The mum of my little festive lamb was never supposed to go to the ram as in the previous year she had a bout of mastitis - she however had other plans and sought him out having missed out on raising any babies earlier in the year.
Anyhow I now have a question, I had assumed that due to the fibrous matter in the affected udder that she would not produce milk on that side but it appears as though she has. The milk has not however come down to the teat and, so far, I have been unable to hand strip her on that side. The lamb is suckling well on the good side and occasionally I see her briefly at the bad side but I am not convinced she gets any milk from the affected side.
I am now concerned that the ewe will get a further bout of mastitis on the bad side and already I think it is slightly warmer and firmer than the good side. I will get on to the vet first thing in the morning so I have antibiotics etc. at the ready 'just in case' but am I panicking prematurely and will the milk just get reabsorbed?