[FiB]

As the surprising births keep happening (6 weeks before the official ram went in ...) I'm moving twins and mums to fresh field....  I leave them a day to bond, then move lambs  ( letting her keep them in sight at all times) and ewe follows. No probs so far, but this mornings new mum just won't follow....  Don't want to try too many times... Would you just leave her in same field for today and try again in the morning? I want to give her extra rations, but just get mobbed by other ewes.  She is mothering,  just doesn't seem as tightly attached as the others....

[mowhaugh]

She'll be fine until tomorrow, so if you feel it i the right thing to do to let her settle again then try again tomorrow, I would go with that.  How are you moving them? I tend to find the easiest way (sorry if I am teaching my granny to suck eggs!) is to pick up the lamb by the back legs, then sort of walk/drag lamb along with front legs on ground, head facing ewe - lambs should bleat, ewe can see/touch lamb, and almost always follows either to new space, or into trailer, depending on how far we are going.  Doesn't sound very nice when I describe it like that, but it is only for a very short time and does the job.

[FiB]

Many thanks... Managed to move her in the end - I will try that method... I've been holding them under front armpits, facing ewe and walking backwards . Killing on me back!  She still doesn't seem the best of mothers - maybe the twins thing is a it of a shock for her!  She favours one, but not enough for me to be sure and pet lamb one...  Have managed to sneak some warm colustrum in that one, so hopefully that will give it a fighting chance. 

[in the hills]

Most of our Soay have followed ..... very strong mothering instinct though me thinks! The odd one that got 'confused' - I caught hold of ewe and 'walked' her into desired field and my daughter carried lamb. Seem to remember you may have a little pair of helping hands there FiB. 

[FiB]

Yes and he is bril ( even after being thoroughly shat on  ) but I couldn't get near this mum to catch and didn't want to chase around...  There's always one!  Ah well, she's in the right place now... Just in the dilemma of leave/intervene with poorer twin.... Erring on the side of leave to nature, but know the guilt will be a killer if that doesn't work out....

[bluetooth]

the best method is hold the lambs front lefts between the knees and ankles keeping the back legs just off the floor. this puts its back end (where the mother would smell naturally) in the best place for the ewe to smell.
if the ewe doesn't follow very well with this method slow down and if that doesn't work lie the lambs on the floor keeping hold of front lets making lamb type noises, patience (a bloody lot of it)is required to get them to figure it out sometimes. then there's the bloody head cases usually first time lambs that wont follow whatever you do.

[FiB]

D'you know I forgot about making noises! I knew that last year, what a dollop!  Well last light found the poor lamb in same place with a cold inside of mouth, mum near but snuggled up with other one... So I brought it in. God I hate making this decision ( and I hate bottle feeding), might be that she knew it was not right etc... Couldn't leave it out getting colder though

[Bramblecot]

Maybe you can foster it onto another one?

[Marches Farmer]

As one of our favourite farmers says every lambing season - you've got to do your best for them, whatever it takes.  After all, you're the one that put the ram in the field!

[FiB]

As one of our favourite farmers says every lambing season - you've got to do your best for them, whatever it takes.  After all, you're the one that put the ram in the field!

Yep, so true.... As a novice there is always the worry of intervening where you were shouldn't have, and getting so close in your observations that you make something happen that wouldn't have ( rejection), but a cold inside of mouth is something that shouldn't be, so in front of the stove he is......

[Hellybee]

You ve done the right thing FiB, hope the little bug is doing well xx

[mowhaugh]

Yep, if it was cold in its mouth, you've definitely done the right thing.

[SallyintNorth]

Absolutely, cold mouth = intervene. 

But... If I had an inexperienced ewe failing to follow her lambs after 24 hours, especially if I was a bit worried about her having bonded with both, I think I might have penned that family for 24 hours and then checked that she was mothering both lambs properly.  It's a bit of extra work, yes - but less work than bottle-rearing a lamb   Sometimes it does take a little longer, and some ewes don't realise they have to count to two  ...

[FiB]

  Hello lambing night dwellers! Yes I did try penning on fileld but she wouldn't go near the pen, so  I was tettering between persisting with this (chasing her down)-and watching her.  Disadvantages of bucket training and no dog......


She is second time mum( no probs last year) but first twins. Little bug(ger) still alive, lust for milk, but rattley after it as if he has inhaled some. Even though he is sucking properly... so I think there is something wrong mYbe cleft pallet or some other connection between windpipe and oesophogus.... Time will tell. But he's warm and behaving normally other tha that, so all I can ask for. Mad rain out tonight, so glad I bought him in.

[Hellybee]

Good to hear he's ok, I too worry about inhalation, just keep an eye on it he should dry up, maybe have a good sneeze that would get t moving, it doesn't necessarily mean there a defect, just sometimes it happens, either a lamb mis times a suck or a greedy lamb may do it xx