[Jacob-list] lambing times

[iseespots]

Hi,

I heard theories of feeding in the AM and in the PM (once per day) that both
guaranteed lambs born during the daylight hours when I first started raising
sheep.  That quickly made me think that there are lots of shepherds with
lots of neat theories.  These shepherds are the ones that when lambs drop
out as expected, we tend to say "see----I told you so", and when lambs drop
out at other times (nighttime), then we say "it was still wet, so it must
have just gotten here", or "how did that happen" and promptly forget the
anomaly.

NOW.....from there, I decided to write down exactly WHEN my ewes lambed by
the hour.  After 3 years of watching ewes and only missing one birth in that
time, I had a fairly even distribution of lambs born at all hours of the
clock----12 midnight to 11:59 pm, 23 hours and 59 minutes later!  Ewes were
not consistent in time or location of giving birth, and I decided there were
no conclusions to be drawn.

I also watched for the "birthing around weather system lows" that nurses
talk about at hospitals.  This does not seem to happen either.  In fact, my
ewes have been gracious enough to maybe only once or twice deliver with a
storm coming in.  They either do it a couple days before a real nasty one or
a couple days following the storm.

The best predictor of date of lambing is simply to use the Laura Lawson
birthing schedule.  Catch them mating and then look at the "due date", and
you will likely be within 24 hours either direction of that date at my
house.  There are deviants to this rule, but not often.

Mark your calendars as Feb. 7 should be a very busy day at my house----3 due
that day and 1 due the next.  OH JOY!

Mary Ellen
ISeeSpots Farm www.iseespots.com
Home of Jacob Sheep, Shetland Sheep,
and German Angora Rabbits, colored German Angora crosses.
Renewable fleeces, loving personalities, friends.