[Dianabooth]

   I have two ewes both with twins who won't feed their babies.  One of the ewes is completely disinterested and we have to hold her so the twins can feed from her- twins are in a small pen right next to her. She tolerates this somewhat but if you leave the babies in with her she just headbutts them & tried to stamp on them.  The babies are now 7 days old!  She has no interest in them whatsoever.

The 2nd ewe, also with twins, is making wickering noises to the babies who are also in a separate pen.  If you put them in the pen with her she is interested in them and will sniff them and show an interest but everytime they go to her udder to feed she either sits down or spins round & headbutts them hard.  As long as they don't try and feed from her she seems to enjoy them.  We have to sit her on her haunches to let them feed.  These twins are 4 days old.

I'm at a loss to know what to do next.  They are all in a lambing shed at the moment but I don't know if I should declare them 'orphan' lambs and start bottle and creep feeding or persevere with putting them to Mum to feed hoping that they will come around & be a 'good' mum.

[devonlad]

we've had some first timers behave like that initially but only for a few hours till they get to grips with what they've got to do. sounds like far too long to assume its going to change. depends how much time you got but looks like they're yours now- certainly the older ones. . Even we (and we're hopeless at making such decisions) might have to consider whether we could cope again with ewes that won't mother up- one way trip ?

[Dianabooth]

Thanks for the advice and yes these 'Mums' won't be kept I'm afraid. 

[DartmoorLiz]

I've had a similar problem when one of our ewes had twins and one got stollen by another ewe.  I tried to reintroduce the stollen lamb to its mum who spent most of her time butting him away but he was able to get some milk from her.  I put a creep area into their pen so lamb had a safe area and could sneek out to feed which he was quite successful at but he just wanted to be loved and mum wasn't interested.  I was training him onto a bottle at the same time and eventually let her out.  Now stollen, rejected and beaten up lamb is afraid of his own shaddow and won't come to a bottle and just wants to be loved so I spent half an hour just sitting in the pen making mother noises at him and he eventually decided I was OK and tried to suck my chin which, with gentle persuasion I transferred to a bottle which he accepted  .  Its not his mother's fault - he was stollen from her when she was imprinting but next time I'll separate them sooner.  To cap it all, the thief ewe developed mastitis and can only feed one of her own twins so I now have 2 orphan lambs - at least they're together.