The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Sheep => Topic started by: Missy on March 19, 2018, 08:11:42 am
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This is a first for me - early hours of this morning 4 lambs born to my ryeland ewe. First 2 tiny and took a bit of reviving - 3rd tiny but ok and 4th quite big and stuck with one front leg behind again. Made sure all had colostrum and 6.30 this am - fed 2 who looked the most shivery. Under heat lamp. One doesnt look that bright I must admit.
Is there anything else I should do. I cant foster one on to anything as triplets and twins.
I thought I would just feed whichever one of the quads looks most in need or would you separate and feed two?#
I always worry that I have damaged the ewe as I did have to pull quite hard with the last one.
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I've never had any success leaving triplets on ewes. My experience is that the ewe gets pulled down very fast, or that the realises she didn't have enough milk and abandons/rejects a lamb. I've had that rejection happen at up to 2 weeks old. It was sad to see.
Any triplets I take the smallest one off, or if there's a choice I'd take the ewe lamb and put it in a dog crate with a heat lamp for a couple of days until its used to the bottle.
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You can pull quite hard and not damage a ewe. It's when you go rooting around inside to find a lamb/leg/head that the damage can occur. It would be worth giving her a jab of metacam and antibiotics just to be on the safe side. Anything that's had a hard lambing/intervention (more than just a pull) here gets it as soon as possible. Growing triplets/quads can take it out of a ewe just the pregnancy alone, so I wouldn't ever turn a ewe out with more than 2 lambs. Seen it happen with leaving triplets on a ewe and not only do you end up with 3 small lambs at the end of summer but a ewe that's been run down and the risk of mastitis. I had a set of triplets this year took the biggest lamb off to leave 2 even sized lambs. Big lamb is flying on a bottle and the other 2 are doing very well on the ewe.
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Owning my 'Like' of twizzel's post. I'd absolutely take at least two off. a) they'll be company for each other - a solitary bottle lamb won't do as well as one that has company of its own kind. b) Like twiz, I have many times had problems with a triplets mum, sometimes the pregnancy and birth takes so much out of them they're better off left with just a single, frankly.
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I'd leave a matching size pair on the ewe and bottle feed the others. I recommend cutting an old sweatshirt into suitable size rectangles, cutting two T-shaped holes for the front legs and putting jackets on them - it makes a huge difference to survivability over the first three days. I'd also continue feeding colostrum to the tinies for 24 hours - the high energy value will benefit. Feed small amounts often. A Pritchard teat is often easier for tinies to manage.