The Spring Lamb Crop

lambs 2013Our lamb crop for the spring of 2013 totaled 23.  We had all twins including 2 sets of triplets.  All of our lambs presented perfectly with nose and two front hooves headed out first!  I was worried about #1065, my big ewe who had a little trouble with her first twins last year.  She was huge this year so we suspected triplets and that is exactly what she delivered under the night sky with the constellation Orion’s Belt above us.  We call her triplets Orion’s Belt!

We gave our ewes 3 cc of BoSe 2 weeks before lambing, the extra selenium (due to their all-grass fed diet on generally selenium deficient soils here in Kentucky) helps with muscle tone and therefore ease of delivery.  It also can help off-set white muscle disease in lambs due to selenium deficiencies.  One ewe (our Houdini-girl because she always slips away) did not get the injection so I gave each of her twins a .75 cc of BoSe at 3 days.  One of the Orion triplets exhibited some signs of wmd at about 1 month- looking a little puny, getting up and down and a hunched over appearance (not constipation because I saw him poop pellets)- so he got .75 cc of BoSe as well.  We are always mindful of selenium overdoses with lambs and never give more than .75cc.  lambing 2013 065

Look forward to about 13 ram lambs for the fall harvest.  If you would like to be on the “Lamb List” to be informed of the harvest email me at JWiche@Shelbybb.net.

 

May 28, 2013Permalink