[feldar]

I understand totally Kanisha, it's very hard especially if you have a small flock and you don't want to loose any. If you have a good vet then i would talk to them. Mine is really good i we often pick his brains.
We spoke to the VLA centre this morning and they want the lambs for research so we are going to buzz them up there to Winchester, any chance of getting a vaccine for this thing and i will do all i can to help.

[Rosemary]

Awful thing this. Hope the rest goes OK - fingers crossed, anyway.

[oaklandspigs]

I was just wondering my one ewe who hasn't been right for some time is probably pregnant but I am concerned that this virus may have caused problems would an ultrasound show the type of deformaties clearly enough to determine if this is the case?. Ouessants are so small I doubt it would be possible to do the sort of manoevering described and I may have no choice but to look at  a caesarian I'(m thinking it may be bett to elect to do one anyway in this ewe if I could tell that the foetus was affected

just updating my thinking on this would it not be better to know in advance those ewes likely to be affected? I am wondering if scanning all the ewes and identifiying those with deformed lambs would save some worry when to comes to lambing being able to have some confidence that there are ewes who can lamb normally and those that may need closer watching.

Annecdotally, we did hear that some people who had sheep scans a while ago told us that their scanning man was having difficulty in telling how many lambs in some cases.  The problem with the deformed lambs is that some/many have all the right bits, but these are fused together, so scan would not show the difference.  Might help in some cases.

[fifixx]

So sorry for you. Thankyou for the detailed description of lambing as it is going to be so difficult if bones are fused.

All of us here in Dorset and the South are worrying about whether our lambs/kids are going be Ok when they are born.

[woollyval]

Very concerned here too as start lambing in less than 2 weeks.....as Kanisha said Ouessants could present even more problems although they do have a fairly wide pelvis for their size.....I am not looking forward to this and am in close contact with my sheep farming neighbours over it  we reckon that if one of us is affected its going to be all of us.....

[YorkshireLass]

Sorry to hear it


It seems to have hit the mainstream news now (headlines on a couple of websites and a section on the lunchtime TV news)

[Fronhaul]

Thinking of you. 

[feldar]

VLA took the lambs said it's hot topic at the moment, i think the more info we can get out there the better so i will keep you all posted of anymore we get. These things are only scary cause we've not seen them before so more knowledge is always good

[Sunnybank]

so sorry to hear, must have been awful but thanks so much for sharing, hope the rest are ok x

[FiB]

Aweful - thinking of you.

[Hazelwood Flock]

Sorry to hear that Feldar, up until now our lot have been fine. I have the last 3 ewes due next week so fingers crossed. I'm hoping that as my lot are shorn fairly early they are pretty woolly by the time they are tupped, so the midges think it's not worth the effort....will know next week. Good luck with the rest of yours, and everyone else for that matter....

[Remy]

That's horrible, so sorry to hear your problems - I hope the others are okay  .  In some ways it's a good thing if your lambs can be useful in the research being done.

Good luck to everyone else in the danger zone, it must be a very worrying time for you all .. 

[RaisinHall Tamworths]

Oh no that's awful 

Hope the rest of your lambing goes ok x

[fifixx]

I wonder what happens when the lamb is born alive but deformed - how do you humanely kill it?  or does someone have to come and do it from the vets?

[colliewoman]

So sorry to hear you news, but thank you for sharing as hard as it must have been
For the first time in my life I am dreading lambing
Good luck everyone x