# Our 1st lambing season



## Annwise27 (Feb 1, 2018)

Good evening everyone! 
I'm new here so I'll introduce myself  My name is Angela, married, 4 human kids, 4 ewes, 1 ram (2 full blood Katahdin and 4 Kat/Dorper mix and all but 2 of our sheep were given to my 13 year old as bottle babies. The 2 that weren't bottle babies have stayed relatively aloof). We are a very active 4-H family. 
Anyway, 1 of our not so friendly sheep had a little ewe lamb who is now 8 days old (Surprise!!!).My naughty girl Faith is showing signs of labor but I have decided she is just teasing us because she knows how excited we are! Our other 2 are due soon as well but being as this is our 1st time breeding I was dumb and didn't pay attention to Buddy doing his job.


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## RoahT (Feb 1, 2018)

First of all, welcome!  Oh, I know animals have that way of teasing you until you start to think maybe they aren't having babies anytime soon after all, then when you aren't prepared they give birth!  But the adorable babies are always worth it!


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## Annwise27 (Feb 1, 2018)

Lol... I have less patience with the sheep being expectant than I was all my human babies


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## Baymule (Feb 1, 2018)

Welcome to the forum! I lurked here for a long time, finally joined, and after FIVE YEARS, I finally got my sheep! This is a great place, full of the nicest people! I am on my 3rd lambing, so I get your excitement!

That is a beautiful spotty baby you have! Adorable!


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## Annwise27 (Feb 1, 2018)

Thank you Baymule! I only lurked 2 days before I saw how friendly and nonjudmental every is! I know I'm making a ton of mistakes (like not noting breedings!) But the kids and I are really trying to learn as much as we can. My 2 youngest children (13 & 9)are wanting to use their sheep to help them fund some of their 4-H trips and projects.


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## Baymule (Feb 1, 2018)

I never knew when my ram bred the ewes. I did not use the colored powder on him or the harness for it, and never saw him breed them. So don't feel bad about that. I have Dorper/Katahdin cross sheep and I love them! 

It's great that your kids what to use the sheep as 4H projects.


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## RoahT (Feb 1, 2018)

Yeah, I never keep track of it either!


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## Sheepshape (Feb 2, 2018)

Welcome Annwise27, being judgemental should be reserved for those who have no fault.....and I haven''t anyone yet. Very cute lamb....

I'm a bit more scientific about when my lambs are going to come as I want to be a bit more prepared than I used to be. I work out when the weather is likely to be improving.....actually over here that really doesn't happen!....then work back from there, 147 days, and that's when the tup goes in. Oh, and the really scientific bit, they're scanned at about 60 days (over here on-farm scanning is the norm and is very affordable)...so I know how many that are going to have. From a few days before the expected start of lambing I watch them like a hawk.....AND still usually miss some.

Oh and this year we borrowed a VERY sneaky young man from our neighbour.....he returned (scaling at least 4 fences) to return to our ladies....so the scanning won't be 100%.

Anyway, welcome once more and keep those pics. coming.


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## Annwise27 (Feb 2, 2018)

I'm actually glad to know that I'm not the only one who doesn't know exactly when "the deed" took place  
I'm pretty sure that this girl is going to be having a babe soon. She hasn't bagged yet but she has been showing all of the other signs of labor.


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## Latestarter (Feb 2, 2018)




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## misfitmorgan (Feb 7, 2018)

We don't know when ours are due either. Being we have only one non-seasonal sheep though, i just due the math off of the first sheep to give birth. So far that is working. 

In the future we will have the rams separate from the ewes but as of now we have no place to separate them due to moving.


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## RoahT (Feb 7, 2018)

@misfitmorgan, what do you do for lambing season if you can't separate them? I have a ewe that seems to be due soon, but I'm in the same situation of not being able to separate the ram from the ewes...


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## misfitmorgan (Feb 8, 2018)

Once the ewes are bred they no longer need to be separated.....only non-seasonal breeders need to be separate from the ram's when lambing so they are not bred back right away.

If you can move the expecting ewe to another area like in a stall in the barn or a temporary shelter for a week or two that would solve the problem. Being in colorado your going to want to keep the lab inside for a couple weeks anyhow otherwise you will have bad frostbite issues. 

We typically have some ear loss from frostbite on early lambs or kids i know it can be much more severe though. Someone we know had a goat kid suffer frostbite so bad she lost the bottom half of her front legs and the bottom quarter of her back legs. She still lived for about a year, i think i would have put her down myself.

What kind of setup do your sheep have? Depending on where in colorado you live your day time temps might be fine for lambs the over nights for the first week or two would be hard on them.


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## Annwise27 (Feb 8, 2018)

Right now I have 2 large fields to put our little herd into. 1 has no grass in it all right now so I have 3 ewes and our ram all together and  have my mean ewe in our quarantine pen so she doesn't kill any lambs, since the ram seems to be great with the babies. 2 of my ewes in the field are untouchable so we can't move them to our lambing pen. My plan for this spring is to have another field fenced for any boys we might have. We'll see how that goes though lol .


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## misfitmorgan (Feb 8, 2018)

So you have two fields, a quarantine area and a lambing pen?


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## Annwise27 (Feb 8, 2018)

The lambing pen is actually a little stall built under a lean-to  The quarantine field is just big enough to run 1 sheep in (2 if they are small). It's not ideal yet but the kids and I are getting a little closer lol. 
Just wanted to give Roah an idea of what our first year of learning looked like and how I am hoping to make improvements in the next year. ( I don't know why I wasn't thinking about early breed back after the babies are born! )


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## misfitmorgan (Feb 8, 2018)

If you have the hay i would put the ram in the other pasture without any grass for now. 

The mean ewe attacks lambs or just the other sheep?


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## Annwise27 (Feb 8, 2018)

The mean ewe seems to attack anything that walks or breathes. I was going to sell her or butcher her when she started being so violent but my son and husband get mad at me for even thinking about it. She is loving as long as there is a fence between her and everything else


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## misfitmorgan (Feb 8, 2018)

I would retain a ewe lamb off of the mean ewe and bottle raise the baby and then sell the mean ewe for meat. 

There is nothing wrong with your thinking. If you all really want to do 4-h and FFA good herd management is a big part of it and having animals who attack others...you know for breathing...is not good herd management. Really the only exception there might be a male animal and even then they better not go after anyone but other males. Ewe's picking on each other is normal but there is a point when it goes beyond normal.


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## Baymule (Feb 8, 2018)

I agree. Animals need to get along and not be attacking the others in the flock or herd. This ewe is beyond being a bully and needs to go. Either to the sale or freezer, but she needs to go. I don't think I would keep a ewe lamb from her, I wouldn't want those genetics in the flock. Sometimes you have to make the tough calls and it sounds like you are on the right track......now to bring your DH and son up to speed.......


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## misfitmorgan (Feb 8, 2018)

Baymule said:


> I agree. Animals need to get along and not be attacking the others in the flock or herd. This ewe is beyond being a bully and needs to go. Either to the sale or freezer, but she needs to go. I don't think I would keep a ewe lamb from her, I wouldn't want those genetics in the flock. Sometimes you have to make the tough calls and it sounds like you are on the right track......now to bring your DH and son up to speed.......



I wouldnt be concerned on the genetics in a bottle raised ewe....they tend to have a better attitude. There is no 100% for sure on that though...i would try it but suffolk are not cheap up here.


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## Annwise27 (Feb 8, 2018)

I have personally come close to shooting her myself... sadly, the only reason my hubs and son want to keep her is because she was a bottle baby. She is bred but only because my husband put her in with the others when I wasn't home. I don't plan on keeping her offspring out of fear that they will be like her. (I heard that meanness may be in the generics?)


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## RoahT (Feb 8, 2018)

So it's fine to put the ram in a stall by himself? Someone told me they have to have "company"... maybe that's not true.  He is not particularly mean to the ewes, but he is not particularly friendly either. He's kinda bossy, and I definitely don't want him around when the babies are born, just in case. I have an extra stall I can put him in if necessary, although he might get upset about it. I do keep them inside the barn in the winter other than a small outside area, so I'm not extremely worried about frostbite. How easily do new lambs get it? This is my first lambing season, I've done cows for years but they are hardier I think?


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## Annwise27 (Feb 8, 2018)

RoahT said:


> So it's fine to put the ram in a stall by himself? Someone told me they have to have "company"... maybe that's not true.  He is not particularly mean to the ewes, but he is not particularly friendly either. He's kinda bossy, and I definitely don't want him around when the babies are born, just in case. I have an extra stall I can put him in if necessary, although he might get upset about it. I do keep them inside the barn in the winter other than a small outside area, so I'm not extremely worried about frostbite. How easily do new lambs get it? This is my first lambing season, I've done cows for years but they are hardier I think?



Faith has been mostly by herself for the last 5 months. She can see and hear the others and our pony field butts up to hers (The fence isn't great or I'd put her with the ponies and let them teach her some manners  ) I think your ram will be ok if he can at least see his lady friends but someone with much more experience than me can tell you for sure!


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## misfitmorgan (Feb 8, 2018)

Ideally the ram would have a buddy, since it would only be for a short amount of time it should be ok. If the stall has a slatted door that would help. The idea is separate so he cant breed but you dont want him feeling like he is totally alone if possible. If you dont have one now you may consider making one of your ram lambs a wether so he can have a buddy when this time comes around again, or possibly finding a wether(tested for opp/johnes preferably).

If she was a bottle baby and is still a butt, i wouldnt keep kids either.


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