Ewe has not lambed yet and bag is extremely red and large...

[irishdancer]

Hi everyone!

I have a ewe that is about ready to give birth and is just miserable. She is extremely large and her bag is huge. It is very very full and it seems really red around the nipples. I have not seen any of my ewes with a bag this big ever. She keeps going off by herself and I keep thinking that she will be giving birth any minute but then another day goes by. How do I tell if there is something wrong? I'm already embarrassed because I took my bum lambs into the vet thinking they had WMD and scours. They were just wobbly and needed less milk replacer. Its like I'm a new Mom with no experience so I pretty much worry about everything right now and if its "normal". So I don't want to keep bugging the vets if its just part of the normal process, but I don't want to wait if something is really wrong either. How can I tell when its time to call a vet? Thanks!

 

[bonbean01]

Is she is not in labour and having contractions for a super long time, my guess is that she is okay...have you seen any discharge to make you think there is a problem?

I have one ewe that always gets a huge udder the last two weeks before she lambs...looks like she could feed at least 4 lambs. Never had mastitis, but you could feel her udder for any hard lumps if you are worried.

I'm not a vet...so I really don't know...but if she goes into hard labour for many hours and no progress, then I would call a vet.

Good luck and keep us posted...hope people with good answers come to give you some advice!

 

[Southern by choice]

I am a new sheep mom too! Hopefully the experienced ones will chime in... but you could feel the teats..are they hot or inflamed also it never hurts to take a temp. Is she acting normally?

Also, you should never be embarrassed. We learn by asking questions and through each experience.

 

[irishdancer]

I called a sheep friend and she seems to think everything sounds normal and that I just happen to have a ewe that is really large and has good milk. She said a little red around the nipples is normal, its just after nursing if they are still red and hot to the touch that you become concerned. She may have triplets. She said its just human moms, sometimes some women show a belly and some get as huge as houses. Since she is still moving around she said it sounds like she is not distressed. I am planning on just camping out tonight in case of trouble, out of site of course.

 

[irishdancer]

Mama had her babies at 6am this morning! So relieved. It went without a hitch! Two little ewe lambs and their mommy are all doing great. I can finally sleep tonight.

 

[bonbean01]

Congratulations!!!!!

 

[irishdancer]

 

[promiseacres]

So precious...

 

[bonbean01]

awwww

 

[WhiteMountainsRanch]

OMG soooo cute and precious!!!