# Colostrum production



## JulietO (Mar 13, 2015)

Hi all! 

We had the vet out to see a ewe with a vaginal prolapse. She seems alright now with a spoon in and some stitching to keep her from prolapsing her rectum. The vet, however, seems to think that some bummer has come and drank all this ewe's colostrum (note - she hasnt lambed yet!) and so we will have to feed her lambs colostrum replacer when they're born. She has milk now and the vet is convinced that it is normal milk, not colostrum, and that she wont produce any more. This sounds absolutely absurd to me, but hey, she went to school for this so I hope she knows what she's talking about. 
Has anyone ever heard of this before or have any insight?

Thanks!


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## babsbag (Mar 13, 2015)

I have been told the same as what your vet said, that milking a goat prior to kidding will delete the colostrum and it will not replenish until the next breeding. As to whether or not the milk she has is colostrum or milk IDK. Colostrum is pretty thick. Have you seen any lambs on her? If she is letting one nurse I would think you would see it.


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## Southern by choice (Mar 14, 2015)

I have heard the same however last year we were milking a doe 2x day and one morning we went out and to our surprise she had twins on the ground! She never looked pregnant and we did not think the breeding took. Her colostrum came in when she went into labor.
We milked her the night before, the milk was a bit off tasting but not yellow like colostrum and not real thick. 
Next morning with kids... yellow/orange, thicker.
It is the hormones that are released during labor that brings about this change. Might not be a bad idea to have something on hand but I would definitely look at the milk when she lambs.
When this happened to us I was pretty much in shock at the whole thing and scrambled to find someone with "clean" colostrum. We found someone but the kids would not take it and that is when I started looking at the dam's milk. All the worry and scramble for nothing. The colostrum was there.

Also the thickness of the colostrum can vary from doe to doe and ewe to ewe. We have some that have the thickest colostrum that the kids can't even get out of mom and others that have orangy, yellow that is thicker than milk but not thick like glue coming out.


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## JulietO (Mar 14, 2015)

babsbag said:


> I have been told the same as what your vet said, that milking a goat prior to kidding will delete the colostrum and it will not replenish until the next breeding. As to whether or not the milk she has is colostrum or milk IDK. Colostrum is pretty thick. Have you seen any lambs on her? If she is letting one nurse I would think you would see it.


Haven't seen her acting maternal at all let alone another lamb nursing from her. But we have 65 ewes and 40 lambs so far so anythings possible I suppose. I guess this will be a learning experience. Will be sure to post what we find when she does lamb


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## JulietO (Mar 14, 2015)

Southern by choice said:


> I have heard the same however last year we were milking a doe 2x day and one morning we went out and to our surprise she had twins on the ground! She never looked pregnant and we did not think the breeding took. Her colostrum came in when she went into labor.
> We milked her the night before, the milk was a bit off tasting but not yellow like colostrum and not real thick.
> Next morning with kids... yellow/orange, thicker.
> It is the hormones that are released during labor that brings about this change. Might not be a bad idea to have something on hand but I would definitely look at the milk when she lambs.
> ...


Well that is reassuring. I hope that is the case with this ewe. Fingers crossed!


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## purplequeenvt (Mar 14, 2015)

What made the vet think a lamb had snitched off her?


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## SheepGirl (Mar 14, 2015)

I'm not sure that a ewe will let another lamb nurse off of her. Maybe after they lamb, but not before. IMO they don't have the maternal instincts kick in until shortly before birth (like say 12 hours) or at birth. And even then, most ewes still kick away lambs that aren't theirs.

X2 on what purplequeenvt said -- what made the vet think this?


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## JulietO (Mar 15, 2015)

purplequeenvt said:


> What made the vet think a lamb had snitched off her?


We checked if she had any milk and she did, but it seemed like normal milk, not colostrum


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## purplequeenvt (Mar 15, 2015)

That's pretty normal. In the days/weeks leading up to lambing, if you were to milk the ewe, you'd get "normal" milk or watery looking milk. Generally, you won't get actual colostrum until shortly before or after labor starts.


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## JulietO (Mar 15, 2015)

purplequeenvt said:


> That's pretty normal. In the days/weeks leading up to lambing, if you were to milk the ewe, you'd get "normal" milk or watery looking milk. Generally, you won't get actual colostrum until shortly before or after labor starts.


Well thats what I thought! Thanks for the vote of confidence - although I hate to think that I'll have to add this vet to my "not to be trusted" list, haha!


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## purplequeenvt (Mar 15, 2015)

Honestly, there are few vets that actually know anything about sheep. Most specialize in dairy/beef or horses and not so much the small ruminants. 

We are blessed to have 2 vet offices around here that deal with a lot of sheep. They do more dairy, but there are enough sheep and goats around that they are pretty good with them too. They also aren't afraid to say when they don't know something and then they'll do the research to figure it out. 

And, unlike our small animal vet who often treats us like your average dog owner how doesn't know anything about their pet, our large animal vets work with us and listen to our input.


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## Southern by choice (Mar 15, 2015)

You do have to wonder about some vets.


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## JulietO (Mar 21, 2015)

purplequeenvt said:


> Honestly, there are few vets that actually know anything about sheep. Most specialize in dairy/beef or horses and not so much the small ruminants.
> 
> We are blessed to have 2 vet offices around here that deal with a lot of sheep. They do more dairy, but there are enough sheep and goats around that they are pretty good with them too. They also aren't afraid to say when they don't know something and then they'll do the research to figure it out.
> 
> And, unlike our small animal vet who often treats us like your average dog owner how doesn't know anything about their pet, our large animal vets work with us and listen to our input.


Haha yes, I know the feeling. My favourite vet has retired and they always have a young'n in the rotation. 
And she STILL hasnt lambed yet so I'm surprised that there was any milk at all when she came. Ah well, another adventure in sheep farming! haha


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## JulietO (Mar 24, 2015)

Update!
Ewe has lambed. Two healthy, beautiful lambs. Lots of good thick colostrum.
Thanks for the advice!


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## Southern by choice (Mar 24, 2015)

pics!


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## norseofcourse (Mar 24, 2015)

Woohoo yeah!!!!!!


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## bonbean01 (Mar 24, 2015)

Pictures please


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## JulietO (Mar 29, 2015)

Here they are! Not very big but very lively.


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## JulietO (Mar 29, 2015)

Hm, dont know why its rotated it and I can't seem to fix it. It doesnt show up this way on my computer...


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