Bagging up / orphan lamb milk

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Bagging up / orphan lamb milk - help please
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Louisdog
Guest

Posted: Mon Mar 21, 05 9:38 pm Post subject: Bagging up / orphan lamb milk - help please

Hi Everyone

I have two expectant ewes (my first ever lambings :-0 ) who are due on Easter Saturday and the following Weds. Been reading up on lambing etc, and it seems I should be seeing bagging up of each ewe's udders a week or two before birth.

Tippet is due on the Weds and has had a nice big udder for a few days now.

Nellie is due in a few days' time on Saturday (i.e. before Tippet) and no sign of any udder enlargement! Should I be worried?

What can I do if Nellie gives birth but has no milk? I have colostrum ready but no lamblac, would shop-bought goats-milk do or should I buy some lamblac just in case?

I'd be grateful for any advice on bagging-up timescales and what to feed if ewe fails to produce milk (plus any other general tips on lambing!)

Thanks in advance

Alex

Lloyd

Joined: 24 Jan 2005
Posts: 2699

Posted: Mon Mar 21, 05 11:29 pm Post subject:
Send a PM to RobR or Alison, mate.

Rob R

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 31902
Location: York

Posted: Tue Mar 22, 05 12:11 am Post subject:

I had my attention drawn to your predicament, though I see Alison has answered already over on River Cottage.

I wouldn't worry if I were you, as Alison says, if her udder is under developed for an imminent birth, it is most likely that she will be on the next cycle. Also, I have seen plenty of ewes that don't display 'text book' signs, but have still reared lambs sucessfully. Some literally 'bag up' in the few hours pre-partum, so if you check her udder when she has lambed & cleaned up the young 'uns (as you should with any birth) and then only be concerned if there is no milk.

If this is the case, your stock of colostrum will be fine in the first instance, and you should have enough to be able to find a supply from someone, if the ag merchants are closed (a lot of people are lambing at this time, and chances are if you ask, they will help you out).

When bottle feeding is absolutely necessary, at first feeds are best given at two hourly intervals (24 hours), feeding warm milk to appetite (or by stomach tube if the lamb has a low appetite). If the lamb is well & grows, in the first few days (72 hours), you can decrease the rate of feeding, gradually down to six hourly intervals (giving you chance at least for some sleep) and by a week of age then reduce this to two or three daily feeds as they grow stronger & more independant. The rate for the latter should be 50ml milk replacer per kg of bodyweight at each feed.

Bugs

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 10744

Posted: Tue Mar 22, 05 7:59 am Post subject: Re: Bagging up / orphan lamb milk - help please

Louisdog wrote:

..plus any other general tips on lambing!)

We've had an article kindly contributed on lambing for beginners, which might help a bit - https://www.downsizer.net/Projects/Poultry_and_Livestock/Lambing_for_beginners/
(the picture is courtesy of Rob R so you can see he knows what he says

)

Louisdog
Guest

Posted: Tue Mar 22, 05 12:14 pm Post subject:

Hi

Thanks for your replies.

Rob thanks for the info. When you say next cycle, so you mean she might actually be due three weeks later than I thought? Anyway I have some colostrum and hopefully she'll come into milk if/when she does lamb, if not I'll ask a neighbour for some emergency milk and follow the guidelines you mentioned wrt timings.

Bugs thanks for the link, I have read the article (it's actually how I came across this great site, as I googled 'Lambing for Beginners' and it was the best result I got).

Cheers

Gertie

Joined: 08 Jan 2005
Posts: 1638
Location: Yorkshire

Posted: Tue Mar 22, 05 5:02 pm Post subject:
Good luck with the lambing, Louisdog. Fingers crossed that everything goes really smoothly for you and your ewes.

Bugs

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 10744

Posted: Tue Mar 22, 05 5:04 pm Post subject:

Gertie wrote:

Fingers crossed that everything goes really smoothly for you and your ewes.

I'd like to second that. Good luck to ewe and yours

Louisdog

Joined: 22 Mar 2005
Posts: 716
Location: South Wales

Posted: Tue Mar 22, 05 6:00 pm Post subject:
Thanks Gertie and Bugs!

Rob R

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 31902
Location: York

Posted: Tue Mar 22, 05 7:22 pm Post subject:

Louisdog wrote:

Rob thanks for the info. When you say next cycle, so you mean she might actually be due three weeks later than I thought?

It is a certain possibility. The sheep ovarian cycle is approximately 17 days, and some breeders change the raddle colour every 3 weeks, so it may be that she has been tupped twice with the same colour. Also, occasionally a ewe will cycle at 15-16 day intervals and so be 'missed' in the same way.

I thought it was going so well, but we had our first problem today- a first time lamber had twins but rejected the second one. We put them in a small pen & held her to let him feed twice & she seems to be warming to having twins. He certainly gives it a good go, so hopefully that will be all we have to do. You have to feel sorry for the little fella- all alone in the world & even his mother rejects him

mochyn

Joined: 21 Dec 2004
Posts: 24585
Location: mid-Wales

Posted: Tue Mar 22, 05 8:46 pm Post subject:
While delivering newsletters on Sunday a friend offered me apet lamb: an orphan and the tallest lamb I've ever seen! He looks like he's on stilts! Sadly, I'm not geared up for sheep yet so the poor old thing is staying put. It did inspire me to borrow a 'sheep for beginners' book from the library though

Louisdog

Joined: 22 Mar 2005
Posts: 716
Location: South Wales

Posted: Tue Mar 22, 05 8:58 pm Post subject:

Hi Rob thanks for the reply. I am not sure if the milk-less ewe could be three weeks' behind as she's almost as big as the milky one, but I wouldnt mind if that were the case anyway. I hope that either that's the case, or she starts looking a bit more udder-y soon, anyway.

Sorry to hear about your problem with the ewe rejecting the twin lamb, maybe she'll accept it fully soon? I certainly hope so. The small pen will help won't it? Have you ever tried the bringing a dog on a lead in trick, or is that an old wives' tale? There is a bit of fence where my 2 dogs can wander past the 2 ewes, and one of them has taken to making a point of stamping her feet and running towards the fence if a dog walks past. The stupid dog doesnt even notice! I now ensure they don't get near that boundary as I'm not sure if it upsets the sheep.

One of our non-pregnant ewes (in another field) is very anti-dog, she's the flock leader and once escaped from the field and made a point of chasing one dog and butting it, it was running for its life! (Only a little cavalier king charles spaniel - Louis hence my nick).

Anyway good luck with the rejected lamb. I love the Kerry Hills by the way, they are amazing-looking!

Cheers
Alex

Louisdog

Joined: 22 Mar 2005
Posts: 716
Location: South Wales

Posted: Tue Mar 22, 05 8:59 pm Post subject:
Hi mochyn Shame you couldnt have the lamb, sounds v cute! Hope you get some sheep soon. Cheers Alex

mochyn

Joined: 21 Dec 2004
Posts: 24585
Location: mid-Wales

Posted: Tue Mar 22, 05 9:15 pm Post subject:
We really are becoming Cymru-centris here: yet another of us appears! Where are you? I'm near Lake Vyrnwy. Sheep are for next year: this year it's pigs & ducks!

Louisdog

Joined: 22 Mar 2005
Posts: 716
Location: South Wales

Posted: Tue Mar 22, 05 9:28 pm Post subject:

Hi mochyn

I am in Pembrokeshire. Not sure where Lake Vyrnwy is - anywhere near Aberystwyth? (Or am I miles off

?)

I'm a bit jealous now as I have always wanted ducks, I think they're so cute. Was thinking of starting with a trio of Call Ducks but haven't managed to get around to it yet.

Plus, am really wanting some pigs. I just want to raise a couple of weaners for the freezer partly out of interest as I think they're lovely, and partly because I disagree with the way supermarket pork is reared. I even got my husband to take me on a pig-keeping course for my 30th in Feb this year (his friends couldnt believe how lightly he'd got off - one took his wife on a 3 week trip to New Zealand for her 30th!) but at the moment we're not fully set up for pigs so we will have to wait a bit longer. What breed are yours? Do you breed them?

Any idea what sheep breed you might get?

Cheers

Alex

Rob R

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 31902
Location: York

Posted: Tue Mar 22, 05 9:38 pm Post subject:

Louisdog wrote:

Size, you will find, is not always an indication. Rosie, our largest looking ewe, looked fit to burst at the beginning of the lambing period- and she is still to go! (Also, our smallest ewe was first to lamb)

Louisdog wrote:

Sorry to hear about your problem with the ewe rejecting the twin lamb, maybe she'll accept it fully soon? I certainly hope so. The small pen will help won't it? Have you ever tried the bringing a dog on a lead in trick, or is that an old wives' tale? There is a bit of fence where my 2 dogs can wander past the 2 ewes, and one of them has taken to making a point of stamping her feet and running towards the fence if a dog walks past. The stupid dog doesnt even notice! I now ensure they don't get near that boundary as I'm not sure if it upsets the sheep.

She was responding well to him tonight, so hopefully she'll be ok. The dog idea is a very good one, and is on the agenda if she hasn't taken to him in the morning, we have a little Jack Russell that will do that job well. Kerry Hills are usually excellent mothers, but I guess her in experience is confusing her. The Kerry mothers are very 'stampy', I even the week-old lambs have started doing it now!

Louisdog wrote:

Anyway good luck with the rejected lamb. I love the Kerry Hills by the way, they are amazing-looking!

Cheers
Alex

They are just as good tasting too!

Second only to, I am told, the Jacob.

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