I deliberatley chose two scenarios where rapid administration of antibiotics would give the ewe a good chance of survival and delay would almost certainly lead to death. Most vets are happy to prescribe you bottles of antibiotics to keep in your meds cupboard. I was going to write that there are lots of useful books out there to help with your diagnosis, but to be honest that makes me seem a bit behind the times as there are plenty of useful sites on the internet.
I don't like to overuse antibiotics, and I dont use them in scenarios where people would give them as a matter of course (eg - assisted lambings; I only give them if it has been extended and traumatic, usually when I have had to have my hand in past the knuckles).
It might be daunting to people who are new to stock-keeping, but there will come a time in your stockman/womans career when you have to make the call, and the sooner that happens, the better you will feel about making decisions (especially if you save the animal). Vets are good for advice and mine are dead efficient at ringing back etc, but they still shut on a Sunday. This is one of the things that comes with stockeeping - your decisions are often life or death ones. On the flipside, nobody will blame you if the odd sheep dies, the hardest person on you when that happens is probably going to be yourself. It does happen though - when you take sheep on, theres no avoiding that at some point they WILL get out and some WILL die.
So, I aways have alamycin and often pen and strep in my cupboard. They get used rareley, but Id sooner they were there.