# Bottle baby with a respiratory illness advice?



## EmToAb48 (Jun 9, 2013)

I purchased 9, yes 9, bottle babies. I got three about a week ago they are two weeks old now and doing great! I then went yesterday to pick up a few more and came home with six lol! They gave me one ewe that has a bit of a respiratory thing going on for free the guy had to pull from the mom because she was acting as a loner and for obvious reasons she is sick. 

He doesn't have shelter for the sheep and up here in Northern WI we have been getting rain after rain staying in 60s to 50s at most days...

Anyways, I brought her home last night she had labored breathing honestly scared me I didn't think she would make it through the night. He had given her  shot of penicillin before I got her. This morning her breathing is a bit better however, she is not active at all just sleeps or lays on the ground all day under the heat lamp. I force feed her as she doesn't suck but more mouths the nipple but I am able to get food in her thankfully. 

I have them in our barn with lots of straw, a heat lamp, and its nice and dry in their.  

Is their anything else I can do for this little girl besides just hope she pulls through and her body fights off this cold. I was wondering if electrolytes might help her?


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## bonbean01 (Jun 9, 2013)

If it were me, I would do a full round of antibiotics...not just one shot.  And check her temp off and on to give you an idea of how she's doing.  Good luck and hope she gets well!!!


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## Four Winds Ranch (Jun 9, 2013)

I would keep up with the antibiotics, if you can get Nuflor (respiratory antibiotic) I would switch to that! If not, keep up the penicillan and try to make sure she gets fed on time, has a fairly clean pen, and try to keep her out cold drafts, or from getting cold!  Other than that, we will cross our fingers and hope for the best!!!!!! 
Good luck!!  
Keep us posted!!!


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## EmToAb48 (Jun 9, 2013)

Four Winds Ranch said:
			
		

> I would keep up with the antibiotics, if you can get Nuflor (respiratory antibiotic) I would switch to that! If not, keep up the penicillan and try to make sure she gets fed on time, has a fairly clean pen, and try to keep her out cold drafts, or from getting cold!  Other than that, we will cross our fingers and hope for the best!!!!!!
> Good luck!!  umbsu
> Keep us posted!!!


Thanks both of you for the advice sadly she passed at 10pm tonight   She stopped drinking anything at about 11 am this morning on me I brought her from the barn to the house. Tried everything to get her to eat but nothing. I slowly syringed a cup of electrolytes in her and she got another small dose of penicillin. I just think she gave up   She had a lot wheezing labored breathing, a fever, she literally stopped moving at all this afternoon. I just prepared myself for what was going to happen kept her comfy.

I just don't think her illness was caught fast enough from the beginning.  Man nature sure can be cruel at times. At least she isn't suffering anymore and in a better place just not fair though!


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## Four Winds Ranch (Jun 10, 2013)

Sounds like pnemonia!! It is soooo hard to catch this in lambs! Sorry about your lose!!!


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## autumnprairie (Jun 10, 2013)




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## EmToAb48 (Jun 10, 2013)

Four Winds Ranch said:
			
		

> Sounds like pnemonia!! It is soooo hard to catch this in lambs! Sorry about your lose!!!


'

Thanks I think she had it also! Can that be spread to the rest?


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## Four Winds Ranch (Jun 10, 2013)

Most likely not!!! They should be fine!!!


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## SheepGirl (Jun 10, 2013)

Depends on what caused the pneumonia. If it was bacterial, then yes, it can spread to the other lambs. If it was caused by mechanical means, then no, it probably won't spread to the other lambs. What I think, based on the circumstances, is that the lamb when pulled by the shepherd, got fluid in its lungs and it wasn't adequately drained when the lamb was born. Lambs can go on for 2-3 wks like this before they die. So I think that the pneumonia was caused by mechanical means so therefore I don't think the other lambs can get it. But keep an eye out just in case. Sorry you lost one.


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## EmToAb48 (Jun 11, 2013)

SheepGirl said:
			
		

> Depends on what caused the pneumonia. If it was bacterial, then yes, it can spread to the other lambs. If it was caused by mechanical means, then no, it probably won't spread to the other lambs. What I think, based on the circumstances, is that the lamb when pulled by the shepherd, got fluid in its lungs and it wasn't adequately drained when the lamb was born. Lambs can go on for 2-3 wks like this before they die. So I think that the pneumonia was caused by mechanical means so therefore I don't think the other lambs can get it. But keep an eye out just in case. Sorry you lost one.


Sorry I should have rephrased my wording. I meant he pulled her in from the field because she was acting as a loner the mother gave birth fine. She was sick while out in the field and thats why he took her from the mother he didn't see her go with the flock but stand away and keep head down and she wasn't nursing at all....

All the rest at this time  seem fine I am keeping a close eye so I can call the vet if any of the others get the same symptoms. 

Can they catch pneumonia from the elements? I am wondering if started out as a cold and progressed to pneumonia since it wasn't treated right away?


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## EmToAb48 (Jun 12, 2013)

SO, now I am a bit  worried as to what is going on... I have noticed one of my older rams seems to have the same type of  cough or congestion sound. He is up eating, drinking, etc but seems to not be as active as before. He is a triplet and is such a tiny little guy compared to his three week old counterparts. He was using a creep feeder but I noticed that he seemed to be getting pretty tiny so I started bottle feeding him like I do the other ones that don't use the creep feeder. 

 Would you wait to see if he gets worse before giving a shot of penicillin. If he starts to go down hill here I am calling a vet to check him over to make sure whatever killed the other one isn't airborne.. UGH! 


I don't want to lose another one of these guys


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## Sheepshape (Jun 17, 2013)

I hope that your ram lamb got better.....sorry to hear that you lost the ewe lamb. Florfenicol, licensed in the US as Nuflor (in Britain licensed under the name Resflor and only licensed in cattle) was the only antibiotic which helped a bottle lamb of mine with pneumonia.....prescribed by our vet.

It would be sensible to make sure that all your survivors are vaccinated at 6 weeks are so of age against pneumonia to reduce the risk in older animals. Again, probably licensed under a different name, but here in Britain I use 
Heptavac P-plus which is active against 7 different strains of Clostridia and Pasteurella which cause sheep pneumonias. 

We vaccinate pregnant ewes about 6 weeks before lambing with the same vaccine. "Passive immunity' is given to the lamb for the first 6 or so weeks of life as the antibodies produced in the mother are transferred across the placenta before birth. These antibodies decay over the first 6 weeks of life, so vaccinating the lambs at about 6 weeks will cause the lamb to develop its own (active) immunity. The vaccination needs to be repeated again at about 6 weeks weeks after the first injection and annually thereafter.

I hope that no other lambs develop the illness.


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## Four Winds Ranch (Jun 17, 2013)

How are your lambs??? Hope everything going good for you and them!!!


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## EmToAb48 (Jun 20, 2013)

Four Winds Ranch said:
			
		

> How are your lambs??? Hope everything going good for you and them!!!


The other sick one is still alive.. it was a triplet he seems to be much smaller then then the other two that are about the same age.. He drinks from a bottle (does you the creep feeder) but only takes small amounts from me at a time. I can get 4 oz every 4 hours with a lot of babying for him so thats good. He is eating hay and stuff but he sure isn't gaining weight very easily at all. He has a cough that sounds almost like a  kennel cough in dogs.. I have given him 2 doses of Penicillin so far I don't want to give him to much unless he gets worse.

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.377090215733683.1073741830.275233212586051&type=1

If you look at my album you can see a picture of all them and more  he is number 3002 on his ear tag I have a single shot of him the one laying on the ground in a single photo is a ram that was born a day before him he doubles his size!!!.. They right now are let out all day in a moveable temporary play pen.. I am to nervous to allow them to go out in pasture since they are still so small so I think I will wait otherwise they have a great pen in our barn. 

 Not sure if you can share facebook stuff on here since I know BYC won't allow it anymore.


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