# pregnant ewe with bloody discharge



## RamahRanch (Jan 28, 2016)

One of my dorper ewes 11 months old was exposed to my ram late October and I saw her get marked on November 1st she has a slight discharge for the last few days. Not heavy but a dripping dark red blood coming from her. I noticed it yesterday morning having some dried red crusty stuff on her back side. After checking more I could see it coming from her vagina since they had fresh blood on it. Still continued today not any more on her back side but she still has fresh blood on her vagina.

Thoughts? Trying to abort ?

Couldn't find much online about it other than aborting lambs usally happens around 100 days.


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## BlessedWithGoats (Jan 28, 2016)

I don't have sheep, but is she a first freshner?


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## BlessedWithGoats (Jan 28, 2016)

@Sheepshape @SheepGirl @norseofcourse... tagging some members that, among others, can hopefully answer your question.


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## RamahRanch (Jan 28, 2016)

Yes this is her first time being pregnant

She is acting normal eating drinking and playing


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## norseofcourse (Jan 28, 2016)

I hope she is ok, maybe someone like @purplequeenvt or the others mentioned have an idea.


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## purplequeenvt (Jan 28, 2016)

She most likely aborted.


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## RamahRanch (Jan 28, 2016)

I walked my winter pasture I have them on and didn't see anything but it's about 8 acres and I had to walk fast during my daughters nap but nothing jumped out at me


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## purplequeenvt (Jan 28, 2016)

You most likely will never find anything. A lamb fetus at that gestational age is quite small. In 16 years of raising sheep, we've had a few ewes abort and only once can I remember finding the lamb and that was only because we knew she was aborting and had penned her up separately.


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## RamahRanch (Jan 28, 2016)

Ok. I figured I see something atleast I checked all the spots they like to lay and went though the barn bedding good.  Any reason for causing it to be concerned with? Do I keep her with the ram and try again or wait until next year.


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## BlessedWithGoats (Jan 28, 2016)

I have goats, and one of my does last year had been bred, and then I saw some pinkish discharge during the pregnancy. I found out that it was possible she had miscarried, and I thought maybe she got bred a second time, after this had occurred; however, due to the date that she kidded, she must have still carried the kid from the first breeding.  She was a first freshener as well.  @purplequeenvt, what are your thoughts on this? Do you think it's a possibility this could be the case with this ewe as well, since it's her first freshening? Thanks!


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## RamahRanch (Jan 28, 2016)

I hope so this is my first breeding season with sheep and was hopping for some little lambs running around this spring.


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## Sheepshape (Jan 29, 2016)

Hi RamahRanch,

It sounds to me as though she has aborted,too. I've had ewes abort and never found the foetus, found just one of twins, or found the whole lot....depends on the time of day and the presence of predators who will carry off the aborted babies. I've even had a ewe abort one twin and go on to deliver the other, live, at a later date

Sheep are quite tough and often manage to 'carry on regardless' if the lamb foetuses were quite small. If a mature lamb is stillborn the situation can be quite different and the mama ewe may stay with it, licking it, and pawing it for a couple of days.

Hopefully this will be a one-off event and she will be fine next year (aborted lambs are often structurally abnormal and could not have survived). This happens in all species. If any other ewe aborts, and I am mentioning this, because regrettably there are bacteria, protozoa etc which can cause abortions in sheep, any material found (aborted lamb, afterbirth etc.) needs to analysed by a vet. The 'sporadic' abortion is by far the most common, and this is most likely to be what you are dealing with, but there are vaccines and treatments which are available to prevent some of the other types (e.g enzootic abortion). Some infective types of abortion are a one-off and immunity is conferred thereafter, so abortion will not recur in subsequent years.

Finally, just occasionally, a small bleed may be of no consequence and indicates that a cotyledon (the placental 'studs' which draw nutrients and oxygen from the mama to the foetus) has encroached on the os/cervix or mouth of the womb and a little bleeding can occur. It's a sort of 'placenta praaevia' of sheep and won't cause the massive bleeding which can happen with people as the cotyledons are small, unlike in the human placenta.

I certainly wouldn't breed this girl again this year....give her a break. 

I have just discovered that my girl who has had a couple of lambs a few days back  was my only girl to abort last year (in early Feb). She must have come into season again early on as she did not have to feed lambs.

Good luck for the rest of your girls.


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