The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Sheep => Topic started by: missmojo on September 07, 2023, 02:29:29 pm
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Hello all :wave:
I'm new to the site and have a smallholding with 6 badger-face ewes, 2 Berkshire weaners, chicken and ducks!
That said, the reason I'm writing is to ask guidance regards the best wormer for lambs?
The ewes will be tupped for the first time this autumn (nerve wracking!!), and I am in the process of organising the lambing kit...rather premature - but better to be organised than flustered I say :D
Although SCOPS says to use a narrow spectrum 1-BZ there are so many products available it is all very confusing, plus I don't want huge volumes that may go to waste.
All advice greatfully appreciated. Thanks so much!
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You need to read about FEC ( faecal egg count ) It is very easy to do for both your adults and any lambs , then you will know if they have worms ,what type and what type of wormer is needed . White wormer is recommended for lambs to treat nemo ,but until you fec then how do you know . It is a very common wormer and you would just buy the smallest quantity you can buy of a bendazole wormer , don't worry about what its called, you may be able to get small quantities from your vet . Quick look PANACUR 10% @ £90 FOR 1LT RYCOBEN SC @ £38 FOR 0.8LT ALBEX 2.5% @ £ 27 FOR 1LT all do the same job
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I'm guessing that these are gimmers you have - about 18 month oldand ready to tup, to lamb for the first time at 2 years old or thereabouts.
How long have you had them? Did they all come from the same flock? Had your ground had sheep on it in the recent past? Did you do any worming when they arrived ie quarantined?
Depending on the answers to the above, you may never need to worm them. Otherwise, as Shep said, talk to your vet about a faecal worm egg count.
Adult sheep generally don't need wormed - they build up a resistence. Young lambs, like those you'll have next spring, don't have that resistance so worming might be needed once they start eating grass at about four weeks old. We used to worm the ewes at lambingnot fofr their benefit but to stop them shedding worm eggs on to the pasture, that would, in turn, infect the young lambs.
You do need to talk to your vet about fluke though. The vast majority offarms now have it; it's carried by deer, rabbits and just about every other herbivore and sheep don't build up a resistance.
Run a mile from combined fluke / wormers. Chances are you'll be treating for something unnecessarily. If you vet is anything like mine, you'll be able to buy 6 doses of the right wormer from them. More expensive per dose but saves on waste and waste disposal.
Make sure you give the right dose for the sheep weight and make sure they swallow it all. SCOPS has information on dosing too.
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As the others have said, speak to your vet and follow their advice. Throughout the spring and summer I tend to fec my lambs every 4-6 weeks, and treat based on what the results say. Today I did one on a group of very loose lambs and we concluded it was nutritional scour rather than anything more sinister. Until the vet looks at it under the microscope, you just don’t know. Fec tests are about £10-15 per test- just collect an even sized fresh sample from a random selection of animals in the group (all same age, so lambs, or ewes but not both), keep it in the fridge until you can take it to the vet hopefully within 24 hrs, and see what they say. Then hatch a plan for worming from there.