Sheep beginning to show signs of a little bloat...now sure why, not sure what to do...

[soarwitheagles]

Our sheep are still "mowing " the neighbor's forest. I send em' over every morning, they return home every evening. On rare occasion, they will remain on my pasture and eat the planted pasture of annual rye, 3 types of clover, chickory, birdsfoot trefoil, etc. But lately, they really seem to enjoy my neighbor's forest.

Most of his property is filled with 10-14" grass, clover, forbs, etc. It is 100% native plants. There is also unlimited Eucalyptus leaves, bark, and branches. I am just a tiny bit concerned because lately some of our ewes are returning home at night with signs of low level bloat on a nearly daily basis. But every morning, they appear to back to normal size. So not sure what to make of this...

This is the first time I have ever seen them with a little bloat. In the past I really admired them because they were always able to self monitor and knew when to stop eating and never showed any signs of bloat...not sure what is going on now...

Anyone have any suggestions? Why would our sheep suddenly begin to show signs of bloat after 2 years of really good self control? Wow, maybe he has something growing there that is extremely attractive to our sheep...

I really would like to avoid them coming home and looking like that girl on Willy Wonka who turned into a giant blueberry...

My rancher friend recommended baking soda...not so sure about that...

 

[norseofcourse]

Can you back off on the amount of time your sheep are at your neighbor's? 'sheep', 'food', and 'self control' don't really go together well, sheep are pretty good eating machines and will overeat. Changes to what they're eating (or how much) are also best done slowly, to give the bacteria in their rumens a chance to adjust.

Their rumen size will also vary. Are you sure the sheep are bloating? Or maybe just have very full rumens? I have not dealt with actual bloat yet, but they're supposed to go off feed and be very uncomfortable.

I would try sending the sheep into the neighbor's forest a bit later in the morning, giving them some hay while you wait, if you have it.

 

[Mike CHS]

I haven't encountered actual bloat yet either but sheep are gas making machines. When I cut fresh grass for them they will eat till they are stuffed and look to be full of gas. I spend a lot of time around ours and know it isn't just looking full of gas.

 

[Bossroo]

Soar ... Think UCD Animal Science Sheep Dept. or Range Management. Usually it could be caused by molds that are growing on the forages due to the amount of moisture from the rains. Or possibly the level of maturity of certain grasses or something else. Also, the native fescue will have high levels of endofite. To help for now, I would feed them about 25% of the amount of hay that they would eat normally first thing before you turn them out into the pasture.

 

[mysunwolf]

I second what others have said. First determine if they are just filling their rumens too full of yummy stuff (honeysuckle is a favorite this time of year), rather than truly bloating. Feeding hay before you turn them out will really help.

I would also have to agree with your rancher friend, we put out free choice baking soda in the spring when we turn them onto fresh pasture and it really helps with any loose poop, hopefully it has also saved us from cases of bloat.

 

[soarwitheagles]

Thank you for your replies everyone! Hmmmmm....well, I do have a question:

How do I determine the difference between bloat and merely filling their rumens?

 

[Latestarter]

I'll throw a guess out there. I believe that the rumen, when working properly, makes noises that you should be able to hear. Bloat happens when the rumen shuts down, becomes acidic, and those sounds cease. I don't know, but do they stop chewing cud when bloating?

 

[soarwitheagles]

Wow, great ideas everyone. Well, the sheep seem to be happy as can be, no signs of sickness or illness. They also jump 2-5 feet up in the air when I release them in the morning...so perhaps they are simply filling their rumens up to the top...

I have decided to call this medical condition Top Rumen.

Whoops, wait...did I spell that wrong? Shall we call it Top Rumen or Top Ramen?

The good news is they appear back to normal size every morning...and that is more than I can say for myself after going to a nice buffet dinner...

 

[soarwitheagles]

Ok, I decided to take a pic and post it...this wonderful Dorper mommy sure appears "too" big to me...but, being a newbie, perhaps I have no clue what I am talking about...

It looks to me as if one side of her body has a really bad case of the bulges...

Is this Dorper simply looking a little like a pig due to a full rumen, or is this a case of bloat?

Please help us if ya can!

Thank you!

PS That is "Moo-Moo" at her side, her firstborn male ram lamb that looks a little like a Holstein cow....

 

[mysunwolf]

She does look a little overly full to me. If she were mine, I would give her some probios and a little grain, and limit her grazing and/or hay. Also... is she pregnant right now?