Author Topic: Our first lambs are born! Now what??! (Read 11681 times)

hafod · « **Reply #15 on:** April 13, 2015, 09:43:19 pm »

Sounds like you are doing fine. We are first timers with primitives (North Ronaldsay's) too. Our first (and only lamb so far) had to be helped as she got very stuck during birth (she has very long legs - like a supermodel lol!). So we stuck her and mum inside in a pen initially. After a couple of hours once we were sure that lamb was up and suckling we transfered them to a small paddock outside - which suited them both better. Then about 36hours after birth when we sure she was mothered up we put them in a bigger field with other expectant mums and mum was so much happier.We are planning for the other ewes to lamb in the field. Good luck with the others, trust your instincts and enjoy!

Mays · « **Reply #16 on:** April 14, 2015, 04:15:11 pm »

ok, I admit I have not read all your replies, but I am sure you have. So not sure if anyone has suggested this, but what I do is (with the hardy girls) if a ewe lambs outside, I simply put a pen around them in the field for the first 12 hours or so to ensure lambs sook, bond and they don't get stole by another ewe.

If it is in the evening when the lambs arrive, then I would bring the ewe indoors, with the newborns normally by picking up lambs and letting them trial a bit on ground for mum to follow, take my time and eventually mum will follow all the way in.

If I had a local bad badger Id be lambing indoors!

sabrina · « **Reply #17 on:** April 14, 2015, 04:57:07 pm »

Most lamb inside here due to foxes and badgers.

Jode · « **Reply #18 on:** April 15, 2015, 01:23:02 pm »

Well this little lady just wants to worry me!! Twin gfd ewe lambs born this morning. Feeding fine! Yesterday's single isn't. If I wake her up and push her gently underneath mum she has a go nudging around but can't seem to find the teat. Even if I put it in her mouth. Am expressing a little first so she can smell/taste it. And she does finally get in mum shifts a leg or moves forward, lamb comes off and just wanders awsy. Mum keeps pawing the ground near her and is grinding occasionally. Gave lamb two more squirts of kick start and tubed 50ml of mums colostrum. Trying to keep her strength up while she gets the hang of it without filling her up too much. We have gunky yellow poop which is a good sign but assume that's because I've been tubing her. And have a pygmy goat labouring (first timer). !!!

Womble · « **Reply #19 on:** April 15, 2015, 01:31:53 pm »

Quote from: Jode on April 15, 2015, 01:23:02 pm

and is grinding occasionally

Yes, what does that mean? I took tooth grinding to be a sign of stress, but am I right?

SallyintNorth · « **Reply #20 on:** April 15, 2015, 02:13:44 pm »

First off - well done, the lamb is still alive

Next - are you certain the lamb isn't suckling when you are not there? Is its belly empty? Often they are suckling on the quiet, so are not hungry and therefore not interested. And/or, they've emptied mum out, so she's moving away as she has none left.

To see if it's empty, hold it up by its front legs with its spine against your legs. Around and below the belly button - if it's rounded / convex, the lamb has fed. If it's hollow / concave, the lamb has not fed.

If you're still not sure, you're through the first 24 hours now, so although of course it still needs to feed, it's not so desperate. So I wouldn't tube it now unless you are positive it is empty and you cannot get it onto the teat. If you're still uncertain come bedtime, feed it no more than 50ml just to give you peace of mind that it'll survive the night.

A lot of people say never bottle feed a lamb that's to feed off its mother, but IME it can be helpful to teach the lamb to suck, then transfer that learning onto mum's teat. Once you see it greedily sucking on a bottle, you know it knows how to suck and it has an appetite, so then you can renew your efforts to get it to latch onto mum.

When you wake the lamb up, does it get up and arch its back and stretch? If so, it's feeling fine

Jode · « **Reply #21 on:** April 15, 2015, 09:33:44 pm »

Thanks again Sally - really appreciate your reply. I am much happier this morning. She is still weaker than I think she should be but what do I know!! We knew the holding her by her front legs and looking at her tummy trick and she wasn't looking full and udder/bag was VERY full and tight. I think mum was grinding because she was so uncomfortable. Once we expressed some off and it was softer we had more success tempting the lamb. Keep cleaning off the sticky yellow poop - it smells exactly the same as human baby first poo! But didn't notice it at all on the manx lambs?! Is that because mum is doing a better job of cleaning them up? So much to learn.....

Liz Kershaw · « **Reply #22 on:** April 16, 2015, 08:27:05 am »

We had a tiny twin who took some reviving for the first day of her life and as she has wonky legs, couldn't stand to feed. We got plentiful amounts of bottled colostrum into her and I thought I'd be done for if I tried getting her back onto mum - but no, the tiny one had ideas of her own, and flatly refused the bottle after a couple of days, only feeding off mum. Now she's 8 days old and growing, still half the size of her brother but seems to be keeping pace, even with her smart red leg splints.

SallyintNorth · « **Reply #23 on:** April 16, 2015, 04:48:05 pm »

Sounds like it might have been big full bag + possibly still got wax in teat ends + big engorged teats too large for tiny questing mouth... and mother, being uncomfortable, may have knocked baby away (that faffling on they do at the beginning must be really irrirating when you're full to bursting!) which put it off trying again.... a very common scenario.

As to Manxes - apart from them being sometimes over-aggressive with other sheep in protecting their lambs, I really can't fault my Manxes as breeders. I am full of admiration for them. And lovely little northern short tails that don't need docking too

Bramblecot · « **Reply #24 on:** April 18, 2015, 02:23:39 pm »

How are your gfd lamb and ewe? The lambs usually have nasty yellow pooh which you need to clean off if the ewe leaves it. It will build up within a few days and set like toffee - then you and the lamb will have a real problem especially if the long tail has stuck to the back legs

. It has never happened with any of our Shetlands but often with the gfd. The whole business of the lamb being slow to feed, and mum being a bit reluctant at first...I think quite a few are like that. As folk always

and say 'rare for a reason'. I still love them though

.

shygirl · « **Reply #25 on:** April 18, 2015, 02:37:48 pm »

Quote from: Jode on April 13, 2015, 08:07:52 am

Stripped teats and there's plenty of milk.

did you milk away her colostrum? maybe this is where the problem lies??

waterbuffalofarmer · « **Reply #26 on:** April 18, 2015, 05:05:43 pm »

Thankfully I don't have any fox/badger problems

all the mums which had twins are very good mums, even the shearlings, which was their first time. The only lambs I have had to rear are 2 triplets, and 1 double which was abandoned.

Porterlauren · « **Reply #27 on:** April 19, 2015, 09:13:09 pm »

Having read some of this thread, but not all of it.

I don't get why folk get hardy, primitive breeds, that survive on thin air, and give birth hanging off the side of a crag, decide to lamb them out, and then try to mess with them, especially seasoned mothers.

If you want to get involved, lamb them inside, and get something more suited to human interference.

Those primitives have been doing what they do, for a long, long time.

On the Badger front. . . . . they are b******s and if I had my way, their population locally would be severely depleted! They are as bad, and often worse than a fox, and for some reason all of the legions of spring watch type folk, seem totally ignorant to this!