Author Topic: Iodine stained fingers (Read 4716 times)

Fleecewife · « **on:** April 01, 2011, 11:04:42 pm »

Bang on time I have iodine stained fingers

Gladstone Annette, our oldest polled* Hebridean and Gladstone Laughing Boy my avatar, who is now quite elderly, between them produced twin 4-horned tup lambs today, a day earlier than expected

They may both be elderly but they certainly weren't slow to make a start back in November

Annette lambed in her chosen place - my OH's newly built field shelter - and both lambs were up and sucking within minutes, once I'd dunked the cords in the Colman's mint sauce jar of 10% iodine. Now they are both tagged with their temporary lamb tags, Annette has cleansed, the dogs are happy

, lambs bouncing around and have full bellies. Annette tried to persuade them to come out this evening as she wanted to graze in spite of the bowl of Tup 'n' Lamb mix she has had and several Digestives as a treat, but they took one look at the weather - howling drizzle-spattered gale - and decided inside the shelter was fine for them, thanks. We are particularly pleased all has gone well with Annette as we haven't bred her for the last 3 years but she has forgotten none of her past experience. Here's hoping they are ok overnight.
*polled Hebrideans are very rare with probably fewer than 10 registered.

I down - 23 to go

SallyintNorth · « **Reply #1 on:** April 02, 2011, 12:15:22 am »

Congratulations and may all your lambing continue so successfully!

kanisha · « **Reply #2 on:** April 02, 2011, 07:30:05 am »

nice one

still waiting here next week i reckon

jaykay · « **Reply #3 on:** April 02, 2011, 08:25:37 am »

Excellent

I start next weekend, so I'm jealous too

kaz · « **Reply #4 on:** April 02, 2011, 08:32:46 am »

Congrats. i'm coming to my last two.

bazzais · « **Reply #5 on:** April 02, 2011, 12:00:59 pm »

Dogs are happy

lol

Gives them a lovely shiny coat and makes the mucking out alot less smelly after!!

Love it!

Baz

Fleecewife · « **Reply #6 on:** April 02, 2011, 02:29:18 pm »

We had less success overnight with a first time lamber fresh from the fatlands of England. Her twins were tiny and sadly one didn't make it. The survivor is ok and feeding but tiny too. This is one of the problems of importing stock to an area with a very different climate - fine looking stock from areas with an easy climate can struggle when they come back to their native land, especially into the harsh winter we have had

. We knew this but were keen to get this particular bloodline. Still, she has one beautiful ewe lamb which she should raise without any problems, whereas she might have struggled with the two - I'm telling myself that to feel better about losing one

She should have made the adjustment by next season.

Annette and her twins are out in today's sunshine, doing what sheep do

Jaykay - I would rather mine had waited a day or two for that horrible wind and rain to go by but it is great to have lambs.
Baz - they are even happier today

and still had the appetite to dig out and catch a gofer (bank vole)

Good luck to everyone with their lambing

piggy · « **Reply #7 on:** April 02, 2011, 02:38:24 pm »

Hi,
Really sorry to read about your loss,know how you must be feeling

On a happier note my twins are doing well it was 1 of each so im pleased,no more lambs as yet.

Karen

robate55 · « **Reply #8 on:** April 02, 2011, 04:32:58 pm »

We are now into lambing 4 twins so far.
Rose

Fleecewife · « **Reply #9 on:** April 02, 2011, 05:13:28 pm »

Quote from: piggy on April 02, 2011, 02:38:24 pm

Hi,
Really sorry to read about your loss,know how you must be feeling
On a happier note my twins are doing well it was 1 of each so im pleased,no more lambs as yet.

Karen

Thank you Karen. There is always a space, like a ghost lamb, when the lambs are frolicking when one has died, but I just concentrate on those which have survived. It's sad for the survivor that she doesn't have her sister - the sibling bond is stronger in sheep than the mother-offspring one, at least after the first few weeks. She is the only lamb in that paddock so far - she is so wobbly that every time she tries to skip she falls over

She's getting stronger by the minute though

I'm glad your twins are doing well - they are such fun
Juliet

Fleecewife · « **Reply #10 on:** April 02, 2011, 05:16:51 pm »

Quote from: robate55 on April 02, 2011, 04:32:58 pm

We are now into lambing 4 twins so far.
Rose

I'm glad it's going ok. I love pics of Hebbie lambs

I will try to post some tonight

suziequeue · « **Reply #11 on:** April 02, 2011, 07:24:38 pm »

Ha - yes.

We had our first lamb today. We were expecting the first to start arriving on 11th April but this one arrived at about midday today!!!

God - what a panic. I was convinced the milk wasn't coming through so we got the ewe and her lamby into a smaller paddock and checked her teats. One was full - the other empty - so I expect number ten (good sized boy) had already been to one side of the milk bar.

Iodine went everywhere so have my fist iodine stained fingers :-D

andywalt · « **Reply #12 on:** April 02, 2011, 08:43:30 pm »

Sorry to hear about the loss fleecewife, such a shame !! wish you all the best for the ones to come, i have just started my second batch

Fleecewife · « **Reply #13 on:** April 02, 2011, 08:59:05 pm »

Hey Suziequeue - that's a corker of a lamb

He looks two weeks old already

My tinies are about the size of his head

Thank you Andy - so many people are having strange lambings after the hard winter. We are used to weather like that, but not at tupping time and not for so long and it is maybe showing its effects. We'll all see as lambing proceeds. I hope your phase two goes well and that the first lot are growing fast