purplequeenvt - Ivy Knoll Farm

[purplequeenvt]

No way of knowing. It could be that the ewe's and ram's genes just didn't mesh well, so to speak. Or it could be a fluke. We've never had any sort of deformities before. The vet said that it wasn't cleft palate because the palate was completely formed, the upper jaw/palate/whatever-the-technical-term-is didn't grow properly.

I have a friend who had a lamb born this year with a similar deformity, only her lamb was missing his bottom jaw.

 

[CocoNUT]

thanks for post those photos in a way that we could look at them if we chose. they weren't as grizzly as i was thinking they might be. guess the mind is more corrupt than nature sometimes huh? poor little thing.

 

[Queen Mum]

No way of knowing. It could be that the ewe's and ram's genes just didn't mesh well, so to speak. Or it could be a fluke. We've never had any sort of deformities before. The vet said that it wasn't cleft palate because the palate was completely formed, the upper jaw/palate/whatever-the-technical-term-is didn't grow properly.

I have a friend who had a lamb born this year with a similar deformity, only her lamb was missing his bottom jaw.

Ah, I see. I think sometimes things just "happen". I am so sorry you had to have a birth like that though. It is just such a shock.

How is the Ewe doing?

 

[purplequeenvt]

She's doing ok this morning. She ate, drank, and pooped.

 

[purplequeenvt]

We might be having Shetland babies tonight!

 

[Queen Mum]

YAY! I am dying to see the pictures.

 

[purplequeenvt]

Nothing yet. My sheep like to tease me. They give me a bunch labor signs and then they're like "Oops! Never mind" and then they don't lamb for another 3 days.

 

[alsea1]

They are waiting for the wee hours of the morning.

 

[purplequeenvt]

Yes, they like to do that too. Which I am fine with, as long as everything goes ok. Unlike tonight. I went out at 1 am to check because I knew that someone, wasn't sure which one, was going to lamb tonight. I got out there and Simone (Border Leicester/Romney cross bred to a Border Leicester/Dorper cross) had a lamb hanging out. Head and one leg. She'd been like that for a while because the head was starting to swell and the face was cool. I checked that the baby was still alive, he was, and then pulled him. Thankfully his leg was straight back and not kinked because I don't think I would have been able to get his head back in far enough to get a leg unstuck.

The mom thought I'd pulled her insides out and lay flat out on her side with her eyes closed. The baby was quite spunky considering what he'd just been through. I got mom licking him and then ran back inside for the iodine and scale. When I got back out, the mom and collapsed again and the baby was in the middle of the barn. I eventually got Simone to figure out that she was NOT dying, nor did her guts fall out. I put both into a jug and baby right away figure out how to nurse. I love smart babies!

 

[Queen Mum]

Good grief!!! They do know how to create drama, those pregnant mamas.