Triplet newborn lamb scours

[Sheepbaroness]

You can try electrolytes for the one scouring if it continues, they sell it in packets at any store like tractor supply.

Also yeah you are going to need to start supplementing with a bottle. The ewe will not have enough milk for 3 lambs for long and if you dont start early the lambs will refuse the bottle later most likely. Two years ago we had to fight for 2 days to get a ewe raised lamb to take a bottle, she also never became friendly with people despite being bottle fed for 5 weeks. She was actually a single but we lost mom when she got in a fight with our herd queen(goat) in a confined space. Make sure she gets as much colostrum as possible from mom, you can offer a bottle to all the lambs and one will drink more...thats the one that will need bottled later. Even if mom tries to keep feeding all three it is going to take a huge toll on her, twins are toll enough let alone more.

Ok thank you, I was wondering about this

 

[Baymule]

You might want to keep her confined for awhile. Offer sheep mineral and dolomite lime. I buy it at Lowe’s as garden lime, but read the label to make sure it is dolomite lime. She needs the right calcium for milk.

@misfitmorgan do you think the ewe will be able to raise all 3 if she is supplemented? What would you recommend and how much? I have a ewe that puts it all in her bag and she gets pulled down. I give her cracked corn, a half cup twice a day. What do you think ?

 

[misfitmorgan]

You might want to keep her confined for awhile. Offer sheep mineral and dolomite lime. I buy it at Lowe’s as garden lime, but read the label to make sure it is dolomite lime. She needs the right calcium for milk.

@misfitmorgan do you think the ewe will be able to raise all 3 if she is supplemented? What would you recommend and how much? I have a ewe that puts it all in her bag and she gets pulled down. I give her cracked corn, a half cup twice a day. What do you think ?

Even with a perfect diet she will simply not be able to eat enough to keep up with 3 lambs unless she has an amazing capacity udder....I don't believe hair sheep have had a large focus on diary. Even diary sheep would struggle after a few weeks with triplets. You are also asking for issues with hypocalcaemia with that many lambs, esp after the ewe carried them to full term. Ewes on a perfect diet still lose 1/5lb a day while nursing triplets, we are talking places that get every type of feed checked and have a livestock feed specialist formulating the diet based on those results, that they then re-formulate for every new batch of feed ex. each new silage bag, or corn silo, etc.

You need to give more grain @Baymule , lactating ewes in general need 1lb of grain per lamb they are nursing. The high butterfat in their milk means it takes a lot out of them to make it. If you are feeding your ewe 1lb per lamb and you see she is getting to conditioned dial it back a bit. You would probly do better with a commercial sheep grain as it will have calcium, more protein, potassiam, etc that they need. If you have really good pasture you might be ok with just cracked corn for a ewe with singles or twins. Ewes are resilient and it is possible to run a grain free operation if you have sheep that are bred for it with full access to excellent pasture and lower birth rates on a slower breeding schedule. If you have lamb once a year for instance instead of twice a year you are much more flexible. The little I know about hair sheep they were bred for mostly pasture/grass feed, so likely manage better without grain. If your ewe/s are getting pulled down to much just increase the grain, try 1lb per lamb for a couple weeks then you can adjust it down to see what your ewe really needs.

BTW your current 1/2c of cracked corn should weigh approximately 0.25lbs so just double your current daily amount if she has a single, if she has twins you want to give 4c/day.

 

[Baymule]

Even with a perfect diet she will simply not be able to eat enough to keep up with 3 lambs unless she has an amazing capacity udder....I don't believe hair sheep have had a large focus on diary. Even diary sheep would struggle after a few weeks with triplets. You are also asking for issues with hypocalcaemia with that many lambs, esp after the ewe carried them to full term. Ewes on a perfect diet still lose 1/5lb a day while nursing triplets, we are talking places that get every type of feed checked and have a livestock feed specialist formulating the diet based on those results, that they then re-formulate for every new batch of feed ex. each new silage bag, or corn silo, etc.

You need to give more grain @Baymule , lactating ewes in general need 1lb of grain per lamb they are nursing. The high butterfat in their milk means it takes a lot out of them to make it. If you are feeding your ewe 1lb per lamb and you see she is getting to conditioned dial it back a bit. You would probly do better with a commercial sheep grain as it will have calcium, more protein, potassiam, etc that they need. If you have really good pasture you might be ok with just cracked corn for a ewe with singles or twins. Ewes are resilient and it is possible to run a grain free operation if you have sheep that are bred for it with full access to excellent pasture and lower birth rates on a slower breeding schedule. If you have lamb once a year for instance instead of twice a year you are much more flexible. The little I know about hair sheep they were bred for mostly pasture/grass feed, so likely manage better without grain. If your ewe/s are getting pulled down to much just increase the grain, try 1lb per lamb for a couple weeks then you can adjust it down to see what your ewe really needs.

BTW your current 1/2c of cracked corn should weigh approximately 0.25lbs so just double your current daily amount if she has a single, if she has twins you want to give 4c/day.

The cracked corn is in addition to the pellets she gets. Sorry I was not clear on that. Sometimes she does get more corn, I just watch her condition. She used to run into the fence and literally bounce off the walls to get away from me. But time and cracked corn changed all that. Now she knows her name and adores attention, even pawing at me for more. She not only lets the granddaughters love on her, she approaches them and asks for attention. She’s a keeper until she goes to that great sheep pasture in the sky.

 

[misfitmorgan]

The cracked corn is in addition to the pellets she gets. Sorry I was not clear on that. Sometimes she does get more corn, I just watch her condition. She used to run into the fence and literally bounce off the walls to get away from me. But time and cracked corn changed all that. Now she knows her name and adores attention, even pawing at me for more. She not only lets the granddaughters love on her, she approaches them and asks for attention. She’s a keeper until she goes to that great sheep pasture in the sky.

Then you are likely doing good!

 

[Sheepbaroness]

Thank you so much, this is so helpful!

 

[Sheepbaroness]

Hello again, not sure if I should start a new thread, the lambs are all doing great, I have been kind of shoving the bottle in their mouths every time I go out there usually 2x/day, although it is more difficult now that they are faster, I am assuming the lambs will at some point not be able to get enough milk from mom and then may be interested in the bottle if they’ve been exposed to it consistently altho I hope I’m not conditioning them to hate it by forcing it into their mouth, and I just let them taste it, bc their bellies are always full.
i am giving the ewe free access to alfalfa hay and am currently giving her about 1 and 1/2c cob, I normally don’t really grain my sheep except as a treat so I started slow and went up to 2c but she was having really runny poop so I thought I should drop it down a little at least for a couple days. Apparently a commercial feed for lactating ewes doesn’t seem to exist, at least i can’t find any online or at any feed stores, and I already had the cob on hand. Anyways my main question is what do you think about this feeding program? So far the ewe looks fine and normal to me. The lambs are 8 days old today.
Thank you for any advice

 

[Baymule]

Are the lambs showing interest in their moms feed yet? Build a creep feeder for them, then they can eat feed and it will take a load off the ewe.

 

[Baymule]

Here is a picture of mine. Right above the lambs back are 2 vertical slats. I open or close them according to size of lambs, with deck screws. Not hi tech, but it works. It was a 12’ panel I got in a pile of free pallets. Maybe it will give you ideas. Or you can make a creep feeder with holes for lamb sized heads, but not big sheep.

 

[misfitmorgan]

Hello again, not sure if I should start a new thread, the lambs are all doing great, I have been kind of shoving the bottle in their mouths every time I go out there usually 2x/day, although it is more difficult now that they are faster, I am assuming the lambs will at some point not be able to get enough milk from mom and then may be interested in the bottle if they’ve been exposed to it consistently altho I hope I’m not conditioning them to hate it by forcing it into their mouth, and I just let them taste it, bc their bellies are always full.
i am giving the ewe free access to alfalfa hay and am currently giving her about 1 and 1/2c cob, I normally don’t really grain my sheep except as a treat so I started slow and went up to 2c but she was having really runny poop so I thought I should drop it down a little at least for a couple days. Apparently a commercial feed for lactating ewes doesn’t seem to exist, at least i can’t find any online or at any feed stores, and I already had the cob on hand. Anyways my main question is what do you think about this feeding program? So far the ewe looks fine and normal to me. The lambs are 8 days old today.
Thank you for any advice

Any sheep grain should be fine. If you notice her getting thin just up the ration. Runny poo can be a result of lambing as well, lots of sudden changes. Our ewes seem to have some questionable poo for up to 2 weeks after lambing. Typically a time when parasites blooms as well which can affect poo.