The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Sheep => Topic started by: SallyintNorth on April 26, 2012, 11:35:15 am
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We're nearly finished lambing now but about a week ago we had a shearling lambing a 'head only' in the field. We lambed her okay but the crows had been at the lamb's head and pecked away the end of its tongue. (Thank goodness they hadn't taken the eyes.)
Poor little mite was full of vigour but couldn't wrap what was left of his tongue around mum's teat to get milk. Thankfully he could suckle ok from a soft-teat bottle, so we bottle-fed him, leaving him with mum in the shed and hoping the tongue would heal and he'd be able to suckle from her in due course.
After a few days, he was doing fine, but he still couldn't feed off mum, the tongue would bleed each time he was bottle fed and it was clearly beginning to be very painful for him to use the bottle. It was heart-rending to see him try to find a position on the teat which didn't hurt but enabled him to get milk.
Lambing assistant and I decided we couldn't carry on like this, but the little fella has such a will to live we wanted to give him every chance. I didn't think I could bear to tube him 3 times a day for as long as it'll take for his tongue to heal up, so I could only think to try to get him to drink milk from a bowl.
Experienced farmers told me it'd been tried before and you couldn't do it with lambs. Well, I figured we had to try.
Of course he can't lap but ruminents seem to suck water into their mouths so I hoped he'd manage that.
Well, we're now on day 3 of feeding by bowl and he's managing. A lot gets spilled, quite a bit goes up his nose, but he does manage to get his belly full each time we feed him. We leave the bowl full for him to suck at when he wants and give him a fresh bowl, with a supervised feed of warm milk, three times a day. He doesn't now need you to lead his head into the milk by getting him to suck on your finger (though we do have to gently push his head down to the bowl as he is butting at us trying to find a teat) and we are pretty sure he does drink a little from the bowl when we aren't there.
I don't know what his long-term prospects are, whether the tongue will heal and/or regrow, how he'll manage when it's time to come off milk and onto hard feed / forage if his tongue does not regrow.
What I do know is that if it's possible, this wee boy will give it his very best shot.
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Oh, what a heart rending story. Lets hope the little fella continues to thrive.
Sally
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Well done you for trying Sally. I have no idea what his prospects are but you have to give them every chance that you can. Hope he grows up fit and strong.
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Oh bless you. You couldn't give him more. Good luck, I hope he's your little miracle. :-*
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Oh what a story, bless him and you for giving him such a chance, I really hope he makes it, can tongues regrow? I'd think maybe heal, hopefully enough for him to be able to eat. Good luck with him x
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Good luck. Poor little thing.
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I hope the little guy makes it it won't be for lack of trying. :love: I was wondering about posting on crows the other day as i caught a pair of them roaming between the sheep. I haven't seen them since but did wonder my lambs are all active and healthy but very small ( think baby rabbit sized.) how much risk does a rook or crow pose to such small lambs would they take them if they could?
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We don't have any sheep but OH was talking to one of the local sheep farmers and he said that crows were the worst enemies.
Sally
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Oh well done!
I used to help out on a goat farm where ALL kids were bucket fed rather than teat/bottle fed. At about 4 days in they suddenly properly get the hang of it then do need supervising so they don't hog the lot in one go and get a belly ache, but other than that they all did very well ;)
I would say he stands an excellent chance if you can stop him getting too gutsy with the milk :thumbsup:
Good luck!
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Wonderful - hope he continues to thrive :bouquet:
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:thumbsup: Fabulous Sally! Kanisha et al.....we lost a good lamb of 2 weeks old to a raven last year :-\
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woollyval- did the raven take a HEALTHY 2 week old lamb? Did you see it?
How much danger from crows/ ravens? We have lots and lots of them. :o
More for me to worry about ::)
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On the side topic of crow / raven damage - we have loads of all corvids, and buzzards too. Crows will peck a weak lamb - or ewe, come to that - if they cannot defend themselves (as in the case of the hero of the original story) but we've never seen them successfully attack a healthy lamb here. They're quick to clean up a casualty, of course.
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Aaww. Hope he copes with life. You have helped him to a better start than nature was dealing him.
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Hopefully he'll be able to bucket feed and then once he's on solids he should be ok - poor love :-\
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Poor lambie :sheep: He has a good chance of his tongue healing well, and even of some regrowth so he'll be fine once past this stage. The thought of him hanging there with his legs stuck back while something pecked his tongue is awful - bet he has nightmares :( Lucky he has you to look after him Sally :thumbsup:
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woollyval- did the raven take a HEALTHY 2 week old lamb? Did you see it?
How much danger from crows/ ravens? We have lots and lots of them. :o
More for me to worry about ::)
Well we have a lot of corvids and buzzards. I don't worry about buzzards but the raven last year pecked the behind of a sleeping lamb.....confirmed by vet as took for pm as puzzled. Not a thing wrong with him except a badly pecked anus!!! Vet said ravens sometimes will attack a very small lamb in this way creeping up on them....mine ARE very small lambs!!! Apparently they die of shock and heart failure :-\
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Poor little thing, you have certainly done all you could have for him. Sometimes they do survive against all odds though. My little Gotland Tiny, the one who was a whisker away from dying earlier this year, was not expected to make it by the vet or the people at the agricultural merchants where I asked advice. But, every day despite the fact she could not stand or even sit up without being propped up via bales, she was eating (albeit not very much), and I thought while she was eating there was hope. Gradually she rallied and is now amazingly plump and healthy looking, and is fast catching up with her peers size-wise.
So I reckon there is every chance yours will make it :) :sheep:
Blimey woolleyval I too have loads of them in my fields (and nesting in my chimney!). My lambs are all sprightly and alert so hopefully they aren't going to be crept up on! Horrible things ... >:(
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Ive never thought of crows being a danger to older lambs, but I have noticed there are more of them this year than ever, we've been here 13 years and never really noticed them until this year, I wonder why the increase? Gun time perhaps!
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How did the lamb do Sally?
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His tongue was shorter than normal but did regrow quite a bit. Eventually he was no longer thirsty for his twice-daily bowl of milk, so was getting what he needed from his mum, so he went out with all the others.
I couldn't tell you now which he is/was or when/whether he went away. We've still about 1/3 of the crop to go, so he could still be here - but somehow I suspect he's long away, he was a good do-er once he could get the food into him!
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Thanks
Great to hear :thumbsup:
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That's an amazing story! Just goes to show how animals can survive if they have the willpower and human assistance. Well done SallyintNorth. :trophy: