[moprabbit]

I know sheep are notorious for going lame! One of my 2 year old ewes has been lame now for about 5 days on her left back leg.  I've checked her hooves and they seem fine, checked for scald (sprayed with algymycin just in case) and felt all down her legs. There might be some slight heat just above her hoof so I wondered if she might have sprained it? As she walks she limbs, but if anyone throws food into the field she still mangaes to run for it!! She does spend more time sitting down thatn the others. I've bought something called Battles Embrocation which says its for soft swellings, strains and sprains to muscles and tendons and should be applied twice a day for 5 to 6 days. But I just wondered if anyone had any other ideas to help? Thank you 

[Haylo-peapod]

Has the ewe lambed - if so, have you also checked her udder to make sure she hasn't got mastitis as this can lead to lameness.

If it were one of mine I would spray it with Linco Spectin - almost always seems to work on my bunch - albeit I do understand that you may not want to invest £90 on a small tub.

If there's an infection, the warmth may be a sign that there is, she might need some anti-biotics to resolve the problem.

[moprabbit]

Thanks for your reply Haylo - peapod. No she's not lambed. The Linco Spectin sounds good but expensive!!!

[Haylo-peapod]

The Linco Spectin sounds good but expensive!!!

It is expensive, especially when you only have a handful of sheep, but is does last forever and the use by date is pretty long (at least 5 years). We just put a teaspoon of the powder into a spray bottle so it is on hand if we ever need to attend to any feet.  In most instances the sheep are as right as rain within a day or two.  The LS also helps keep the feet a bit firmer - at one point ours had very mulchy feet from the wet ground but they are a lot more solid now, albeit they are also on better draining ground now.

As I mentioned you might just find that she needs an injection to clear up an infection. Do you have any anti-biotics on hand?

[moprabbit]

Yes Haylo - peapod I have Pen & Strep on hand. Might think about LS though! Where do you get it from?

[Haylo-peapod]

I think we had to get it from our vet. Which 'might' be tricky if you only have sheep as it isn't 'licensed' for them. Do you have poultry? It's officially designed for respiritory diseases in poultry.