The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Sheep => Topic started by: Bionic on August 12, 2012, 08:14:25 am
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I want my ewes to go to the ram this year so, hopefully, I will be lambing for the first time next spring.
From those of you with experience what would you say are the essentials for my lambing kit?
thanks
Sally
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Hi Sally,
This subject has been discussed many times on the forum, do a quick search and you will find the threads - basically the list can be as long or short as you like depending on what situations you foresee.
Thanks
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Gloves long
Gloves short
Iodine
Jelly
Elastrator bands
Tool for putting them on
Lamb boost
Old coke bottle
Teat
Colostrum replacer
Powdered lamb milk
Lighting in lambing shed
Heptavac ewes prior to lambing (Jan. for me)
Tablets that I can't remember the name of ........... My farmer friend gives as a matter of course
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All of the above, plus wine, plus chocolate!
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Moleskins, whats the old coke bottle for?
Sally
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Moleskins, whats the old coke bottle for?
Sally
If you dont want to buy a dedicated lamb bottle then you buy either a pritchards teat or pull-on teat and these fit onto the 2 Litre coke bottles (or lemonade etc)
Since the thread is underway then also consider:
Prolapse spoon / Truss - In case of prolapse pre or post lambing
Lamb puller - For difficult births when you simply cant get a grip.
Lamb adoption musk - for adopting lambs onto other ewes
Needles + sutcheres
etc etc - as I said the list is endless, unless you decide up front how much you are prepared to do before calling assistance from a vet or experienced sheep owner.
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Scour Halt
A must to help prevent watery mouth.
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SfS,
I am a complete novice so will only attempt basics this time round. I will have the vets number on redial ;D
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If you can please try to spend some time with a local farmer during his lambing - it is so easy to lose a lamb due to not knowing a normal from a potentially problematic birth and hence waiting too longe before intervening.
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A must have book: "A Manual of Lambing Techniques" by Agnes C Winter. If I recall there is a list in there too.
And ditto SfS's comment - spend some time with a local farmer whilst they are lambing.
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All of the above, plus wine, plus chocolate!
Mrs J I can see you are a practical sort of woman.
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Moleskins, whats the old coke bottle for?
Sally
The teats you buy screw onto it, so it's cheap. Obviously you don't need a 1.5ltr bottle ;D
SfS suggests needle and thread but that's probably a bit beyond most of us.
Agree to try to see some born first as suggested by others.
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Between all of you there is a long list. I had better get saving ;D
Sally
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All of the things on my list including an expensive bag of milk powder would be about £50
those tablets I couldn't remember the name of are Trimacare I think.
Gloves, KY jelly, iodine etc will last you years.
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We lambed for the first time this year and kept our box fairly simple. Didn't seem much point buying some things as with very little experience we would have needed to call for a friend or the vet anyway.
Colostrum replacer
Long and short gloves
Torch
Head torch
Lubricator/ jelly
Bottle and teat
Old clean towels
Iodine
Some meals prepared and in the freezer ...... if you spend as much time as I did staring at ewes bottoms in anticipation ::) and some thermals!
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I tend to err on the side of non-intervention, but most of my experience is with primitive breeds that lamb outdoors happily.
I would say yes, go on a lambing course, so you understand what the things you've read look like in real life. BUT there is no point buying medicines that you don't know how to use (and would be calling the vet for anyway).
I think I would go for:
long gloves
lube
lambing rope (can be made from lengths of washing line with a loop tied at each end - nice and smooth for the ewe)
soap/water/buckets/towels/light sources/kettles/other site-dependent practical thingies
calciject and syringe and needles in case of suspected twin-lamb disease (are you comfortable injecting things?)
iodine or antiseptic spray for navels
colostrum replacer/bottles (I've never had to use these so I'm not sure how soon after birth this needs to happen - milk powder can, I presume, be picked up the next day if you need it)
pens and paper for notes and records; perhaps spray marker to identify ewe/lamb families
There are all sorts of pills and potions you can add in, I gather commercial sheep have a bit less get-up-and-go so might need some more mollycoddling :thinking:
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Depens on your system. My kit that I carry with me is as follows: crook, iodine, tags, notebook, alamycin LA or penstrep, calciject, needles 16 & 18 ga, small & large syringe, thermovite, marker sprays (2 coulors, ram and ewe). I usually tag lambs in the back of the landrover, once a day after they have had colostrum but before I can no longer catch them. When the landy is making too much mess I go on foot with a slimmed down kit in a game bag.
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It seems there are some things that everyone considers to be essentials and others down to preference.
I will buy the things that have cropped up time and time again but will speak to a local farmer about watching him with some of his lambs and see where I go from there.
thanks everyone
Sally
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The advantage with going to help a local farmer is that they will probably pull a lot of lambs, even some that you might think don't need pulling, and they will have a lot in a short space of time, so you should have an opportunity to get your hands wet so to speak. Best time to go is early mornings 5-6am onwards.
(Yes, I know, not all farmers are like this so don't anyone start shouting at me ok! :))