[OhLaLa]

The 3rd triplet has died in the night. When checked last night he was doing little leaps around his mum, this morning dead.

Now I have a ewe very heavy with milk and no lambs for her.

Advice please, 

[Pedwardine]

Oh God that's awful. Poor ewe.
Having never experienced a complete loss with a full udder I haven't any firm advice but I'm sure some wise soul on here will help very soon. 

[Cluckinggoodpoultry]

Really sorry to hear this, Is there anyone else that has orphan lambs that you could twin on to her, the farmers usually ring around each other to see and you could also ask your feed merchant if local if he knows of any. You need to do something to prevent her getting mastitis as she is producing milk and has nothing suckling from her, usually the best way is to find another lamb

[Bionic]

OhLaLa, I can't help but am very sorry to hear that you have lost the last little one 

[OhLaLa]

I'm off to see the vet this morning. I haven't a clue what has caused this.

The field has been kept empty for weeks to help ensure it was 'fresh', likewise, their shelter had fresh bedding, is bright, airy, not draughty.

I always give colostrum at the same time as doing the lambs navels with purple spray, and it was a new bottle purchased from the vet that morning. As was the milk (which I always get in at lambing time just in case needed).

I watched to make sure mum was ok with the lambs and watched the lambs take to the teat ok, and checked the milk was flowing.

[Tim W]

Ewe with lots of milk and no lambs---choices
1) Dry her off by keeping her in a barn and restricted food for a few days--then mutton
2) find an orphan lamb to foster on
3) Milk her make cheese/yoghurt for a few weeks

These things happen---multiple pregnancies are hard work on ewes and there is plenty that can go wrong. You can spend lots of money trying to find out the cause and at the end of the day you will be no closer to the truth
(Your vet will be richer though)

[Blondie]

So sorry you lost that last lamb.

Phone around and find a couple of cade lambs, and build/source a lamb adopter. Stick the ewe in the lamb adopter and add the Cades.

[twizzel]

Just for future info dip their navels in neat iodine don't spray with purple spray. Could they have got infection through the navel?

I would try to find an orphan lamb but you've got to be quick. We had a calf shot a few weeks ago and kept the cow in off grass for a week, her udder was very full but she was ok on minimal food. We didn't milk her out. I would bring your ewe onto poor grazing for a couple of weeks as good grass will make her produce more milk and increase mastitis risk.

[OhLaLa]

Not many sheep hereabouts, this is dairy country, but when vet arrives will ask re cades.

So she is off the grass I will keep her in her field shelter, give hay and hard feed (how much?).

[Anke]

If you want to dry her off - hay, or even better straw and water, NOTHING else for a few days. If she lets you (if necessary while sitting her on her bum) ease her udder out first a couple of times a day (not empty it just make it soft and check not hot/lumpy), then once. I stopped doing one of mine, who had a dead lamb, after about 5 days and she went out to grass at 7 again. Still no hard feed at all.

As to are you going to keep her.... if come September her udder is soft and she is in good condition (which she should be as she has no lambs to feed all summer) I would put her back to the tup, but if her udder is at all suspicious probably freezer.

[shygirl]

definitely no hard feed.

[OhLaLa]

Update; vet has been. She was sluggish and didn't want to stand today. Her temp is ok, no blockage in teats, but she has mastitis developing on one side.

She has had four different meds from him, some I have to continue with for a few days.

And I have one from him that will dry up the milk within the week.

Thanks Anke for the info re udder. This is her second lambing and was a good mum (single lamb) last year.

Thanks all for your time replying. As ever, appreciated.

[Marches Farmer]

Bad luck!  If the lamb was fine the previous night I would suspect she'd laid on it in the night.  It happens occasionally, and there's nothing you can do about it. 

[OhLaLa]

Marches Farmer, you could be right. Will never know for sure. He was laid out in the middle of the pen. On my last night time check, he was curled up nicely against the side area, and appeared to be doing well.

Could be three different reasons for all three lambs.

Very sad.

[Bionic]

It is very sad and I know its too late to be saying this but I put a 3 sided cardboard box in the pen when mum and babies are inside. I like to think it makes them a bit cosier but it would probably also help to stop mum laying on them.
Having said that I found one of the mums trying to lie in the box herself and the babies didn't get a look in.