[Richmond]

So ....  we have had gorgeous weather for a couple of weeks - a tad on the cool side at times but bright, sunny and dry. My in lamb ewes have been looking like beached whales for several days but nothing produced. Today we have sleet and heavy rain forecast with a chill North wind .... and one of the ewes has now decided she is going to have her babies. 
She did the same last year - waited till it was actually snowing and then gave birth.

[SallyintNorth]

We have observed this so many times over the years, with cattle as well as sheep.

Theories include:

•   It's a survival thing; lambs (and calves) which can survive such a start are clearly ultra-hardy and have amazing mothers, so that creates a selection pressure for hardiness and top-notch mothering.   
•   The mums were enjoying the good weather too, why spoil it by bringing the new brats into the world just yet
•   fewer predators, and scents carry less well, in terrible weather, so ewes and cows do choose such conditions in order to reduce predation 
•   fewer flies about (and not conducive to crows either) in such weather, so again, it is a "choice" (evolutionary pressure rather than a conscious decision) with a reason behind it.

Sorry you have this to deal with, best of luck for super mums and super-hardy lambs, and as little extra work for you as possible! 

[Richmond]

Thanks Sally. I trust this ewe. She was a great mum last year so I'm hoping this year will be the same. I am trying not to keep popping out to her but just letting her get on with it. I can see almost all the paddock from the house, except of course the corner she has chosen 
To keep my mind off her, I also have chicks hatching in the incubator and a son poorly with Covid, so plenty to keep me busy

[SallyintNorth]

Good tactics,  But just remember that an unfed lamb will become hypothermic *much* more quickly in wintry weather.  In warm sunshine you might be giving the ewe up to 2 hours to feed her newborns; make that 30 mins max in wintry showers  

[Richmond]

Well I went and made a cake and just as I put it in the oven my husband called me to say the water bag had appeared (he was watching from the window).  She's now the proud mother of twin boys. Both up and wobbling around. First lamb fed v quickly, second took his time but seems to have found the nipple now. Typically the rain started just as lamb no 1 popped out.

[Richmond]

No 2 lamb is not doing so well now. Gone weak and floppy and struggling to stand. ? Hypothermia? No 1 lamb looking strong and suckling well.

[Anke]

No 2 lamb is not doing so well now. Gone weak and floppy and struggling to stand. ? Hypothermia? No 1 lamb looking strong and suckling well.

Is he cold in the mouth? Can he hold up his head? If yes, tube immediately. If not, he will need to be warmed up first, then tubed.


We have decided a few years ago, as we are lambing outside, we do not start until mid-April so our tups do not go in until third week of November. While we often had some foul weather beginning of April as well, with lambs being born in a snow storm, this hasn't happened since we delayed by a couple of weeks. Unless you are planning on selling your lambs by September - starting lambing  two weeks later does not make a difference, and the grass is almost always better mid-April compared to now. (I am not lambing this year though).

[Fleecewife]

Do you have any shelters in your fields ? If you look on www.scothebs.co.uk you will see the kinds of little sheep shelters we have put up.  They are very simple, and the ewes choose whether or not to use them.  Often they will lamb in the open then take the lambs into the shelter after a few hours.  They can be a real life saver, for next season now of course.
I hope the cold lamb pulls through (and the cake)

[Richmond]

Update: One lamb in the house, bottle feeding colostrum which it is taking slowly. The mum and other lamb have been moved into a pig ark with lots of bedding, although its stopped raining now. Hope to reintroduce house lamb in the morning .........

[harmony]

Once you have got your lamb warmed up they need the colostrum as quickly as possible so I would suggest as Anke did that you tube. 

[twizzel]

Tubing a lamb is literally a lifesaver. Also, if the weather is inclement, lamb macs are brilliant. They just keep the wet and wind off very small lambs. Once the ewe has bonded you could always put one on the lambs… they can be a lifesaver too and give you peace of mind as well.

[Richmond]

I don't know how to tube a lamb and am scared of making a mistake. He is taking small amounts from the bottle but not as much as I think he should be getting. He is in my sitting room with a log fire so should be warm enough. However although he can stand up and totter a little way he then falls over and does lots of flailing. I'm not sure if this is general weakness due to lack of nutrition or something else. He just seems quite uncoordinated.
One shepherd I know gave me the colostrum but he is busy with 600 ewes and the other chap I know just said he couldnt help he was too busy.  Frustrating but everyone around here are commercial farmers, they don't seem to have time for the smallholders.
If he's still with me in the morning I shall get him to the vet but am not hopeful. Am v tired. 

[twizzel]

Ok, so the fail safe method I use for stomach tubing (lambs and calves, works for both). Your tube is a rigid pipe. The lamb has a windpipe (rigid) and soft oesophagus which leads to stomach. Sit on a bucket, and hold the lamb between your legs, with his back legs dangling down. Put the tube in the left side of his mouth and let him swallow it down. Then roll your finger over his neck- you should be able to feel 2 rigid tubes. If you can only feel 1, the stomach tube is in the airway. If you can feel 2, it’s gone down into the stomach. Works for calves too. I have a trusti tuber for lambs and have tubed countless lambs and none of them have drowned, just always check for 2 rigid pipes/tubes before you put any liquid in. It’s daunting but anyone lambing sheep really needs to know how to do it.

[harmony]

Good advice from twizzel.


It's a do or die situation. If he doesn't get enough colostrum quickly enough then he isn't going to live. So you have nothing to lose by having a go. When you have inserted the tube and it is in the stomach the lamb should  be content and possibly chewing on it. If it is struggling and coughing then it is not in the stomach so try again. You can measure the tube against the lamb to go how long it needs to be to be in the stomach.


Commercial farmers are flat out but maybe just pop the lamb in the car and go round. Tubing is something that  takes very little time so if you go to them then you aren't going to be holding them up long.


Ask your vet about a lambing course. Even though there is little they will be able to do for him now it would be worth going in and getting them to show you how to insert the tube.


Ask your busy farmer if you could shadow them and give them an extra pair of hands for a morning.

[Penninehillbilly]

How is the lamb Richmond ?
I've found the quickest way to warm a lamb is to wrap a couple of bottles of hot water in a towel, put the lamb on top of them to warm it's belly/core area.
Another way I've read is to put one in a plastic bag with its head stuck out, immerse on a bucket/tub of warm water, so surrounded by the heat but dry.