I think my lamb bloats when she eats????

[ShortCircuitRanch2332]

ok im new to this site but not so new to livestock I bought a lamb yesterday for 70 dollars from a good friend of mine and the guy at the feed store told me they eat alfalfa pellets so I bought a bag well when I bought her her stomach was tight but not HUGE like I have seen on google but yesterday she did poo a pee ALOT well I researched it and it says alfalfa ferments quickly and causes bloating well I remembered an old remedy my great grandmother used which was 1/2 tsp ground ginger and 2 tbs water and give it to them with a baster or syringe so I did and about a half hour later she started belching and by this morning she was fine well I fed her again and her tummy is tight but again not BLOATED is this how they get when full or do I have a problem and is the alfalfa pellets causing it????

 

[aggieterpkatie]

How much are you feeding her (of the pellets) and is she getting anything else to eat? Hay? Grain? Alfalfa pellets are digested pretty quickly and they can be high in protein so they can cause bloat. Could it just be that her rumen is distended due to being full, or is she really acting poorly like she's bloated?

I'd either stop feeding the pellets or cut way back, and offer hay and see how she does on that.

 

[ShortCircuitRanch2332]

no I didnt get hay all the man at the feed store said was lambs eat the pellets, and they eat hay when they get big (ive only had fullgrown sheep not a lamb lol) so I didnt think anything about it.
so what kind of hay im guessing not alfalfa haha
and no she don't act poorly her tummy just gets tight and she belches also I feed her about a handful or two
am I just being a nervous ninny?

 

[Ariel301]

Alfalfa is fine for them. Ruminants like sheep don't do well on pelleted hay only, they need the long stems of hay or fresh plants to keep their rumens functioning correctly. So, you can feed her some pellets, but she needs some hay or something to graze on.

Switching from one feed to another can cause digestive upsets. What was she eating before you bought her?

 

[ShortCircuitRanch2332]

she was eating the alfalfa pellets still, sheep and lambs can graze on weeds rite? they are very tall and green and she like the little ones shes eaten up by the house and I do have a lot of those on the acreage farther back so would that help her till I can get hay?
and what about Bermuda hay with the pellets would that be ok?

 

[Beekissed]

Just grass would be fine....do you have grass?

 

[ShortCircuitRanch2332]

ya I have grass they have been grazing on it and I figured out what the problem she was constipated so I gave her 2 oz of mineral oil and she has been fine ever since and thank you for your help

 

[SheepGirl]

Sheep and other ruminants need forage that is at least 4 inches long to keep their rumens working. When they have finely shopped roughages and concentrates (grain) that invites acidiosis (which it sounds like your lamb does not have) and bloat. Instead of buying alfalfa pellets, I would buy some good quality hay. Not only is it better for your lamb, it is also probably a lot cheaper.