# Pregnant sheep?



## katechaa (Aug 29, 2013)

Hi all, I'm new to owning sheep.
We moved into an old goat farm, and the owners stopped the goat farming a long time a go, and now have three sheep here.
We were told the sheep are old, and I believed it, but I think the female one is pregnant.
How can you tell? I know it sounds sooooo silly, but I've never owned sheep before.
There is one female and two males. She is so much fatter than the two males, like a lot fatter. Do sheep just get fat in their old age, or....?

Any advice is welcome, thanks!!


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## Ruus (Aug 29, 2013)

Are these two rams or two wethers she's running with? (are the males intact?) Sheep don't really do menopause, if the ewe has been out there with two intact males for a while she's probably pregnant.

If they're wethers (castrated males) and she's an older ewe who's had lots of lambs, she could also just be stretched out.  And sometimes a really full rumen looks like a baby bulge.


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## BrownSheep (Aug 29, 2013)

If she hasn't lambed in a while she could have started putting on some weight.


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## Four Winds Ranch (Aug 29, 2013)

Like Ruus said, if the boys are not fixed, she most likely is pregnant! If they are fixed, you won't know if she is pregnant or not till maybe 5 months after you got her, or, a monthish before she has her lamb/s (her udder will start swelling and getting poofy)!


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## katechaa (Aug 29, 2013)

Thanks all for the replies.
I've only been living here since May, so I have no idea if they're wethers or not. Unless sheep had visible balls like dogs, then I can't tell. I tired to upload a photo of them yesterday, but it wont let me. I'll try again tonight.


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## Four Winds Ranch (Aug 29, 2013)

Lol, sheep 'balls' are very visible!!  Much bigger than dogs! On an adult ram most times, they hang down to their knees, ya can't  miss them!


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## katechaa (Aug 30, 2013)

Ha! Now I'm a little embarrassed! I've never seen a sheep with his testes, so I thought they were hidden or something 

Thank you!


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## EllieMay (Aug 30, 2013)

Yeah, they are VERY visible!!!  
Sounds like you're safe.
The boys you have are probably cut (if there's nothing to see).
Your ewe is probably just fat.
I have two fatties that were spoiled rotten at their previous farm, so they're HUGE.
Everyone thinks they're pregnant.
Congrats on your new life with sheep!


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## SheepGirl (Aug 30, 2013)

Yes, sheep balls are VERY visible!! 

The natural colored sheep on the left is a wether. Nothing hanging between his legs! The natural colored sheep on the right in the background is a ram. Can you see his manhood? It's very visible, even at that distance 






ANYWAY, onto your question 

What breed of sheep are they? Being in late August, almost September, it is very unlikely she is bred. They normally start to breed at about this time. It is likely she is just fat and/or has a full rumen. What is her BCS? Does she have any udder development? Do you have any photos? Maybe you think she's fat but in reality she may just be in good condition


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## Sheepshape (Sep 1, 2013)

Does this help?


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## n8ivetxn (Nov 10, 2013)




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## california cowgirl (Nov 23, 2013)

I bought some older lambs from someone with the ewes and they said they had been banded as young lambs.  Well they kept acting like rams so we flanked them and someone whoever that banded them left a testicle back or one on each slipped up over the band and they were one nutters but it was up in their body you could only see the bulge from our view and you could feel it nothing hung down.  we have a neighbor that has a fat sheep and she is all alone with a goat but she is fat!!!


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## Southdown (Nov 24, 2013)




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## BrownSheep (Nov 24, 2013)

It is easy to slip a testicle when banding! I've bought show lambs from a guy who literally just got the scrotum of every ram lamb he had.  It's a two man job in my opinion. A squisher and a squeezer!


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## Southern by choice (Nov 24, 2013)

BrownSheep said:


> It is easy to slip a testicle when banding! I've bought show lambs from a guy who literally just got the scrotum of every ram lamb he had.  It's a two man job in my opinion.* A squisher and a squeezer!*


  never heard that before!


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## purplequeenvt (Nov 25, 2013)

You have be able to count....at least up to two.


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## Southdown (Nov 25, 2013)

We've missed one and had surprise pregnancies.  Now I stick to burdizzo and no problems since.  Definitely agree it's a two man (or two women) job.


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