The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Sheep => Topic started by: Twotwo on November 26, 2020, 03:07:50 pm
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I have ram lamb - 8 months, who has got the very bad scours... he was moved on to wet grass and was very lose but seem to get better. He then got a taste for the mineral bucket containing molasses and basically O D-ed on it and his rumen has stopped working. The vet says electrolytes but nothing with sugar in it...so no twin lamb booster sugar beat etc I had tried yogurt but I think it made it worse. At the moment he is down with hay on offer. Snug in a pen in field with shelter.
The vet is reluctant to give painkillers as can damage kidneys until he has more fluids. He has been wormed recently and the vet doesn’t think it’s Coccidiosis. Vets are well regarded farm vets with lots of sheep knowledge.
Any thoughts!!
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Fluke?
Has the vet tested a sample of poo for worms and cocci? If he was wormed you could have wormer resistance if there are still worm eggs present so I’d do a sample ASAP.
If his rumen has stopped working that’s bad news and he might be past saving. If the vet is well regarded then follow their advice as they’ve seen the animal
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Sadly but not unexpected the lamb has died. My questions - to myself- are should I have penned him up and talked to the vet earlier (probably) / not given him any yogurt /got another F E C done rather than worming him ... but I had the drench already .... etc etc
I will get F E C done on the other lambs - although they have been separate. They were all wormed 8 weeks ago following a F E C and there was no sign of coccidiosis or fluke, with a low worm count, Nematodirus where present but not in high numbers (neither coccidiosis or fluke have been seen on our land and we have had livers from older sheep with no sign of fluke).
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I wouldn't rule out enterotoxaemia, as his food changed very quickly for much "nicer stuff" and he may not have been able to handle it. Was he Heptavacced/Lambivacced?
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Good point... yes he was vaccinated and the field he was in isn’t overgrazed but earlier in the autumn they where all slightly stressed as I was in hospital and took my eye off the ball for a bit ......don’t worry they where looked after but not moved on as soon as they should. Hence my worries re worm burden !
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you said rumen stopped ..... didn't vet offer you a rumen starter (cant remember its name) I was given some for my goats when they tried poisoning themselves