Handling Lamb Rejection
In this video, we find a lamb that has been rejected by a first time mom. I hope this video helps you identify rejected lambs, see a ewe's rejection behavior, and see the fix in action.
The rejected lamb was not hard to identify. It thought I was mom. The ewe was a bit harder to find. All the ewes were put though the run to find who looked like they had just given birth. We are looking for blood and smaller belly.
This ewe was in a head gate for three days due to some rain. Usually a couple of days will do. Typically, I leave the ewe and lamb in a 6x6 bonding pen for an additional 1-2 days. These ewe immediately smelled her lamb, called to it, and let it nurse. So I turned them out into a small paddock to see if the bond still looked strong. It was, so they were able to rejoin the flock on a sunny day.
The head gate is from Premier 1.
Is Lamb feeding the pellets⁉️
0:18 -1:13 This reminds me of “Little Bo-Peep” & “Mary Had a Little Lamb” from Nursery Rhymes (1983)
1:13 Is Lamb Squandered from “Little Bo-Peep” in Nursery Rhymes (1983)
Good thing that is a large sturdy lamb
So sad. But I'm glad they're drinking now
That's pretty doggone clever. If moms reject the lamb, you put her in the head gate let the lamb nurse and then she smells like the mom and mom takes her back? Also, I heard you say I did not bring a dog. What would the dog do in a case like that? I have never seen these problems addressed This Way on KZhead. But I'm a city slicker even though I appreciate all this. Nice stuff
Thanks for the comment. I wish I had invented this technique. But I'm just spreading the word. I know people who've gotten the dog technique to work. I've gotten it to work for a little bit. But the ewe goes back to rejecting. The head gate works 100% of the time for me at 3 days.
That was sad. You had to tie up the head of the mother sheep because it was the only way her lamb was able to drink her milk, because she otherwise kept kicking her lamb away. That's not usual behavior of a mother ewe, because usually ewes are very loving, affectionate, and protective of their lambs, aren't they?
I've seen it. Her first lamb she didn't know what it was he mentioned dog if he put a dog outside her pen her natural instinct would kick in to protect it. Isolating her head so the lamb could suckle is important once the mother's milk passed through lamb her scent is on lamb which helps to have her accept it as hers.
Sheep are not brain trusts. If they are lambing the first time they sometimes don't know what the lamb is or what to do with it. This shows the easiest/best way to deal with this situation - restrain the ewe for a minimum 3 days, allow the lamb to nurse at will and wait for the hormones to kick in and tell the ewe what her job is. It works. I've even done it to get ewes to take bottle lambs as well as their own. As long as the manure coming out the other end smells right, they don't question and will take the strange lamb as one of their own. But you have to give the milk three days to get through the GI tract and come out with the correct smell or the ewe calls your bluff.
How long did it take for them to bond
3-5 days.
So you said you left her in that head gate for 3 days straight? Feed and water her but keep her head in there?
Yes. Letting them out before seems to start the process all over again. Or worse, lead to rejection no matter how long she is in the gate. It's also important to start this process as soon after birth and rejection as possible.
@@jwchitwood We didn't have any means to put her head in something so we put her in a small pen with her offspring while we went to get some special buckets for food and water. When we got back her lambs were both feeding and she calmed down quiet a bit so all ended well
0:18 - 1:13 Is Lamb, a boy or girl⁉️
Why did you have a rifle with you that was laying on the ground
Checking snares.
😛