[Jacob-list] wethering lambs, etc.

[Paul and Kate Survis]

I am getting a little jealous of you folks baking in the sun with your lambs, and picking daffodils!!  We had 8 degrees last night, and our pastures are a skating rink. We had a good lambing year, only one first time ewe left to go.  Had some wierd things happen though, and lost 2 lambs this year. If anyone has any input on other ways I could have handled these situations, I would like to hear them so I can do better next time.  
One was a jacob, and a twin.  The ewe had the first twin fine, and then passed a placenta, and I thought we may be done but there was still strings attatched....so I tried to put my hand in to see what was going on, and it was very tight, and I couldn't get my hand in. I thought perhaps she wasn't dialated anymore.  I tried again a few hours later and nothing, then about 7:30 PM I checked and she had a dead lamb.  He was still in the sack, and still curled, I have no idea how she got him out, but decided he must have died inutero after the placenta passed, and maybe I was hitting up against his back??? It sure didn't feel like a lamb. Mom and first lamb are doing great, although I shot antibiotics into the ewe for 4 days in case of infections.  I will never know I guess. 
Just got over that, and one of the Market ewe first timers got a large lamb stuck in the birth canal. When I got home from work she was up with the lambs headsticking out, its tongue was swollen and protruding and it looked dead.  I found the stuck front foot, twisted and got it out without too much trouble, but had to swing and rub alot to revive the lamb.  His tongue swelling went down quickly, but his head was a bit swollen.  He eventually got up and nursed, but was a bit unsteady on his feet. After things looked good in the jug  I went in , and came out in an hour.  The new mom had chewed the lambs short, iodined umbilical cord so short that he was pulsing blood from the hole and quite weak.  I brought him in, reiodined the spot where the cord was.  I had to tube him 3 times that night with colostrum I milked from the ewe, but eventually  he perked up.  The next day he was nursing and a little slow but looking good.  By 3 PM that day he was down again, and weak.  I ended up tubing him again, and milking and tubing, but he didn't get stronger.  Took him to work with me  and the vet, we put him on antibiotics and kept tubing but by day 3 he was dead.   The vet thought he got a serious infection entering from his navel...maybe if I would have started him on antibiotics immediately after I saw what the ewe had done. It is so dissapointing to lose one when you both struggle so hard for life. 
Also had a market ewe with Calcium deficiency after her twins.  A classic case, very old fat ewe, two big lambs, just like in the books.  I had to give her 5 shots of 20CCs of calcium sub cu...she wasn't happy with me, but it did the trick, and everyone is doing fine.  
Learned more than I wanted this year, but have 17 healthy lovely lambs playing in the pen, and am anxiously awaiting spring when they can eat grass and not need to be fed so much!!!  We had so many ewe lambs  this year...and almost all rams last year, it is really an odd phenomenon. 
Wishing you all good luck and good lambing. 
Kate Barrett
Ruby Peak Jacobs
  -----Original Message-----
  From: Mary Spahr <spahrfarm at dragonbbs.com>
  To: Jacob List Members <jacob-list at jacobsheep.com>
  Date: Tuesday, February 26, 2002 9:23 AM
  Subject: [Jacob-list] wethering lambs, etc.


  Thanks so much for all the input about bottled lambs, wethering, etc.  I am just going to keep doing it like we have been for 14 years - leave nature alone and keep little lambs with their mothers.  Bottle babies are a different story and we always seek homes for them.  As one breeder pointed out, there are special circumstances where it is advisable to take a lamb from its mother, such as triplets where one is falling behind or a ewe does not have enough milk, etc.  
  But I feel that the best for the lamb and mother is to forget about the pet market and those who want cute little lambs to hold on their laps (except bottle lambs).  I believe that lambs raised with ewes are bigger and healthier.  The lady who inquired about bottled wethers has planned a trip to a large goat dairy not far from us to pick up a load of wethered kids.  It seems they just give them away.  She has also just acquired a Lincoln lamb on the bottle that her German Shepherd and Bernese Mt. dog "love" to lick in the face.  They are all in the house together, so hope they don't go from "licking to chewing" when her back is turned!
  We always leave enough tail to prevent prolapsing.  It is important to dock here in Oh. because of flies in the summer.  Flystrike is the grossest thing I have ever observed!  We use a tool that cost around $60.  I have always thought it less stressful than banding because it hurts for just a second and there is no chance of infection.  There is very little bleeding, especially when the weather is cool.  It's over and done with and no flies or infection to worry about.  
  I think we will keep leaving lambs intact since we have too many Jacobs to keep any just for fleeces or pets.  Seems there are several schools of thought on the proper time to wether.  
  Mary Spahr
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