Lambing and lamb care

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Lambing and lamb care

• Andy Barrett
• Kingsway Veterinary Group
• Skipton

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Outline of course

• Introductions
• Management of pregnant ewes
• Preparing for lambing
• Normal lambings
• Lambing problems
• Practical session
• Caring for lambs
• Caring for ewes after lambing.

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Flock managementBegins pre-tupping

• EWES Check
• Body condition score
• Teeth
• Feet
• Udders
• Records
• Vaccination status

• TUPS Check
• When do you want to lamb?
• Have you enough?
• Condition score
• Teeth
• Feet
• Genitalia
• Harnesses.

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Early pregnancy(0 30 days)

• Fertilisation to implantation
• Embryo dependent on hormones
• Very sensitive to stress.

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Mid pregnancy(30-90 days)

• Placental growth occurs
• Target bcs 2.5
• Scan at 70 days
• Health issues include
• Scab/lice
• Feet
• Liver fluke.

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Late pregnancy(90-145 days)

• Good feeding essential, because
• Lambs double in size in last month
• Udder development occurs in last fortnight
• Feed according to condition score, litter size,
  forage quality, weather
• Vaccinate against clostridial disease
• Feet
• Give copper supplement.

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Problems in late pregnancy

• Abortion
• Vaginal prolapse
• Tremblings
• Twin lamb disease.

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Abortion

• Isolate aborting sheep and mark them
• Clean and disinfect pen
• Do not mother lambs on
• Speak to your vet
• BE CAREFUL MANY AGENTS ARE ZOONOTIC!

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Vaginal prolapse

• Fat ewes heavy in lamb
• Treat as quickly as possible
• Clean and replace
• Consult vet if recur
• Mark the sheep.

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Tremblings

• Hypocalcaemia (low blood calcium)
• Especially horned sheep
• Often in poor condition
• Poor diet
• Often triggered by poor weather or movement
• Treat quickly, 100ml calcium s/c.

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Twin lamb disease

• Last month of pregnancy
• Thin sheep
• Twins or triplets
• Insufficient feed
• Often triggered by bad weather
• Separate off, blind, tremble, sweet smelling
  breath
• Treat promptly and hard.

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Preparing for lambing

• Be ready a week before!
• Staff availability
• Indoors or out?
• Go shopping!

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Lambing equipment

• Bucket and warm water
• Lubricant
• Gloves
• Lambing loop
• Prolapse retainer
• Marker sprays
• Navel iodine
• Notebook
• Bottle and teats

• Tube feeder
• Colostrum
• Respiratory stimulant
• Thermometer
• Syringes and needles
• Calcium
• Glucose
• Antibiotic injection and spray
• Castration rings.

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Signs of lambing

• A week to go
• Udder swells and becomes firm
• Abdomen drops
• Vulva becomes soft swollen and reddened.

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Signs of lambing

• Start of lambing
• Separate from flock, restless
• Stop eating, watch at feeding time
• May star gaze and lick lips
• Dribbles of fluid appear
• Circling and nesting behaviour
• Start to strain
• Water bag appears
• Should lamb in 30 minutes.

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When to intervene

• If a head appears at vulva
• After 30 minutes of non productive straining
• An hour after water bag bursts if nothing else
  appears
• If second lamb not born after an hour, or half an
  hour of straining.

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Rules for lambing

• Remember 75 of ewe deaths occur at lambing time!
• Restrain/position ewe well
• Be clean
• Be gentle and patient, you are dealing with
  living tissue
• Use lots of lubrication
• Lift hindquarters if necessary
• Know when youre beaten! Stop if you make no
  progress in 15 minutes.

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Anatomy
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Lambing
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The second lamb
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Normal presentation

• Both feet and head present (check they are
  attached to each other)
• Note direction of feet
• A hand in the anus can help.

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Problem lambingsFoetal dystocia

• Malpresentation
• Mixed up twins/triplets
• Oversized single lambs
• Dead dry/rotten lambs
• Deformed lambs.

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Leg back

• If there is room cup hand round foot and draw
  forward
• If no room put head rope on, repel lamb and draw
  leg forward.

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Head back

• Attach ropes to both legs and repel lamb
• Manipulate head into pelvis, pass rope behind
  poll and into mouth
• Pull legs up.

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Posterior presentation

• Note direction of feet
• Check joints to be sure
• Dont waste time once the lamb is in the passage.

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Breech presentation

• Tail present at vulva
• Repel lamb and with cupped hand pull one leg then
  the other into the vagina.

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Problem lambingsMaternal dystocia

• Small or deformed pelvis
• Failure of cervix to dilate (ringwomb)
• Failure of vulva to dilate
• Uterine inertia
• Uterine torsion.

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After lambing

• Revive the lambs
• Check back inside for another lamb or damage to
  the uterus / vagina
• Check the udder and teats
• Dip lambs navels
• Pen them up
• Ensure lamb feeds
• Watch for cleansing
• Mark,tail and castrate and turnout.

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Newborn lamb care

• Colostrum is essential, source of food and
  antibodies
• 5kg lamb needs 250ml (1/2 pint) in first 4 hours
• Bottle or stomach tube if wont feed
• Have alternative source available
• Ensure lambs are well fed and mothered before
  turnout.

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Problems of young lambs

• Hypothermia
• Imperforate anus
• Intestinal prolapse
• Watery mouth
• Joint ill
• Navel ill
• Fractured ribs/limbs
• Entropion
• Swayback.

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Aftercare of ewes

• Vaginal prolapse
• Uterine prolapse
• Torn uterus vagina
• Nerve damage
• Retained placenta
• Metritis
• Staggers
• Mastitis.