Bronte, one of our Lincoln Longwools, looks as though she could lamb at any time. A couple of other ewes have ever-growing milk bags. So it's time to get serious about lambing. When we first started raising sheep, I'd find myself hauling a large tool box of stuff out to the barn. I'd have to frantically dig through lots of medical supplies to find what I needed. Other years, I'd find myself with nothing or the wrong stuff. That mean trips to the house and through the house with muddy boots. Not good. Last year my son Joe, prepared a lambing kit for a 4-H project, which won him a champion ribbon in veterinary science at our county fair.
He began preparing the kit by brainstorming with me, all of things we would want to have at hand when lambing. Its good to reflect back on previous experience. If it happened once, its likely to happen again. That's how a shoe string made it on our list. The second year of lambing, I had a ewe with twins who were out of position. My hand was inside her, trying to feel the position of the lamb. My other son, Vincent held the cell phone to my ear. The vet was guiding me through. I finally found a foot. She said, "Pull it out, tie a string around it. Then push it back in and reposition the lamb." That's so easy to say and so much harder to do. Especially when I'm not a vet and I never had any intentions of becoming a vet. I didn't have a string and I didn't want to use bailing twine. So the kids ran into the house a got a shoelace. Now we keep a new, unopened shoe lace in the lambing kit.
Next he and I searched the internet for all of the sites that had information about lambing kits. I'm really grateful for all the other shepherds who take time to share how they manage their flock. Its so useful. We compared the two lists and came up with our own. We went for something in the middle - not too much, but not too little.
He began preparing the kit by brainstorming with me, all of things we would want to have at hand when lambing. Its good to reflect back on previous experience. If it happened once, its likely to happen again. That's how a shoe string made it on our list. The second year of lambing, I had a ewe with twins who were out of position. My hand was inside her, trying to feel the position of the lamb. My other son, Vincent held the cell phone to my ear. The vet was guiding me through. I finally found a foot. She said, "Pull it out, tie a string around it. Then push it back in and reposition the lamb." That's so easy to say and so much harder to do. Especially when I'm not a vet and I never had any intentions of becoming a vet. I didn't have a string and I didn't want to use bailing twine. So the kids ran into the house a got a shoelace. Now we keep a new, unopened shoe lace in the lambing kit.
Next he and I searched the internet for all of the sites that had information about lambing kits. I'm really grateful for all the other shepherds who take time to share how they manage their flock. Its so useful. We compared the two lists and came up with our own. We went for something in the middle - not too much, but not too little.
- Hand sanitizer – to clean your hands before assisting the ewe with lambing.
Surgical gloves in a zip lock bag – in case you have to assist the ewe or pull the lamb. The bag keeps the gloves clean and easy to find. - Antiseptic lubricant to put on your hands or gloves if you need to help the ewe. It makes your hand go in easier.
- Scissors to cut the umbilical cord.
- Iodine – to disinfect the umbilical cord and prevent infection.
- Colostrum and lamb supplement – to get lambs off to a good start. We use a product called ‘First Care by Ralco Nutrition that comes with a drench gun.
- Stethoscope and rectal thermometer to monitor lamb’s temperature and breathing.
- Bulb for clearing fluids out of the lamb’s nostrils.
- Hanging scale and sling for weighing the lambs.
- Tool for docking tails.
- Pritchard Teats and plastic pop bottles or baby bottles in case the ewe refuses to nurse.
- Milk replacer in case the ewe can’t nurse or refuses to nurse.
- Lots of old clean towels for drying off the lambs.
- Flashlight to see in the dark because about half of our flock tends to lamb around 10 p.m. Those little forehead flashlights work well. I also have the flashlight app on my i phone.
- Uterine boluses in case we had to assist with the delivery.
- Spoon needle, and thread in case we have a vaginal prolapse.We got this from our vet.
- Syringes and needles in case we need to give an injection.
- Penicillin (regular or LA200) in case we are concerned about infection.
- Bo-SE (in case the ewe seems week and needs vitamin E and selenium).
- Sheep shears in case we need to crutch the ewe so the lamb can find the teats.
- Lamb saver tube and syringe for tube feeding really weak lambs.
- Lamb hut – a plastic barrel with a heat lamp to keep lambs warm.
- Chart of lambing positions. Make a photocopy from pages 108-114 in Raising Sheep The Modern Way by Paula Simmons.Combine the diagrams onto two pages and insert them into a sheet protector.
- String to pull a lamb if necessary – shoe laces work good.
- Time table of lambing stages so you know when to go in and assist. I've waited too long and lost lambs.
- Your vet's cell phone number saved as a contact in your cell phone if you get cellular service on your farm.
A breeding ewe and ram from Colonial Williamsburg - $800. Lambing pens we spent two weeks to build, $200. A ewe in labor on a bitterly cold Minnesota winter night with a storm on the way.A lambing season with few complications, all live births, no bottle lambs, no orphans, and no losses. Priceless.What’s in your lambing kit?
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