The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Sheep => Topic started by: Richmond on May 18, 2024, 08:59:32 am
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I only put 3 ewes to our new tup this season. 2 have lambed already, with the lambs now 5 - 6 weeks old but I'm still waiting for the 3rd ewe to lamb. She's been bagged up for at least 3 weeks and has a huge belly, puffy vulva etc, but no sign of imminent lambing. We like the ewes to lamb in the small paddock next to our house - good view of everything, shelter etc. Then they move into an adjacent larger field with more grass when the lambs are about 4 weeks.
A couple of days ago I made the decision to move the older lambs and their mothers to the bigger field so they could have more grass and I could stop feeding those ewes. I have kept the 3rd back in the smaller paddock. She initially seemed not too bothered and as they can still communicate over the fence/gate I thought all would be ok. However she now seems a little lonely and is standing bleating at the gate after them as they make their way further across the field exploring. Is the stress of separation from her sisters likely to be harmful to her unborn lamb/s?
I could let her through, but then it wouldn't be so easy to see her because of trees and hedges hiding the view down into that field, and the grass is quite long in places and would easily hide newborn lambs or her having a difficult labour. There's also a public footpath running alongside one of the boundary fences. Or I could bring the other ewes back into the lambing field again? What do you think is best?
Our other sheep (ram, wethers, unbred ewes) are in different paddocks a little further away.
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You really need to leave the ewes & lambs on the best grass But sheep are flock animals , so either put the ewe to lamb in with the e&L or can you not bring unbred ewes or ewe hoggs in with her to keep company just until she lambs , any short term loss of condition won't affect them too much and if you want to keep feeding the in lamb ewe then a small pen or similar
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Thanks. She's actually looking more settled now and her sisters and their lambs have spent quite a lot of time just the other side of the fence so I think I'll just leave things as they are. I'm really hoping she'll lamb in a day or two, but then I've been saying that for about a fortnight!!
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Update: She lambed twins yesterday afternoon in the sunshine :)
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Update: She lambed twins yesterday afternoon in the sunshine :)
:celebrate: :yippee: