This weekend was an event on my calendar : Vaccinate pregnant ewes with CD&T.
What that means is that there is about one month until my ewes begin to have lamb . The recommendation is that you vaccinate your significant Ewe about four to six week before they lamb . This provide some protection for the newborns .
My lambs are n’t due until mid - April , which may seem late to some . In the past , many farmers chose to have their lamb pay during wintertime months . This was , lamb did n’t interfere with their land agenda .
They were leave with more prison term to give to ensure everyone start out off to a good start .
Time to Lamb
I ’m not a farmer , though . So I make up one’s mind I want to have my lamb season when the weather was a little warmer .
This is also my first year of lambing – on purpose , anyway ! In early 2020 we buy three Shetland Ewe that – unbeknown to the previous owner – had been bred . The appearance of three level-headed Shetland lambs suffer on grass was both a surprisal and a joy during the morose , former days of the coronavirus pandemic last March .
This year , however , we planned and purchased a North Country Cheviot Aries the Ram to breed with our NC Cheviot ewes . In early November , we put the ram in with nine Ewe . I ’ve count 150 days forrard … which means our lamb should be bear mid - April .
understand more : Put together a first - aid outfit to keep your sheep in tip - top build .
The Shear Truth
In summation to CD&T vaccines , we also shear the back end of the pregnant Ewe . We cut away any wool around the nipples and grip area so that newborn lamb do n’t examine to soak up on wool by fault .
I would have preferred to have the whole ewe shorn before birth . However , because we shear our own sheep , we knew it would take us too long and cause too much stress on the pregnant ewe . ( A professional sheep Moira Shearer would shear our ewes in a far loyal sentence and cause less accent . )
We will plan on shearing our mammy ewe a little later in the spring when thing have determine down . Next up will be for us to prune the ewes ’ hooves . We will do this in the next hebdomad or so , before they give parturition .
Feed & Shelter
It ’s really important in the last few months of the ewes ’ pregnancy to ensure they have top - notch caryopsis and hay . Ewes just do n’t have a whole pot of room inside , and they need every insect bite to count .
I pop the question a substantial amount of mellow - quality feed and hay mingle with alfalfa to ensure their protein and Ca needs are met . Of of course , you do n’t want to blank out to always have a steady supply of invigorated , clean water as well !
I also began to do a deep clean of our small b , shovel out several inches of dirt and manure under the bedding . I laid down clean pine shavings over the floor and will plan on keeping that clean . Then I will add a layer of uninfected straw for the raw babies .
you may use other material , such as newspaper or one-time towel , as a place for your raw lambs as well .
We divide our barn with wood dividers to have a place where the moms and new dear can bond for 48 to 72 hours after birth . After that , we let them out in a small paddock with tax shelter , water and a creep tributary for the Elia to get into when they are ready to set out eating some grain .
Read more : Vaccinate your sheep for an ounce of prevention .
Preparation Days
I also have a rectal thermometer and several sporty towels as well . Finally , I put in some betadine , test gloves , a torch and the emergency number of our veterinary !
I ’ll report back on how everything goes next month . I ’m hoping for a healthy chemical group of novel dear and moms , so wish me fortune ! And of course , there will be pictures !
