The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Sheep => Topic started by: JedM on June 14, 2017, 06:49:19 pm
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I think one of my ewes has got mastitis. Checked on the sheep earlier and she was standing away from the others and not looking well. I noticed one of her teats is hard, but milk still comes out. I gave her Alamycin, but read since that you can inject this into the udder. I cant find any info on where to inject or how?!? Has anyone any experience? Thanks
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You need to ask vet for tube for udder
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Ok thanks, I will phone vets tomorrow, but thought there may be a way of injecting it myself.
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Not unless you are experienced... I wouldn't have used Alamycin for mastitis - Pen&Strep, or Noroclav much better.
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You'll need a better antibiotic and a tube of antibiotic that you dispense through the hole into the teat. My vets would dispense over the phone. If she has twins I'd take one off. I'd also try and strip out the milk to release the pressure.
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Does the milk look normal or watery or lumpy? Is the udder itself hard and hot, or just the teat? How old are the lambs? I'd be inclined to wean off the lambs as soon as practical and send her to cull once the meds. withdrawal is past.
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For the first time this year we got zactran from our vets for a ewe with mastitis - it worked very well, so its worth asking your vets about this. Much better than alamycin.
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Have used oxytetracycline into the muscle and the udder for 20yrs and it works ok , very rare to have an udder split open and often save the quarter , but for the last 2yrs move to Draxxin ( similar to zactran ) and Loxicom pain killer and anti inflammatory , smaller doses but less repeat injections
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Thanks all.
Vets gave me a dosage of pen & strep.
She has twins and they are 12 weeks old, I can't get any milk from her udder and don't think they can either. The lambs are fine on grass now but would I still need to separate them from mother?
The udder is hard, and huge but doesn't feel hot. The small amount of liquid I managed to get from her was brown and watery - then nothing else would come.
She doesn't look well at all, just hoping the meds sort it.
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I'd definitely not breed her again, mastitis is very difficult to cure in sheep. Really she would need tubing twice a day with teat tubes to have any chance. Sounds to far gone to me..
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Personally I would take the lambs away - they can survive perfectly well now and she would be better without them trying to suckle.
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You will need to repeat the pen&strep at least daily, unless it is an LA? I would definitely take the lambs away as others have said, and a painkiller/NSAID - flunixin or loxicom - would make her feel much better. Again I give flunixin daily until they feel better (for mastitis in goats).
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remove her from lambs and onto poor ground and get here gone as a cull asap. Fairest thing for all.