pasture bloat?

[bonbean01]

Today we put the sheep on the pasture longer than usual...have been really good about timing it to avoid bloat, but today had a fellow here helping to clean out stalls and birthing pens and they were out longer than usual. Tonight two looked bloated on their left sides. Followed the recipe and drenched them with the oil, water and baking soda mixture...so now what...stay up all night and see if it worked? No one in distress...well, except me...sheep are acting normal. Put some loose baking soda out for the rest and they seemed to like licking it...are we in the clear?

 

[dwbonfire]

i hope someone chimes in... i know with horses you have to slowly introduce pasture if they arent used to being on it, but didnt know it was the same for sheep. good to know since i am about to turn my animals loose on my property now that i finished the fencing. i guess i will let them out for an hour or so at a time? theres no lush grass here by any means, but they are only used to the front yard thats mowed down pretty short already.

not sure if you should lose sleep over it if they all seem to be feeling and acting well, but maybe set your alarm to check them in a couple hours? this is just a bit of advice, but im not expert thats for sure. good luck!

 

[bonbean01]

We started out with just 5 to 10 minutes at a time on the new grass and increased that gradually...no problems, but noticed clumpier poops. Today is about their 5th day on the grass and they were out longer than usual...not sure when it's okay to leave them longer.

Just went out and checked them again and yes...their stomachs are down to normal, so the drench was the way to go. I've read that severe bloat can kill them in 12 hours, so was not willing to take the chance.

I grew up on a cattle farm and I remember once when a rodent had chewed a wooden corner off the grain shed and oats poured out while we were away, and when we came home several cows were bloated and my Dad used a "punch" tool and actually went through the skin to the bloat and I could hear the gas loudly coming out...made quite an impression on me. I don't believe I could do that to a sheep and will avoid bloat now big time. Never had a problem in previous years, but this past winter and this early spring/summer is different.

While we were drenching we could hear the sheep's stomachs make strange gurgling sounds...wonder if that means a burping and farting fest in the sheep area tonight? Just glad they are all looking normal again.

Again I wonder if having baking soda out for them to take as they want or need would be helpful? Some sites say yes when you start them on fresh grass.

 

[aggieterpkatie]

If they're not in distress, it's likely not bloat. I'm guessing their rumens were just full.

 

[bonbean01]

I'm sure you're right...they were probably wondering what that 11 pm drenching was all about...they are all fine, but it did scare me. Sometimes researching online and reading the worst case scenerios can be downright terrifying. Anyone have an idea of how many days of limited grass grazing until they are okay to spend more time out there?

 

[Bossroo]

I always fed about a half ration of older, poorer hay just prior to turning the sheep out on pasture for 15 min, then 30 the next day, then 45 the next day, this allows their natural intestinal bacteria numbers to adjust to the new feed. Then feed their half ration of hay and turn them out for half day for a couple days. After that introduction, they can be pastured full time. Rarely if ever any bloat.

 

[aggieterpkatie]

Hard to say. Just go with your gut. Keep an eye on their behavior, and you'll be able to know what's normal or not.

 

[purplequeenvt]

Hmmmm........maybe I'm just a bad shepherd, but we always just turn the sheep out on pasture and that is that. If we have leftover hay, we will lock them up over night and feed them the hay in the morning and then let them out on grass. We only do that for a few days though. We've never had an issue with bloat on grass. They will usually get loose poop for a bit though, but that is just because of the higher water content in the grass v. hay.