[Foobar]

Okay, I have a ewe, who for whatever reason didn't do so well after lambing - she started to shed her wool (starting at spine and working downwards) about a month or two before lambing, and by a couple of weeks after lambing it was practically all shed.  Wasn't sure of the cause of the shedding, treated for lice and scab as my neighbours sheep looked quite iffy.  After lambing she seemed to bloat up a lot, which I treated her for about three of four times.  Eventually the bloating stopped.
Ever since then though she's had like a big belly, which looks to slosh around when she walks (waddles).
In hindsight I should have given her some rumen stimulant when she started the bloating business.
Other things of note, for some reason she bleated very loudly every time she strained whilst giving birth (non of my other sheep have ever done that).  She was a first time lamber (2yr old).  Lambs weren't abnormally large or anything.  She's a greedy guts, throughout all of that her eating and pooing was fine. The lambs haven't done as well as all my other lambs, although they did have a spot of orf in the first month, but not badly, she had it on her teats a bit, but she still let them suckle ok.  Nice big udders actually.  Started on Heptevac pre-lambing, jan & feb doses.  Lambed late march.



So, do I need to worry about the sloshing belly?

[shep53]

Hard to tell without seeing , look up ASCITES see if any thing fits, very rare but iv'e seen it 3 times

[Foobar]

Hmm, possibly.  I was originally thinking some sort of chronic acidosis.  I think that she has been slowly improving over the summer, she now just looks a bit portly.  She was already quite low hung anyway, so I guess that makes it look worse than perhaps it is.


How did you treat those cases that you've seen shep53?  Or was it a matter of determining what the original trigger was?

[SallyintNorth]

I've never heard of ASCITES before so looked it up.  Looks like it is often as a result of liver problems - for which in a sheep, you would suspect fluke.

Sadly once fluke have damaged a sheep's liver you can't repair it, but at least, if she hasn't been fluked recently it wouldn't hurt to fluke her.

 

[Foobar]

She was fluked from October last year until May this, and is otherwise healthy, and putting on weight .

[shep53]

I know you won't want to hear it , but if she is at the moment healthy and gaining condition I would sell her now before any serious problems arise.     Couple of points  _ sheep in the early stages of liver damage ( as with  people ) can put on weight   ROBERT BAKEWELL used water meadows to fatten killing sheep .  There is no cure for ascites the fluid builds up in the abdomen over a long period until the sheep   can no longer stand because of the weight  .   Because liver flukes do physical damage to the liver it can actually heal it's self  unlike liver disease's which it can't repair  (my wife has liver damage so have had many discussions with specalists

[violet]

Hi, cann't add anything to the sloshy belly.
But one of my ewes cried out this year while lambing, for the first time. I was concerned, but by the time I'd got my kit & returned she was OK. When I looked it up, thought it might have been ringwomb ( or something like that without checking) - it's where the womb constricts at the neck & makes it difficult for the ewe to lamb - I think they usually may need assistance, but this time I didn't need too - will just keep an eye on her next time just in case.

[Foobar]

Hmm, interesting idea about ringwomb.  I shall keep an eye on her at lambing time, and I will be keeping an eye on her weight over winter too.  I think she's just a fatty .