Ridgetop - our place and how we muddle along

[Ridgetop]

Wednesday am:
Found a large leg bone in a roll of hay. It was very old so maybe even a cow boneGood idea - e will take Baby Bota back and just toss all the big bones into the bucket, then bring them back and do a burn pile in the garden.

No new lambs this morning.
DH wanted to know numbers of sheep, lambs, and how many still to lamb.

38 ewes were exposed to the first ram. Two weeks after he was removed the second ram was put in as a cover up.
28 ewes have lambed.
32 living lambs. 20 rams, 12 ewes.
10 ewes left to lamb BUT I don't think they all settled and one ewe died lambing (butt presentation), one heavily pregnant ewe died before lambing.
One stud ram died
7 stillborn or dead lambs.

Got to go - we are driving to Rockwall to meet DD2 and go to Costco and UPS. DS1 has to send a package back that was ordered by DS2 and delivered here by mistake. Raining like mad. Left both the gate to the creep pen and the barn open so the sheep could go in to lamb or shelter with their lambs.

Wednesday pm:
At Costco I bought some tamales. I am interested to see if they are as good as the ones at the California Costco. I can also get homemade ones at the coffee shop in Yantis so I will try those eventually. On the way home we stopped at Bucky's for some Mango and Peach salsa. Couldn't find any fruit salsa at Costco, Brookshires or Walmart. I like fruit salsa with tamales. Got back from Rockwall around 4:30 and the rain had stopped. DH and I unloaded the car while DS1 went out to the barn to feed grain. Found GR27 wth twin ewe ambs. They were sort of muddy since she had decided to lamb outside instead of in the dry barn. GR27 is one of Snowflake's daughters. Her twin had twin ram lambs. Jugs are efull again now since we removed 332's twin ram lambs from her jug into an adjacent one. They are taking the bottle well and I wanted the away from her since the larger one is nursing on her. She looked a little better this morning - head up while laying down, but still pretty sick. This evening she had moved around a bit but still was weak and didn't move when I gave her the mastitis udder infusions. I milked out as much as possible from both sides. The bad side had bloody pussy discharge. Then I gave her another 5cc Pennicillin. DS1 got her up but she was very unsteady since she has not eaten in a couple days. I don't think she has drunk much either. Definitely a cull if she recovers which is still doubtful. She has good South African bloodlines but I don't want to bottle raise lambs from her every year and fight mastitis. I don't think her mother settled this year either. There are several that don't look bred so I will put them in with a ram in another few weeks for late June lambs. Not ideal but better than holding them another year open.

Tomorrow DH and I must go to the Greenville VA for his medical checkup. He is transferring to the VA here in Texas. Will do a couple errands on the way back at stores we don't have in Sulphur Springs or Quitman. DS1 has a full list of stuff he wants to get done, starting with a run to the dump with our garbage, and then putting up more lights in the barn and tack/feed room.

New totals:
29 ewes have lambed.
34 living lambs. 20 rams, 16 ewes.
9 ewes left to lamb

 

[Baymule]

If 332 recovers, could you try her again in hopes of getting a ewe lamb from her?

Cow bones in rolls of hay are not uncommon. Cows die, get dragged to back 40, predators scatter bones. Hay baler picks them up for a surprise package!

HEB has good tamales. I don’t know of a HEB near you. The HEB in Lufkin is being remodeled, added onto and greatly enlarged. It’s turning into a real nice store.

 

[Ridgetop]

Heavy thunder and lightning storm all last night. Rained all night and morning until about noon.
Major standing water this morning when we fed. Lambs took their bottles well. DH and I went to Greenville for his introductory VA appointment. Rained all the way there with flooding on the 380 according to another patient. Blue skies and sunny when we came out, overcast but no rain in Yantis. Sheep were out on the pastures, but no new lambs today.

Made another batch of half/half homemade recipe and powder formula. Fed both lambs and they were eager for the nipple while standing on the ground. They took about 8 ounces each. This evening they only took about 4 ounces each - still pretty full from 2 pm feeding.

332 (mastitic ewe) seems to be slowly recovering. Her head was up and she was trying to get to her feet. Gave her another dose of udder infusions and 3cc Penn. The udder infusions can be given for 8 days. One side is completely dry so I am considering switching that side to the Tomorrow infusions for dry animals in another day or so. If she recovers I wiill infuse her with Tomorrow when she is dry and decide if I want to keep her, breed her, and bottle raise her lambs. I will take a goodlook at her daughter tomorrow. 332 is a 5 (highest score in grading quality) so I hoped for somethng good this time.

Still some ewes out there with udders so more lambs will arrive eventually. The sheep crowd into the barn as far as they can get from any openings that might cause the rain to fall on them. They know it is toxic rain that will melt them if it touches them.
The jugs are now taking up almost half the barn, but more than hlf the sheep are in the other barn with lambs. DS1 turned off the heat lamps today since the weather is warmer now. If we have more freezing weather in February they can be turned on again. Time for the lambs to suck it up and get tough. LOL Next week the actual creep gate goes up and we start feeding hay and grain in the creep to the lambs.

Angel has discovered the second doghouse we put up near the house. We will have to raise them both up on blocks though since the area under the eaves floods. We need gutters.
And another picture of a vicious Anatolian livestock guardian dog staunchly defending her flock.

It is amazng how these dogs can go from this to efficiently deadly predator control.

 

[Baymule]

It might be worth it if you can get 332 healed up, to breed her and bottle raise the lambs. The ewes are happy with the barn, they can get out of the toxic rain!

 

[SageHill]

Toxic rain --- ah yup definitely So Cal Sheep

 

[Mini Horses]

332 gets mastitis each lambing??? Why would you want to go thru that again, or her? And is it genetic for other ewes from her? Guess you'll find out soon, when her daughter lambs.

Have you had it tested to know the type? Interesting to hear how this plays out. Sorry your having to deal with, especially one of you good conformation animals & anticipation of more. Sad.

 

[Ridgetop]

She lambed 2 years ago and raised the lamb fine. Last May she had triplets, developed mastitis and I pulled them. One ram was already dead from poisoned milk, the other ram didn't survive long either. The ewe lamb was gorgeous and doing well until DH let her follow him out when he was working on the tractor and a tragedy ensued. He was crying about it, and I didn't have the heart to berate him. She was Lewis' last born lamb. Double tragedy.

This year 332 had triplet ram lambs. Onewas born dead (never broke through the sac) but the other 2 were fine. She looked fine and her udder was soft for the first few days, then she developed mastitis again. Seems to be mainly on one side. We have pulled her lambs and are bottle feeding them and they are doing well. I think she would have died but we gave her large doses of Penn and I got some mastitis tubes for lactating animals. I have treated her for 3 days now with the tubes and Pennicillin. Tonight I did not give her any Penn. Tomorrow I will either put her back on Penn or maybe change drugs to Tetracycline type. Manmmary tubes again tomorrow. I should have used the dry co formula on her last year but didn't. I .know better and had the tubes but was stupid. Also had to hurry to get back to California for my knee surgery. No excuse. This year I will do the dry treatment whether I keep her or not. If these lambs survive and grow well, I might try breeding her, pulling the lambs to bottle feed, and immediately treating her for mastitis. On the other hand, is it worth it? I have time to decide.

Tonight 332 showed interest in eating the grass hay I gave her. She also was able to stand when D1 got her up. She tolerated the mastitis tube but tried to move around. Hopefuly she will recover.

BL32 lambed today - another set of twin does. For some reason almost all the early lambs were rams now we are getting ewes. Same stud, go figure. Easier day today. We are getting into a routine and taking only about an hour for chores. Two hours if we have to pull lots of hay from the rolls. Tomorrow we will vax, dock, worm and another 3 ewes and their lambs can join the flock on the grass.

Also tomorrow we need to get more bag feed, dog fd, and put feeders in the creep. Then we will put up the creep bars. We still have 6 bales of alfalfa, and I have decided we will only use it in the creep for the lambs. The lactating ewes in the jugs get a scoop of alfafa pellets with their grain. The ewes in the creep pen and pasture only get the 13% pellet supplement. Ewelings and pregnant ewes get a 10% sweet feed.

 

[Ridgetop]

If I breed 332 again, I will use Junior on her and selected ewes for a repat of some fo the lovely lambs he gave me. Junior is a Lewis son. The ram I used this year is a South African embryo ram from Wes Patton. Next year I will have to go to the w\Western States show and sale and buy another ram.