[NewLifeOnTheFarm]

Hi again all! Sorry for the frequent posts!
 i have a host of basic equipment based on research on here and my bible (Tim Tyne!)

Currently I have in for sheep arriving
Hurdles
Hay
Ewe nuts
Dagging shears
Foot shears
Crovect/applicator
Drench gun

For lambing I will then by additional supplies in closer to time...
Ear tagging
Colostrum
Bottles/tube

Is there anything basic I have overlooked or you would recommend?

Also, wanted to know opinions on keeping antibiotics to hand? I have read different things.
Should I get calcium in to treat hypocalcaemia?
And sheep are due to lamb April, our land hasn't had anything other than horses for 15 years, would you worm/fluke on arrival or wait until after lambing?

Thanks!

[twizzel]

Ask your vet about quarantine wormer on arrival- I'm not sure if Zolvix and Startect are ok in pregnant ewes or not, but if they are, give them a quarantine drench and keep in for 48 hours. Would also be worth giving an injectable for scab- Dectomax is what I used- again check it's ok for in lamb ewes. You don't want them bringing in scab and/or resistant worms! Ask when they were fluked last- your vet will also know the fluke status for your area and advise whether they should need treating. We are very flukey so treat 3 times over autumn-spring (before the tups go in, at scanning and lambing).


Basics for lambing- a lot of things you probably won't need but will kick yourself if you need them and don't have them at 2 in the morning !
Iodine spray for navels (essential),
Elastic castrator bands and applicator for castrating males and docking tails if your sheep breed need docking
Stomach tube is good but make sure you know how to use it.
Ketosaid/Propylene Glycol for twin lamb and a bottle of Calciject number 6 also useful, with a flutter valve for administration under the skin.
Lambing rope- always got one in my pocket
We keep antibiotics to hand and anti-inflamatories on site as are on a busy beef farm and calve at the same time as my sheep are lambing, but your vet may ask to see the sheep before handing out antibiotics, and depending how many you have it might be cheaper to just have them dispense what you need rather than a whole bottle.
Gloves... normal latex and long AI gloves- your hands will probably be dirty so keep things as clean as possible if you need to lamb a ewe and use gloves.
Towels
Heat lamp might be useful to have
Prolapse spoons- not expensive but again something you might need at 10pm when all the shops are shut. Or a prolapse harness.



You will need a flock register for recording any births, deaths, on or off movements
https://www.castlemakerbooks.co.uk/products/holding-flock-register-for-sheep-and-goats-a4-sheep-movement-book-s004


And I have this breeding record book to record a history of each ewe... very useful and also good to note in if any have difficulties lambing as you'll soon forget who had what lambs/what problems come summer!
https://www.castlemakerbooks.co.uk/collections/animal-care/products/breeding-service-record-book-for-sheep-goats-a4-b036-castlemaker

And you'll need a medicine book
https://www.castlemakerbooks.co.uk/collections/animal-care/products/animal-medicine-record-book-a5-m002

I think that's it... I built my lambing kit up buying a few things each month until I had the box I've got today... it's always good to have it, rather than need it in the middle of the night and not have it.

[Rosemary]

I prefer an iodine dip - 10% iodine in a plastic bottle (contained cod liver oil capsules so has a nice wide neck) - I think dipping gives better coverage of the cord and navel than spraying.

I don't keep antibiotics - I  prefer not to use them as a precaution so ALWAYS use gloves and lots of lube if I have to lamb. If I need a dose, the vet will put out a syringe for me. I've binned a few bottles in teh early days taht are past the expiry date.

We always have Kickstart or similar for weak lambs, although we get fewer of these now, I think. I've often felt like having a squirt of it myself becasue it does seem miraculous.

Marker spray so you can mark ewes and lambs at turnout, and mother them up correctly if anyone gets lost or abandoned.

Dried colostrum. You can buy it in sachets rather than a tub. You might not need it but if you do, you need it NOW and that NOW is usually in the early hours of Sunday morning.

We also have a wee harness and luggage scale for measuring the birth weights of lambs - Tim Tyne says to use a rubber inner tube but we couldn't keep the lambs in it long enough to weigh them.

Tunnocks Caramel Wafers

[Fleecewife]

Oh dear oh dear - you've all forgotten the baby wipes 

[Bionic]

Definitely agree with kickstart. It gave me confidence too

[twizzel]

I prefer an iodine dip - 10% iodine in a plastic bottle (contained cod liver oil capsules so has a nice wide neck) - I think dipping gives better coverage of the cord and navel than spraying.

A dip pot can harbour bugs more than spraying though. I spray the navel twice normally when i pen up ewe and lambs and again 6ish hours later. Kickstart is great stuff ??

[Ermingtrude]

Lambing ropes
Torch and spare batteries
Towels and a plastic open tub ( empty lick tubs are great ) for the used ones
I'm another for the iodine spray rather than dip, but I do make sure it dispenses a decent amount rather than a slightly wafty spray works best to get the coverage of a dip, without any potential ( and I am sure very small ) chance of cross contamination. I also can't knock it over and spill it. Although I can sit on it, and ruin a bale of hay, and my jeans, and have a backside stained yellow for 10 days.
Old style plastic housework/cleaning spray carry tray ( grooming tray if you are horsey ) to carry gloves, iodine spray, kickstart, ear tagger, ear tags ( in sealed bag ), elastic rings and applicator (ditto ) and colour spray - then you can go in and do ""stuff"" and keep everything together. The right type of carry tray also sits on many hurdles, rather like a hay rack, which is useful.
I keep calcium and twin lamb drenches, as well as the kickstart, but I don't keep antibiotics or analgesia - My sheep are in single figures, so I work on the basis that if I need something like that, I can go to the vet ( or get the vet out, whatever is needed ) and the cost is likely to be much the same, and I am not limiting myself to one type of antibiotic, or having to get in a couple, to cover various issues, and have them go out of date before getting used up. It is different when you have a few sheep, to having a farm, I'm sure, so for me that works ok.

Good luck - I am sure you will do fine, and have a fantastic experience. Keep a Mars Bar pinned to the wall, for that moment when you see the first signs of a water bag from the first girl - the nerves, panic, horror, thrill and massive surge of adrenaline, will require treatment. Also keep a book - as you will need that while you wait for the sheep to move to the next stage !

[Womble]

On the antibiotic question, one thing to remember is that sealed bottles of antibiotics usually come with quite long use by dates as long as they remain sealed.

As a result, I now get a 'just in case' bottle of betamox from our vet before lambing, and then aim not to use it! 

We had a ewe last year who carried a dead lamb for a couple of days before giving birth  and I'm convinced that having antibiotics handy at the time (3am on Saturday as it happened) saved things from getting very nasty indeed.

[SallyintNorth]

Another who prefers an iodine spray to a dip.  I drop the cord onto the lamb's belly and give it a good all-over spray, then hold the lamb up with its back legs hanging down and make sure there's loadsa iodine running down the cord; if it's not completely covered all the way to the end I give it a bit more.  The most important spot is the open end, but I find that by soaking the whole thing they dry up and fall off much quicker, thereby reducing the risk of subsequent infection after the initial iodine has worn off or been licked off. 

My standby antibiotic is Pen&Strep, and I most often give CombiVit alongside it.  If she needs a/bs, she will probably benefit from the CombiVit too.  We didn't need any during lambing last year until the very last ewe, who had a retained placenta; she needed a 7-day course so I bought a bottle then.  I used more of it later, when we had a lumpy udder and weren't 100% convinced she wasn't starting with mastitis.

And yes, KickStart or similar is literally a lifesaver.  And keep a sachet of colostrum in stock, and as soon as you have a chance, milk off some colostrum and put the real thing in the freezer.  Just 50ml of the real thing within the first two hours makes a huge difference to the prognosis.  Powdered thereafter is fine, it's that first dose of the antigens for your farm that is so important.

[NewLifeOnTheFarm]

Thanks all, me and my other half are very appreciative of the advice!

[crobertson]

A hipflask and your favourite choice of drink ?

[Marches Farmer]

Cake, lots of cake (I mean for the shepherds, not the sheep).

[Badger Nadgers]

Box of rubber gloves (yet to find an iodine spray that doesn't leak and make you look like a 500 a day smoker), towels and handcream.

Old vacuum flask with hot water in for mixing up powdered colostrum, something to measure it out in, and a whisk to mix it with.

Better vacuum flask with soup for the shepherd.  Camping stove, pot, kettle, tinned food, frinking chocolate, potable water for same reason.

A decent balanced meal that's quick to cook for when you get back, proper breakfast before you go out.  Changes of clothes ready (workgear and otherwise)

Mobile phone with useful numbers in it and a reasonable camera on it.  Notebook (paper one) and pens

Rechargeable LED site lights rather than a torch (YMMV)

PPE for the shepherd (and change of)

Seat cover for the pickup, several floor mats, bin bag for the passenger footwell.

Sleeping bag, first aid kit.

Crook or similar