Basic Lambing and Rearing Guide

 

A ewe in labour (lambing):

Labour in the ewe can be split into three stages:

STAGE ONE: The cervix is dilating but no pushing is seen. The animal may appear uneasy or restless, with vague signs of colic. This stage usually last 2-6 hours but may take longer in first-time mothers.

 

STAGE TWO: delivery of the lamb(s)

The ewe will start to push and the lamb(s) delivered. The water bag is pushed into the birth canal and bursts, followed by the appearance of two feet and a head (if in normal position). This stage should not last longer than 2 hours.

This stage is where see problems.

  • Lambs are in an abnormal, tricky position in the uterus.

  • Twins all muddled together, trying to get out at the same time.

  • If your ewe has been trying for more than 2 hours with no progress, it is time to intervene; either by calling a vet, or if you feel confident, having a feel yourself.

  • If the cervix is fully dilated and the lamb is presented normally (head and 2 front legs palpable), you may pull on the front legs to assist, as long as the head keeps coming in the right direction.

  • You should never need to apply more pressure than one person’s strength. Use clean gloves and plenty of LUBE, you can never have too much lube!

  • If you are not making any progress within 10 minutes, it is time call the vet!

 

STAGE THREE: when the ewe passes the placenta. This should occur within 8-12 hours post birth.

  • Gentle pressure can be applied to try and aid the passing of membranes.

  • If the membranes are retained, please contact your vet as intervention is required, plus antibiotic and anti-inflammatory drugs may be indicated.

Early life

  • As soon as the lamb(s) are born the ewe should lick dry and encourage it to start feeding.

  • Keeping newborn lambs warm and dry is essential especially on a cold, wet day.

  • If the ewe is uninterested in the lamb and does not feed it, then you need to intervene.

  • Firstly, dry and warm up the lamb. Dip the navel in iodine to prevent navel infections.

  • Colostrum is essential for a newborn lamb, as it contains antibodies to boost their immune system and help them fight infection. 

    • The golden rule for colostrum is the lamb must drink 10% of its body weight within six hours of birth i.e. A lamb born at 2kg will need 200mLs!

    • Often this amount can be fed over multiple feeds.

    • Sheep, cow, or powdered colostrum are all viable options.

    • If you are bottle feeding lambs, they require 10-15% of their bodyweight per day in milk over multiple feeds throughout the day.

Please see the table below for a feeding table with milk volumes per weight.

  • Lambs have a special suckling reflex, which closes over a groove when they drink to ensure that the milk is channelled through to their fourth stomach (the abomasum) where it can be digested.

  • If this suckling reflex doesn’t work properly the milk can enter one of the first two stomachs (rumen or reticulum) where improper digestion and fermentation will occur. This leads to lambs with little energy as well as being bloated and uncomfortable.

  • The suckling reflex is determined by:

    • Milk temperature: milk should be body temperature (38◦C). Use warm water to mix milk powder or reheat milk/colostrum with warm water. Microwaving can destroy proteins in the milk/colostrum and decrease the nutritional value!

    • Milk consistency: abide by packet mixing instructions but to put it simply; the more like milk it looks, the better!

    • Speed of feeding: lambs can guzzle milk at a rate that the milk ‘spills over’ into the wrong stomach. If you have guzzlers, take a break halfway through the feed to slow them down. You can also cut a smaller hole in your feeding nipple to slow down the rate of flow.

    • Volume of feeding: the 10 – 15% rule.  

How to know when your lamb is sick

Lambs can often become sick very quickly, and go from their bouncy, playful, normal selves to being very poorly within a matter of hours.

Watch out for these general signs of sickness: 

  • Lethargy

  • Not feeding

  • Reluctance to stand or walk

  • Diarrhoea (with or without blood)

  • Coughing

  • Bloated stomach

  • Swollen joints

  • Wet, hot or swollen navel

    Any of these signs indicate that your lamb is unwell and requires veterinary assistance. The earlier we see and treat your lamb, the faster they will recover.   

    Common treatments and advise that may be given by a vet for sick lambs:  

    • Oral electrolytes - restoring electrolyte, energy and hydration levels can make a huge difference in a sick lamb. 

    • Oral energy supplement - providing energy to a sick lamb is one of the most important treatments, allowing them to get up, start moving and eating again. 

    • Injectable energy supplement - in more severe cases injectable energy supplements may be indicated to give a more instant boost. If indicated, this should only be administered by your veterinarian.  

    • Anti-inflammatory/painkiller drugs (NSAIDs) help reduce inflammation and pain.  This can only be prescribed by a veterinarian.  

    • Antibiotics may be required in some cases, if a bacterial infection has a role to play. This can be determined by your veterinarian.  

    • Probiotics are a great way to restore the natural stomach flora and have been proven to help prevent abomasal bloat. 

    Further aid you can do at home:

    • Tube feeding may be essential, if your lamb is not sucking, for it to receive the nutrition, electrolytes and fluid it needs.

    • Increasing the frequency of milk feeding allows a smaller volume per feed, which puts less strain on the lamb’s stomach and metabolism. 

    • Alternating milk feeds with electrolytes allows lambs to get nutrition from the milk, as well as receiving electrolytes and energy. If your lamb has been bloated, electrolytes reduce the risk of re-bloating.

Weaning

  • Weaning is the process of transitioning lambs from milk to hard feed.

  • It should occur around 12 weeks of age.

  • Introduce them to hard feed (termed creep feed) from around one week of age. This helps their first two stomachs adjust to the hard feed that they will start eating after weaning.

  • Good creep feed includes high energy, easily digestible feed such as grain or sheep nuts. It does not have to be a particular amount, just enough to ensure they are accustomed to it before we remove milk.

 

Tailing & Vaccinations

Most owners prefer to remove the tails of lambs when they are young to reduce the chance of faeces becoming stuck to the wool on the underside of the tail and on the bum (dags). Preventing the build up of poo also prevents the establishment of flystrike (flies laying eggs in the skin).

We recommend that tailing and castration is performed between 4 and 6 weeks of age (as per the best practice guidelines). If your lamb is over 8 weeks old we strongly advise that pain relief is given; this is to be prescribed by a veterinarian. If your lamb is over 6 months of age then, as per MPI’s code of welfare, pain relief must be provided and the procedure itself must be performed by a veterinarian. You can call us if this is the case. 

Vaccinations are often done at the same time as tailing, as it is convenient and helps protect lambs from infections due to tailing or docking wounds. Below are the recommended vaccination protocols for lambs:  

  • If your ewes have been vaccinated previously (and within 4 – 6 weeks of lambing): 

    • Ultravac 5in1 initial at tailing 

    • Ultravac 5in1 booster 4 weeks later 

  • If your ewes have not been vaccinated prior to lambing: 

    • Coopers lamb vaccine at tailing 

    • Ultravac 5in1 initial 4 weeks later 

    • Ultravac 5in1 booster 4 weeks after the initial 

Drenching

  • Parasitism can be a huge problem in lambs and sheep eating grass. It is one of the most common problems on lifestyler blocks, but luckily it can be easily prevented!

  • The frequency of drenching will vary depending on many factors: age, time of year, feeding management, co-grazing with other species and weather.

  • Lambs should be drenched every 4 – 6 weeks from weaning. They only start to develop an immunity to worms around 15 months of age.

  • To determine if your animals need a drench, we conduct a faecal egg count (FEC), which just requires a fresh poo sample from your animals. We determine the worm burden level in your animals and inform you if they need drenching.

  • The risk periods for worms are Spring and Autumn when it is warm and wet.

Please refer to our parasities article for further details on drenching and worm parasites.