.

I never had a watery mouth before and usually with the difficult cases tube feeding was enough. Just a couple of days and then they would start sucking on the tube. 2 years ago I fed a supposed schmallenberg(based on clinical symptoms) for almost a week with a tube. Then the weird spams stopped and she started sucking the tube. After that she developed normally.

First feed today the lamb suckled most off the bottle down and her bloating after a feed is reducing. She's also started exploring, chewing on the table. Her sore leg is practically gone. Still very tired. See how she fairs today

[Kimbo]

good news. You seem to be turning the corner. Best of luck with her

[FriesianLambs]

I've moved 'Otje' to the shed with a warm light and some hot water bottles(rubber ones). She was nibbling on everything in the living room and I didn't want her to hurt herself. She is suckling properly now, responding to fingers and showing 'search and suck'-action, but still seems weak, she stumbles still and jerks back whilst suckling.

I upped her milk to 3,5 oz and keeping her on that until she responds normally and then up it again with 0,5 oz.

Still wondering why she jerks like that half way through the bottle....

[FriesianLambs]

So, I changed the nipple on the bottle and don't push it in too far and Otje seems to like that. Her drinking is much more natural. She still stumbles, with sudden moves, and starting to make a lot more noise 

Thursday she's gonna get her last shot of penicillin and then we'll see how she fairs and Friday she'll be 2 weeks. Never expected her to reach that when I brought her in last Wednesday.

[FriesianLambs]

Oh dear what did I do?....... I have nipple bucket in the lamb pen for my other bottle lamb, Dodo and Otje was also interested when I came with the bottle. So the 1900 feed, I filled her side up(not too much) with milk and guided her there.

She grabbed the nipple, suckled and I left. Few minutes later, big noise coming out of that little lamb (seriously, she's very very loud and I'm also autistic so it hits really hard), guide her again to the nipple, she suckles and I can hear her swallowing. She stayed on a little longer so I went inside again.

My husband sits at the back of the house with his laptop and he says she's still screaming, so he also put her on and she suckled, swallowed and then he left...

As you might understand, she's still screaming. Kind of like that goat clip on youtube with the goats sounding like humans.

Is it just getting used to the nipple bucket or is Otje a bit.....stupid?

[SallyintNorth]

Very young lambs often do need to be held to the bottle to feed for the first few days.  Most of us back them into a corner, hold them between our legs, and feed from the front.

After a few days, maybe a week for some, they usually stick on and suck greedily.  But some take longer.

[FriesianLambs]

I always have them on bottle until 1 to 2 weeks old and seeing Otje's reaction to the bucket when I came in with the bottle made me think she was ready.

We put her on the nipple couple of times and she's less 'screamy'.

She's 2 weeks old tomorrow