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Author Topic: New Smallholder!! Love my sheep but 1 keeps limping?  (Read 6144 times)

pinkvisla1

  • Joined Mar 2014
New Smallholder!! Love my sheep but 1 keeps limping?
« on: March 21, 2014, 10:07:47 am »
My poor Winnie keeps limping, a few weeks ago it started I left it a week and called our local shearer to come and have a look.  He didn't notice anything and said not to give her a jab at this stage and that she would get better on her own.  she didn't and he came back and gave her in an injection and left the 2nd jab for us to give her.  After about a week all look good.

BUT today shes limping again and hopping around our field kneeling down to eat??

Why does she keep limping??

What should I do?  Is it painful for her?

the others are fine???

 2 weeks ago we trimmed all thier feet. not hot? no funny smells??
wormed them

Laura

Please help

twizzel

  • Joined Apr 2012
Re: New Smallholder!! Love my sheep but 1 keeps limping?
« Reply #1 on: March 21, 2014, 10:31:51 am »
She could have an abscess brewing, I would spray her foot with blue spray just incase and watch for an abscess. Or is it further up her elf, could she have hurt her shoulder or knee? We had a weaned lamb like this last year and it cleared up after 3 day course of antibiotics.

chonty

  • Joined Sep 2013
  • Herefordshire
Re: New Smallholder!! Love my sheep but 1 keeps limping?
« Reply #2 on: March 21, 2014, 11:25:43 am »
Is her foot hot? Have you had a really close look not just for the obvious ie scald and footrot but biys of hay straw thorns etc?

I would catch, reinspect, spray with terramycin, and if foot hot abx.

pinkvisla1

  • Joined Mar 2014
Re: New Smallholder!! Love my sheep but 1 keeps limping?
« Reply #3 on: March 21, 2014, 11:54:16 am »
I did telephone my vet and they would not give me anticbiotics with out seeing her, they wanted to come out and quoted a huge cost! even though they are 5 mins in the car away!

They guy i use for shearing came out to us with 1 injection which he gave the sheep and one he left with us £10 a shot i thought this was fair.  But is 2 shots not a full course??

Do you have to be a registered small holder/ farmer before vets will just sell you antibotics/ or Terramycin foot spray? I have a CPH number?

Been offered small orphaned lambs to raise as pets do i have to let my local council know to add to my CPH??

We keep sheep purely as pets.

Everytime a sheep limps i get all worried

twizzel

  • Joined Apr 2012
Re: New Smallholder!! Love my sheep but 1 keeps limping?
« Reply #4 on: March 21, 2014, 11:57:38 am »
If your vet doesn't know you then they will probably want to come out and see you to dispense antibiotics. Once they get to know you some may dispense over the phone, seems to happen more with large animal than small.
You should register your sheep with a local vet anyway in case of emergency treatment, and any orphan lambs should be put in your movement book when they arrive and leave your holding and relevent movement forms (AML1) should be filled out too before transporting them.
I have always given a 3 day course of anitbiotics for anything looking under the weather.

pinkvisla1

  • Joined Mar 2014
Re: New Smallholder!! Love my sheep but 1 keeps limping?
« Reply #5 on: March 21, 2014, 12:08:40 pm »
Yes registered with my vet in the very early days when 1 got fly strike, i know more about this now and have this under control.

So they do know me through my dogs also.

How much is a three day course of antibiotics from a vet?  ish?

Marches Farmer

  • Joined Dec 2012
  • Herefordshire
Re: New Smallholder!! Love my sheep but 1 keeps limping?
« Reply #6 on: March 21, 2014, 12:20:54 pm »
OK, how about checking her out thoroughly before any more a/bs?  Get someone to hold her steady and, using both hands on both legs, start from the top and close your eyes!  This will allow you to really concentrate on what you're feeling.  Feel down the leg, gently and slowly, working around the joints and bones.  Feeling the good leg at the same time as the limping one gives you a reference point for swelling, heat and so on. 

If there's nothing obvious put some warm water in an old basin and keep the foot in it for a few minutes, until any mud can easily be wiped away with a bit of old duster or similar.  Resoak the foot if necessary.  Now have a look, particularly between the clees.  Is there any pinkness (use a good foot for reference), any mud or a stone or piece of straw stuck under the edge of the horn?  Feel around the top of the horn too, where the hair on the legs covers it. The hair may be hiding a small thorn or abscess. 

If she recovered and is now limping again it's most likely something completely new.

chonty

  • Joined Sep 2013
  • Herefordshire
Re: New Smallholder!! Love my sheep but 1 keeps limping?
« Reply #7 on: March 21, 2014, 12:36:03 pm »
It is normal for a vet to do a 'farm visit' in order for them to give meds if you are a new large animal customer. Regardless of being a previous small animal customer. They will then normally dispense over the phone after a quick chat especially if its for routine things. As for abx courses it depends what abx and what you are treating. Also £10 per shot! Ouch.

Now I also do not believe in giving abx needlessly ( resistance etc) so it is really important to tip her and have a really good look. Youd be surprised. The smallest thing can really irritate them! If you cant feel any swelling, differences with good legs, foreign bodies, heat etc. Just watch and wait and see how she does over the next few days.

ZaktheLad

  • Joined Aug 2012
  • Thornbury, Nr Bristol
Re: New Smallholder!! Love my sheep but 1 keeps limping?
« Reply #8 on: March 21, 2014, 12:43:43 pm »
Agree about checking out all other possibilities before going down the antibiotic route.  These do seem to be used too readily and seen as quick fix for everything.  Whilst I agree they are good to have in stock, using them as a matter of routine is not the answer.  Perhaps I have just been lucky in that I have not had to reason to inject antibiotics on any of my sheep for over 5 years but often reading on posts "inject with some pen & strep" etc does make me wonder if this is just leading to the antibiotics being overused and therefore not being so efficient in the long run.   

Obviously there are instances when antibiotics should be used - i.e. after an assisted lambing, but sometimes taking a step back and looking at other treatments rather than running for the syringe and abs can be a good path to take. 

in the hills

  • Joined Feb 2012
Re: New Smallholder!! Love my sheep but 1 keeps limping?
« Reply #9 on: March 21, 2014, 01:23:38 pm »
Can you take your sheep to the vet rather than having the vet out? Much less cost that way. Only had one sheep need a shot of antibiotics from the vet. We took her and treatment was not expensive compared to treatment for small animals. It's the call out that costs.

smallflockshearing

  • Joined Jul 2013
  • Devon
Re: New Smallholder!! Love my sheep but 1 keeps limping?
« Reply #10 on: March 21, 2014, 01:25:04 pm »
Forgive my intrusiveness, but the coincidence with foot trimming seems too close to be true.  May have been cut back too hard, which can lead to granuloma.  You need to check the hoof thoroughly.

The first action has to be to turn her over and have a good look and feel for stones, clods, etc - clean it out thoroughly.  Check for pink skin, loose hoof wall, unusual structure, blood.  If you find something obvious, that's what it is, and it'll save you a vet bill and more unnecessary ABs.  Good luck!
Carefully shearing small flocks throughout the South-West.

Sbom

  • Joined Jul 2012
  • Staffordshire
Re: New Smallholder!! Love my sheep but 1 keeps limping?
« Reply #11 on: March 21, 2014, 01:48:43 pm »
Whereabouts are you? Might be someone on here near enough to pop over and show you how to check properly.......
If it came on suddenly there might just be a bit of mud dried hard between the toes, this makes them surprisingly lame. Worth checking.

pinkvisla1

  • Joined Mar 2014
Re: New Smallholder!! Love my sheep but 1 keeps limping?
« Reply #12 on: March 22, 2014, 09:40:49 am »
So helpful on this site, i'm so greatfull for all the advise.

So from what I've read, it does seem like maybe when my shearer man first came out he did the correct thing inspected and trimmed foot, he did not feel that antic biotics was the answer and felt that these were given out too readily.  It was was me that called him back after no improvement and he then gave her a shot and gave me one to give a few days later.

I did notice he trimmed the hoof right back (really short) and said that i should never do this without proper training ( i wouldn't dare anyway) I just like to trim.

So the mention of Granuloma?? whats that?? must google it!

so i think ill get out there when my husband gets back and we will have a good look and feel along the leg, but the hoof did look loose (nail moving away-splayed) from the pad, should i wash with warm water, what should i put in the water??? and remove all the mud.dirt and any stones etc, give her a good blue spray and I should notice an improvement.

I guess everyone has trouble with sheep feet-hooves??


SallyintNorth

  • Joined Feb 2011
  • Cornwall
  • Rarely short of an opinion but I mean well
    • Trelay Cohousing Community
Re: New Smallholder!! Love my sheep but 1 keeps limping?
« Reply #13 on: March 22, 2014, 09:51:52 am »
Eblex have a cracking document on causes and treatment of lameness in sheep, with good pictures too.

Download Manual 7 - Reducing lameness for better returns from the Health and Fertility Publications page.

Amongst all the other foot problems, there's a really good pic of a granuloma, and also a pic of shelley hoof, which is where the outer layer of the hoof comes away at the white line. 
Don't listen to the money men - they know the price of everything and the value of nothing

Live in a cohousing community with small farm for our own use.  Dairy cows (rearing their own calves for beef), pigs, sheep for meat and fleece, ducks and hens for eggs, veg and fruit growing

Marches Farmer

  • Joined Dec 2012
  • Herefordshire
Re: New Smallholder!! Love my sheep but 1 keeps limping?
« Reply #14 on: March 22, 2014, 09:55:17 am »
If the horn around the edge of the clee is loose it's probably Shelly Hoof.  Mud gets pushed up under the edge (especially this Winter when the hoof wall has been soft due to SO much rain).  It's more likely to happen if your sheep are in the habit of using fence wire as a stepladder to get to interesting bits of hedge, as coming down off the wire can pull the horn away a little. If you gently clean out the mud and spray with Footmaster Violet or blue a/b spray, you've done all you can.  If it's not too extensive it will almost certainly grow out in a few months.

Granuloma is generally casued by over-trimming - rather like wearing too-tight shoes causes a blister to form and protect the rubbed area.  A granuloma bleeds easily, however.

 

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