The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Sheep => Topic started by: plumseverywhere on November 05, 2012, 09:06:43 am
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Have woken up to a ewe who is acting quite out of character and not looking too good. Wondered if you could give me some advice please?
She's an 18 month old texelX lawnmower. Very tame, little overweight.
Feet are fine, no signs of scour at all but she was lying down in the frosty grass and reluctant to get up. Couple of times I heard brief tooth grinding so she's sore somewhere? She's not going near the bucket for her usual small handful of feed, no interest in hay or water.
I've lifted her up to encourage her to walk about and heard some rumblings and burps so hope her rumen is working but she's just 'not right' and she's currently standing looking very fed up, next to the fence.
any ideas from those of you more experienced than me would be very gratefully received.
ps - she's a bottle fed pet, out of all of our sheep she is The one who is our tamest and the kids love her :-\
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Sorry to hear about your poorly ewe Plums.
Is there any chance she has raided the feed bins and has bloat? Or could she have eaten anything poisonous?
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Thanks for the reply Haylo-peapod
No chance on the feed bins as they are locked away. While I can't rule out the poisonous option 100% I would be very surprised as there's been sheep in that field, on and off, for so many years and no new plants or trees added :-\ I will take a walk round this morning though to make sure nothing has blown in and that there's nothing dodgy looking - thank you.
Am hoping that a day of sunshine (albeit cold!) might perk her up? do you think I should get a mineral drench in as well?
we have a rockie yellow lick with free access and they have a diddy handful of course sheep mix every day or so each.fresh water and about 3 acres for the 5 of them to amble about it.
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I guess a mineral drench wouldn't do her any harm and if you have concerns about her rumen you may like to try some pro-rumen.
Do you have any biting midges at the moment? I'm hoping the recent cold snap has killed the pesky things off but I believe that sheep can be off-clolour for a week or two if they get infected with schmallenberg.
There's probably a whole host of things that might make her off colour and hopefully someone else might have some further ideas.
:fc: she's soon feeling a bit perkier.
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I'd not noticed any but that's not to say there aren't - its been bitter cold and rainy here for a few days, to the point of very boggy ground and some flooding on the roads.
Just waiting for my monday soap wrapping helper to appear, once she's been I can nip out to buy a drench and pro rumen. Thank you :)
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Sorry to hear about your girl. Wondered if you had taken her temperature? It should be 40c I believe and I think too high often indicates an infection, too low can be due to mineral deficiency. Have you tried tempting her with dandelion leaves or ivy or what ever is her favourite treat? One of my ewes was a bit 'strange' the other day - came to the bucket feeder as usual but didn't really eat anything, however by tea time she was fine so what the problem was I don't know?! I hope a bit of sunshine will perk her up.
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Has she been treated for fluke?
It's a real issue HERE just now because of the wet conditions. Might be worth a call to your vet to see what s/he recommends for your area.
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As well as temperature, check the mucus membranes for colour.
Tooth grinding can be pain, stress, toothache, rough teeth...
Are there any lumps and bumps or sore spots along the jaw, side of the mouth? If she's very tame she'll probably let you see inside her mouth to check she hasn't got a rough or sticky-out bit on a tooth somewhere.
Are her eyes bright and shiny?
Could she have ingested something inappropriate? Knickers off the line, baler twine, a lucozade bottle, a downed firework... ?
Burps and rumbles are encouraging... when you watch her left side, can you see the regular contractions as the rumen contracts in a wave from back to front? Should occur every 30 seconds. You should be able to see and feel it; I find the best spot to watch is the upper flank behind the ribs in front of the hips; the wave starts here and moves forwards.
A drench of natural yoghurt and sunflower oil will do no harm if you can't get out to get some pro-rumen. Add a little ginger if you have some. You should absolutely see and hear the rumen working after this.
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Just been back out to check her temp and she ran off. Didn't want to stress her too much so tried to move her into our little isolation paddock but she's having none of it.
I will treat the above as a hopeful sign for now ;)
membranes are nice and pink. No lumps or bumps and her teeth look ok.
Sally I am in stitches reading your post - its like you have seen inside my house!! I can rule of knickers as have used tumble drier, baler twine is always a possible :-\ lucozade bottle (I have an addiction and am weaning off, hence my giggles!) the firework unlikely despite the ar$e of a neighbour who fires them into our paddocK!
lots of rumbles in the tum. shes now moved down to the hay so fingers crossed she'll keep her rumen working? If she goes 'down' again I'm calling the vet out. will get OH to buy some pro rumen on his way home. I'm still stuck in waiting for someone who may (or may not) turn up to work (think Thelma Madine's programme....welcome to my life!)
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Update - she is now grazing, burping, acting sheep-like and looks 100% phew! thanks for your help today everyone :thumbsup:
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Missed this, but very happy to hear she's feeling more herself now :thumbsup:
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I had a friend picking up hay today, whose pony was off-colour for a couple of days - not eating, lying down, "just not right". Just before calling the vet she had a look around her field and found some mushrooms/fungi had been nibbled.
Pony now fine and back to herself.
It might be worth checking if she's a greedy ewe.
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Just seen this. So glad your girl is acting more sheepy. :fc: she's going to be fine now. They do like to keep us on our toes don't they!
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I didn't see this either, in my unreads. Hope all is fine now. Animals cause so much worry when we care :bouquet:
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Morning all!
well after a bit of an unsettled night (was worried what I would find this morning!) I have found Nimble looking very well and doing all I would expect of her :relief:
I am inclined to believe that she ate something that she shouldn't have so I will be doing a thorough sweep of the land for mushrooms etc and cursing the fireworks/chinese lanterns crew if I find any.
thanks again
Lisa
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Great news :thumbsup:
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Great to hear she's up and running again!
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Glad she's herself again.
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so I will be doing a thorough sweep of the land for mushrooms etc and cursing the fireworks/chinese lanterns crew if I find any
from the NSA today
Defra announces investigation into sky lanterns.
The NSA and other critics of sky lanterns, which are often used at weddings, bonfires and other celebrations, have welcomed news that the Government has launched an independent study to assess the risks sky lanterns pose to livestock, crops and the environment. The study will begin in early 2013 and will also look at what other countries are doing to address the problem, as well as looking at the value of the sky lantern market in England and Wales