Baymule’s 2021 Lambing

[Baymule]

Lily’s lambs are both boys, one is small, but he is eating good.

Aria just gave birth. She was getting tired, the feet were poking out, covered in yellow. I petted and talked to her. She pushed some more and the face was out. I cleared the nostrils and gently pulled the feet. A couple of minutes and it was out. She is licking it now, it’s trying to stand. Poor baby is covered in yellow, it must have been stressed.

 

[Baymule]

That makes 16 lambs with 2 more ewes to lamb.

Reject and Tiny are doing well. I got XXL puppy pads today to put in the dog crate, so much easier to clean up!

 

[Baymule]

Miranda would not take Tiny back yesterday. I suspected that if I took Tiny out for the night, there was a risk that Miranda wouldn't want her-and she didn't. But Tiny was so small and weak that I was afraid that she wouldn't make it through the night. That's OK, she sure is healthy and bright now! So I have two bottle babies.

Aria was freaked out by her baby last night. Poor little thing took 45 minutes to even stand up. I was so concerned that I called @Ridgetop. While we talked, the lamb stood up and tried to nurse. Aria was weirded out by this slimy creature that wanted to nuzzle her udder and kept backing up. When the lamb did get close to her udder, she lifted her hind leg like a dog hiking his leg on a truck tire and moved away. Ridgetop and I concluded that I needed to tie her up and get the baby to nurse, so we said goodbye and that's what I did. This morning they both are fine, still haven't checked sex. Color appears to be white.

Lambs are not interested in the creep feeder, I'll try again next week. But for now, I'm going to put Reject and Tiny in it during the day and feed them their bottles there.

 

[Baymule]

Well the creep feeder didn’t work out. It didn’t last till the water got hot. Those two little scamps popped outa there like it was nothing. Hmmm.... jugged ewes need to move out. Orphans are moving in!

First I watched Aria and her lamb, it’s a girl, BTW, to make sure they had worked things out. The lamb was nursing and Aria was a proud mommy. I let them out. Then I let Miranda and her lambs out, did I mention that I was mistaken and all 3 are ewe lambs?

Then I put Tiny and Reject in a pen deep bedded in hay. They ran around, happy with more room.

Last night when Aria gave birth, Sheba was on the other side of the cow panel, desperately trying to help. Wish I had captured Sheba sticking her tongue out, trying to reach the baby. LOL

 

[farmerjan]

Any chance Aria might help with the orphans? Don't know what kind of udder she has.... any time they can get real sheep milk is a plus.... and they will have more strength and energy now to go after a teat. Just a thought.

Don't want to upset the apple cart... but so many of our cows will "co-mother".... may not seem normal, but we just lost a young cow with her 2nd calf. We suspect maybe hardware, but could not get her down through the 2 pastures to get her in for a couple of days, and suddenly she was dead. Her calf is sucking off one or 2 other cows my son said, so we are going to leave it because it is about 6-8 weeks old and a bottle is not much of a success at this age.... The cows are getting silage, so they will milk a little better than if they were just on hay.....it may wind up smaller, but sometimes they are better off in familiar surroundings and with others of their own (peer) group that they are used to.

I am very happy with cows that co-mother.... it might cover up a cow that does not milk as good as she should if her calf is "stealing" and so grows pretty good. But often many of our cows are just so easy going that they figure "oh well" ; and most don't get that accepting for the first few weeks at least. Cows are protective of their calves, and as the calves get a little bigger, a little more adventurous, they will run around with other calves and the cows get less "vigilant" and more relaxed.
If you use this as a creep after the lambs get a little age on them, and the orphans are in with them, you may find them sneaking out and snitching a little off another ewe also. And maybe your sheep are not that accepting...

 

[Ridgetop]

Were Miranda's lambs the ones that were colored so pretty? And are they going to be keepers?

I agree with Farmerjan about keep the lambs in the creep pen with the other lambs. As long as the mamas can't get into the creep, that means that the "orphan" lambs can run in to escape if a ewe starts butting it. They will grow better surrounded by buddies and keeping them in the creep is less work for you. The other lambs will be copying their mamas to eat hay quickly. The "orphans" will learn to eat hay faster if they are with other lamb that are nibbling on hay. And yes, often lambs will sneak a quick drink from a different mom. By keeping al the lambs together they will start to smell alike and in the confusion of mass lambs at feeding time the ewes often don't notice a little interloper.

 

[Baymule]

Aria is a FF and had me a little worried about her letting her own lamb nurse, but they figured it out overnight.

Miranda’s lambs are white, all 3 are ewe lambs. One of hers is Tiny, so I won’t keep her. The other two are nice healthy lambs, may possibly keep one or both.

The tricolored drop dead gorgeous lambs are all boys. . Won’t be keeping them. Eve’s lambs, black and white, are all 3 boys, won’t keep them either.

Just went out and fed Tiny and Reject in the pen/jug. They are like champs. There’s no holes for them to join the others, but it lets them be next to other sheep.

I like the creep feeder idea. I may try that next week. We are supposed to go to Odessa this coming weekend, will take Reject and Tiny with us. Might possibly have ice and snow, if so, not going. No way I’m getting on Interstate 20, which at best is a demolition derby, throw in ice and it’s a body count.

 

[Ridgetop]

Bet the little girls will be thrilled with a lamb each to feed!!!

 

[Mini Horses]

Yep, ice and snow wo uld sure make it a no go for me! Do you guys do computer face chats with them? That might be something to consider if you're not. Of course I don't know how but, they say it's simple. Rounding them up at one time, not as simple.

Triplets! When I first bought goats, I got a mini nub and her nursing doe kids. She was a first freshener then. Following that, every year I had her she had trips and for 4 yrs, all boys. When her doeling that came with her began kidding, always trip boys. The fifth year, mom had a doe & 2 bucks....kept the doeling. She has only had twin doelings, so far. Sold orig two, but they sure helped with the feed bill each year. Fed kids well, never shunned one. Some does only want to handle two.

 

[Baymule]

I've never seen any of my ewes let another lamb sneak a drink. They immediately react and butt other lambs away. I'm going to keep Tiny and Reject in the pen in the barn during the day for a couple of weeks, then try the creep feeder.