[smee2012]

Our second (of four) ewes was in early labour at around 2am this morning but seemed absolutely fine, still wandering with the others and eating grass. We checked her every couple of hours but she still seemed fine but we were thinking that she really ought to have had something happen by this stage. At about 8ish I decided to go and lay her down so I could have a bit of a poke around inside and disappointingly, I could feel three feet and a nose. I didn't think this was something I could realistically deal with on my own (as it was my hubby who did the lambing course) so I called a neighbouring sheep farmer to see if he could lend a hand. He confirmed that it was three feet and a nose and got to work feeling around to sort them out. He managed to get a rope over the front one and pull out the first lamb - she's a cracker! - and then got the second out. Sadly that one had managed to kick its cord off (or something) and so had drowned in utero - it was a good big lamb too.

It took our ewe about an hour to get up - she had licked her lamb a bit but didn't want to get up, I think she must have been exhausted. I hand fed her some nuts and left her for a while - in the meantime the lamb was wandering up and down the field, bleating madly and attempting to nurse from the remaining pregnant ewes, who were having none of it. Eventually the ewe got up, much to the joy of her lamb but she just ran (waddled) away. I managed to coral her into our temporary bonding pen and she had a good drink and some chopped grass. Eventually I had to hold her in order to let the poor lamb nurse but we got there eventually. She's much more interested in it now and has eaten, drunk and is making those lovely noises. Hopefully they'll be fine now.

[Bionic]

I think we had the same problem with the second of our twins. Mum and remaining baby seem to be getting on well though. Let's hope that yours is just as successful 

[ZaktheLad]

  Hope they continue to bond well.  Horrible when you put your hand in and can feel something like 3 legs or 2 heads or 4 feet - my first thought is something like..."sh*t".   Your quick thinking in getting a helping hand to assist is brilliant and so glad you got the one lamb out alive.  Sounds as if she is a little fighter if she is running about the field making a fuss when her Mum wouldn't get up for her to feed.   

[Hellybee]

We too had such a situation, a beautiful big ewe lamb, sooo sad, is it the ewes first time, can take them a little while to catch on, lambing can really spin them out, you did the right thing cupping her, hope everything goes well now on in x