# Sheep



## Nicola (Dec 11, 2015)

Hi. I'm new to this site. I have a couple questions about a sheep I've just acquired. I've never owned them before although I have owned and bred horses and dogs. I was told the ewe is about 8 years old has had lambs and maybe pregnant. She has a large udder, is this an indication she could be pregnant or is it cause she's old and had a few lambs? Any help would be appreciated. Thanks Nicola


----------



## Southern by choice (Dec 12, 2015)

Glad you found it! You should have some help tomorrow!


----------



## Latestarter (Dec 12, 2015)

Greetings from the front range in Colorado @Nicola   and the thread! There are a bunch of sheople that are active, and I'm sure they'll be along shortly to greet you and help you; @norseofcourse @mysunwolf @purplequeenvt @SheepGirl @Baymule @frustratedearthmother  just to mention a few. Congrats on your first "new" sheep! I hope everything works out well for you!


----------



## promiseacres (Dec 12, 2015)

A large udder could be age or getting close to  lambing. What breed is she? Is the udder full feeling or squishy?  I watch my girls nipples, when they are horizontal then they are close to lambing.


----------



## Nicola (Dec 12, 2015)

Hi promiseacres, she is a poll Dorset x. I havnt caught her to feel her udder. Does full mean she is close? Thanks


----------



## Nicola (Dec 12, 2015)

Apparently she is due for shearing in January. I read that if the fleece is too long near her udder the lamb may have issues getting onto the teat. Do they generally have two lambs?  Should I be feeding her a special diet? Thank you for any help you can offer.


----------



## norseofcourse (Dec 13, 2015)

Welcome to BHY, and congrats on your new sheep!  @promiseacres is right about the udder, could be either.  If she is pregnant the udder may keep getting larger, more filled out.  Also her vulva will swell.  Two lambs is typical, especially if she's had twins before.

The lamb should be able to find her udder even with wool back there.  The main problem with long wool underneath, is if it's soiled with manure.  The lamb, in trying to find the udder, might grab one of those manure 'tags' instead.  I sometimes take scissors and (carefully) trim around the back end and udder of mine before lambing.  If your sheep won't let you do that, don't worry about it too much.  Has she had any shots?  A CD-T vaccination about a month or so before lambing will give the lamb antibodies in the milk.

As far as feeding, that depends on her condition.  Is there grazing in your part of the country now?  I'm in Ohio, so mine get hay free choice, loose mineral free choice, water of course, and a tiny bit of grain/pellets (1 cup of it among 5 sheep, mainly to keep them coming into the barn).  You can body condition score sheep ( http://www1.agric.gov.ab.ca/$department/deptdocs.nsf/all/agdex9622/$FILE/bcs-sheep.pdf ), to see if you need to feed them more or less.  A score of 2 to 3 is good, many people increase the ewe's feed in the last month before lambing, although if she's already at a 3 you wouldn't need to do that.  A fat ewe is more likely to have lambing problems than one in good shape.  Make any feed changes/increases very very slowly, to give their rumen bacteria time to adjust.

Congrats again - we'd love to see some pictures!


----------



## norseofcourse (Dec 13, 2015)

Forgot something - you don't say if this is your only sheep.  Sheep are herd/flock animals, they do better if there's more than one.  If she's pregnant, she'll solve that problem on her own      If she isn't, you may want to get another ewe or a wether (neutered male) to keep her company.


----------



## goatgurl (Dec 13, 2015)

Welcome to Back Yard Herds and congratulations on the sheep.  I'm going to have to agree with the others, the large udder could be an age thing or it could be that she is getting ready to lamb. _ Keep an eye on it and see if it gets larger and or firmer and keep an eye on her girl parts for swelling or discharge.  i don't give my ewes much grain but they have free choice hay and also have 60 acres to graze so they really don't need it.  the mineral are really important.  make sure you get sheep minerals and not goat minerals.  goat minerals have to much copper for sheep and it can be toxic.  if she will let you a good trim around the udder and back side is also a good thing but if she is skittish and not wanting you to handle her the stress could do more harm than good.  and giving cdt vaccine is really important to both her health and the lambs.  you can pick them up at most feed stores and give them yourself or have a more experienced person or a vet give it.   good luck and be sure to keep us updated and remember we love pictures._


----------



## Baymule (Dec 13, 2015)

Congrats on our first sheep! I have my first sheep too. Is her belly big or lean?


----------



## sadieml (Dec 13, 2015)

I have no sheep, just 2 pygmy boys, so I'm no help at all.  Just wanted to welcome you to the site (I was a lurker for years before finally joining after we got our goatie boys.)  I'm sure you'll get all the help you need from these AWESOME folks.  Also, never forget, we love pictures, the more the better.  We are pic addicts and NEED as many as possible.


----------



## bonbean01 (Dec 14, 2015)

Welcome to BYH and welcome to the wonderful world of sheep!!! 

My oldest ewe Dolly is coming on 9 years old and has had many lambs...her udder is "saggy" as in needs a bra...LOL...I have to feel it to determine if she is producing some milk in there or if the udder is empty.  She has a little bit started in there, but has a way to go if she is preggo.  Side to side she is nicely filled out, but then she always is...my gals like to eat   For her at this age it is a wait and see...I really don't know for sure.

Hoping your ewe is preggo and that you are blessed with beautiful babies


----------



## Nicola (Dec 14, 2015)

She does have a young wether with her


----------



## Nicola (Dec 15, 2015)

She has a young wether with her. I will try to upload a pic of them. Is there a particular time of year that they lamb? I live in Australia.


----------



## Nicola (Dec 16, 2015)

She has a young wether with her. I will try to upload a pic of them. Is there a particular time of year that they lamb? I live in Australia.


----------



## Latestarter (Dec 16, 2015)

Typically they go into heat in the fall and deliver in the spring. There IS some overlap depending on how early or late they go into heat. With goats, they cycle about every 18-21 days over a (typically) 4-6 month period... Aug/Sep through Jan-Feb (northern hemisphere of course). Since gestation is ~150 days you can't really tell when they'll lamb unless you have some idea of when they settled.

If you don't know when the ram got her, about the only thing you can do is watch her udder and vulva. generally her udder will start to fill out and enlarge a month or less before delivery. When the vulva starts to swell and get redish you're getting close... maybe  a week or less. When you start seeing discharge, depending on color and consistency as well as quantity, that also indicates getting close.

Generally, they'll get less and less comfortable and may paw the ground or try to make a hay nest or constantly be up and down, their appetite may change...  I'm just passing on what I've heard/read as I don't own sheep or goats yet. I hope this helps some. Sorry I couldn't be more specific

http://www.sheep101.info/lambing.html


----------



## Latestarter (Dec 16, 2015)

Just found some more on another site that sheep cycle about every 17 days and stay "hot" for about 30 hours. Also, sheep raised near the equator (no noticeable seasons/shortening of the day/light) may be able to cycle year round...


----------



## Nicola (Dec 20, 2015)

She has a young wether with her. I will try to upload a pic of them. Is there a particular time of year that they lamb? I live in Australia.


----------



## Nicola (Dec 20, 2015)




----------



## norseofcourse (Dec 20, 2015)

Nice sheep - and I am envious of how green and growing things look there!  Winter has started here, although it's been unusually mild so far.

The time of year sheep will lamb varies depending on the time of year they are able to come into heat.  Do you know what dates she was with a ram?  If you have starting and ending dates, that can at least narrow down your time frame.

A straight-on picture can help, too - either directly from the front or rear.  If you can, take one on a regular basis, like once a week or two weeks, so you can see the development.


----------



## Sheepshape (Dec 21, 2015)

Nice sheep, Nicola and congratulations on acquiring them.

Sticking my neck out here, she doesn't look pregnant to me, or, at least not far gone. They usually start getting a 'saggy belly' quite early on when they have had plenty of practice at lambing. 

If you can get a pic. of her 'rear quarters', ideally with the tail lifted, it should be pretty easy to tell.

Unless you were told that have been very recently wormed, I would give them both a dose of broad-spectrum wormer.

Good Luck.


----------

