[Jaq Bee]

What am I doing wrong ?!?! Twin lambs, thirteen days old. Rejected by Mum so being bottle feed. One of them is super noisy, seems to be hungry all the time. Have both fed well on the bottle from the start. Was feeding 350ml 4 times a day but because he never seems settled I am currently feeding 250ml 6 times a day. They have 24/7 access to hay and creep feed. He is driving me bonkers! I bottle fed 3 lambs last year and they all seemed content. I am really at a loss at what to do. Any suggestions?

[Marches Farmer]

What amount is recommended by the milk powder manufacturer?  Are you using a premium product, such as Lamlac?  Have you checked him for bloat, fully operational anus, etc.?  Does he have access to fresh water at all times?

[Jaq Bee]

I'm feeding the recommended amount (350ml 4 times a day from 8-21 days) and am buying a premium product. I'm in the Czech Republic and they don't have Lamlac here. I have used this same product for all my bottle babies, recommended by my Vet and used by most people here. No bloat, pooping just fine. fresh water at all times. His sister seems content. Both are growing well. He has been the same since day one, really, really noisy. As soon as he hears me he starts. I realise he thinks I'm his Mum as she is not with them. They are both super friendly. If I go and sit with them he settles a little (is quieter) but is still trying to get milk from me, sucking on sleeves etc. I just never had a lamb this noisy.

[Buffy the eggs layer]

I think he is hungry. You could try giving him enough to feel really full and see if that settles him. My bottle feds required differing amounts and also different lambs took differing amounts at different times of day. Even siblings that were the same age and size have different appetites. How thick or watery the milk will make a difference too so you could increase the powder to liquid ratio.


They are just a bit young for solids though you are right to start to introduce it. If he was crying for you to warm him and comfort him I dont think he would be constantly trying to feed when you sit with him. I dont feed by the bag instructions I feed by consumption so they get what they want to eat ( within reason ). In normal circumstances they could feed little and often but as bottle fed lambs they have to make one feed last a few hours. So an hour after feeding he may start to feel a little peckish again. The more they grow, the more they eat and vice versa so perhaps hes going to grow into a big strapping ram.


hope he settles soon  [size=78%]  [/size]

[Jaq Bee]

Thank you for the advice. My gut feeling tells me he is still hungry so I will increase his feed and see how it goes. The milk is quite thick. They were both quite big born and their Mum is a big sheep, Merino. I was just scared that I would over feed them. He is my first Ram lamb. Her lambs last year were finicky to begin with whereas these have had no problems with feeding from a bottle right away (I milked Mum for 5 days). This is only my second year of raising lambs, I am still learning, therefore I needed some advice from somebody more in the know.
Mum has now gone to a new home where they will utilize her milk and wool. I just didn't have time to milk her and feed them. Thank you once again.

[SallyintNorth]

I know t makes more work, but if you're sure he's hungry I'd give him more feeds not bigger feeds - overfilling the stomach is a prime cause of digestive issues in bottle lambs, if it spills over into the other stomachs they can't digest it and it can cause problems.

You say he calls when he hears you - well, so he should.  You're his mummy and he's letting you know where he is.  If he's calling all the time, even when you are not about, then that would suggest distress of some kind.  Does he sleep? 

Can the lambs see and hear other sheep or lambs where they are?  If not, can you put them where there are others in sight, sound and smell?

If you have the time, giving him a cuddle when you can, nuzzling him and talking to him, should help to settle him.  His mum would do that, and very young lambs do thrive better, in my experience, if you can give them some attention besides just feeding them in the first couple of weeks. 

He'll still call, mind

[Jaq Bee]

He is around other sheep. I have a ewe with two lambs a week older than him and his sisters and half sisters from last year. He calls when he hears me or anyone around the barn and sometimes I hear him calling when I am in the house. He hears me opening the door, the wheelbarrow, a car etc and he's off. I go in and give him lots of cuddles, sit on the floor and talk to them both, he is always trying to suckle on some part of me. I have goats ( one with 3 day old kids), pigs, chickens and ducks to take care of as well, Everyone else is content. I can feed him more often during the day but not at night. I am just managing on the few hours I can grab. He does sleep, well, he is quiet at night and doesn't make a sound until I turn the light on to feed them. He does have some silent times during the day, so is probably sleeping then. I am really not sure 100% he is hungry. His belly looks just about right after a feed. Maybe he justs needs more attention. To be honest all my other bottle babies (three) were not vocal like him. They are both getting 1.5 litres a day right now. Should I keep to that, with smaller and more feeds. Or increase his a bit? I don't want to overfeed and cause problems.

[SallyintNorth]

I've had a few very demanding lambs in my time

One was called Violet Elizabeth - she'd scream and scream and scream until (we) were sick!

Another is Guy - even as as adult, a friend has remarked, with some understatement, "Guy likes the sound of his own voice."

If he's getting sleep, and isn't thin or gaunt, I'd just assume he's an attention-seeker and learn to live with the noise.  If he hasn't as much flesh covering him as his sister, then he needs more food.

[Jaq Bee]

Oh, that is good to know!
I think because I am so tired it plays on me more. His noise just makes my head want to explode.
I have a kitty who constantly wants attention, Patchy, aka Moaning Myrtle.
I wasn't sure that sheep could be attention seekers as I have never had one this bad before. Now I know they exist I will not worry so much about underfeeding him and see how it goes today. I might ask a couple of the local children if they can come sit and 'play' with him after school too. They come most days when I have babies but they seem to like to spend time with the goat kids more.
To me, he looks adequately filled up. But today I might give him 50ml extra a feed, just to see if that is the problem.
In a few weeks I will be able to laugh about this 'noisy little minx'   

[Marches Farmer]

You're his Mama and he wants the reassurance of knowing where you are and reassurance also comes in liquid form.  Once he starts nibbling at hay and creep feed it may well settle him down.

[waterbuffalofarmer]

I had a lamb once who had panic attacks, the reason for this was because his mother had, had a difficult lambing; 3 lambs and 2 where dead, I had to pull them out of her when I went to check the sheep first thing (about 3 years ago I think it was?) and he was the last one. I had to bring him up myself as the ewe couldn't rear him, when he woke up after being asleep he would have a panic attack, so I had to hold him close and talk to him softly and he always calmed down and went back to sleep. Needless to say he grew up healthy and strong and stopped having the panic attacks ( he stopped having them when he was 3 months old, as he saw me as mum) The point to this story is that lambs are little babies which all need loving care and attention, whenever I have lambs come along I sit with them after feeding until they fall asleep, talking to them. I always try and make time to spend with them. I suppose I'm a softy at heart Keep up the good work and it always pays off in the end  

[Jaq Bee]

Thanks for all the good advice folks 
I increased his feed by 50 ml and spent a lot more time with them today (despite other things not getting done, but hey ho, they are only babies for a short time). He is much more settled today. Still the noisiest but not as bad as he has been.
I'm sure going to find it hard to let this little guy go.

[Buffy the eggs layer]

Thats great Jaq.


  Like waterbuff I tend to stay with them after a feed until they snuggle down to sleep. Do they have a heat source to snuggle upto? Sounds like to extra feed has helped too.


 

[Jaq Bee]

Today's update.
Between his 6am feed and 10am feed, he slept! Even though I was around the barn feeding and watering all the others. I had to check to see if there was something wrong with him During the day he has been a lot quieter. Maybe it's the additional feed or because I am spending more time with him after a feed, not sure, but whatever it is is working. He does seek a lot more attention than his sister. She has a nuzzle for a while and then wanders off. He is kind of like a dog, jumping up, climbing all over me, butting my chin, trying to eat my hair, very active.
Buffy, they don't have a heat lamp but they have a huge cardboard box in their pen that they cuddle up to sleep in, filled with straw. The pen is also well bedded too.
I am going to have to stop these four hourly feeds soon, well during the night at least. I'm getting pretty run down now through lack of sleep. Any suggestions on how I can do that?

[Marches Farmer]

A pity they don't make a small version of the Shepherdess feeder.  If there's good hay available he should start to nibble at it fairly soon.   Make sure he can reach a constant source of fresh water, so he doesn't go thirsty.  Perhaps you could stretch the gap to six hours then go back to bed for a couple of hours, depending on which end of the night you find it easiest to fall back to sleep?  Can you nap during the day?