Life Down Wattle Lane v2 - Paddock Change With New Lambs

Summer has arrived again, so it's time to change paddocks in search of the trees for shade. Our roadside paddocks have the best tree cover for shade, so when it's hot it's off to the front paddock we go.

Normally paddock change with the sheep is over and done with in a matter of seconds... but with lambs not so.

Mumma ewes rush towards the open gate, then madly stop remembering that they have their lambs... so then panic ensues when mumma ewes can't find their lambs amongst the chaos.

So it's slow going... forward 3 steps back 2 steps. But eventually all make it to the new paddock.

The pond has finally dried up.

Life Down Wattle Lane v2 - Girlie's Generations

In the above photo we have Girlie who is the ewe sitting down with her two lambs from this season.

Standing next to Girlie is her lamb from last season, who at the time of the photo had just gone into labour for the first time.

She was rather vocal about it and she wasn't sure what was happening, and was seeking comfort and support from her mum. She followed her mum about for sometime bleating. 

Kinda cute, and just another example of why Girlie is such a great mum, still there supporting her adult children.

Come this morning she finally had her first lamb, and I hope that this first time mum becomes a fantastic ewe mum just like her own mum, Girlie.

Life Down Wattle Lane v2 - Well That Lasted All Of 2 Seconds

I was just saying yesterday how great lambing was going... well last night while checking the lambs and ewes, I spotted an abandoned lamb. After a short chase through  the paddock, over the fence, down the drive the lamb was caught and reunited with mum.  I think mum just forgot that she has 2 lambs to mother.

Then I noticed that her other lamb was rather wobbly with her rear legs, dragging and bending them unnaturally backwards.

So after penning mum and lambs in the yards, I checked first that mum had milk, and that lambs were feeding. Then  I inspected the lamb. She could walk and keep up with mum, but the legs would bend backwards... very creepy like. She wasn't in any pain from what I could tell. She seemed rather healthy all in all.

So we went to the vet today. The lamb was a model patient. Very patient and much loved by the staff. She was even attended by 2 vets.

It seems while in her mums womb, or during birth, her tendons/ligaments may have been stretched so they are all loosey goosey rather than tight and firm. The vet said something that they see in foals but unusual in lambs.

So both legs are now in splints and bandaged to help correct that. Hopefully things return to normal after a week or two.

Fortunately when reunited with mum all went well. Lamb was straight on mums teat.

I think I will wait a day or two before reuniting them with the flock... just until the little lamb finds her new feet.

Life Down Wattle Lane v2 - Lambing Season Summer 22/23

After such a long wait, we are just over half way through our lambing season. So far we have had 14 healthy lambs from 9 ewes. 5 lambs popped out last night, a busy night. There are 5 more ewes to drop their babies.

We tried things a little different this time. Instead of having lambs in the middle of winter, we are, well we should have had lambs in November, towards the end of spring. But I am guessing that our ram Whiskers took his time to enjoy the ladies, as the lambs only started appearing after Christmas.

So far... touch wood, everything has gone super well and we have 14 healthy lambs.  I haven't had to worry about frosts or the lack of feed or exposing myself to the elements.

For the first week of the lambs birth the mumma ewe will keep her newborns well away from people and anything potentially dangerous. The lambs will obediently follow mum wherever she goes. At this point I am just worried about whether the lambs are up an feeding. So I am keeping a close watch to see if the lambs are finding the udder and then if they are drinking. Generally if they are getting milk their little tails will be wiggling at a million miles.

After about the first week mum starts to relax and I can get close enough to see what sex the lambs are. By about this time the lambs have found their feet and are running circles around mum. Jumping on and over mum while she is resting. The lambs have started to interact with the other lambs and now its mum running after her lambs.

Come the second week of age the lambs have formed a gang, and new entrants are enlisted as they become of age. You are able to get close enough to pat the lambs if they allow and mum isn't bothered by your presence. 

It's by this time I can start to relax, the lambs are big and healthy. 

I am still keeping a close eye out for hawks and wandering dogs. 

I spotted a wandering dog the other day in the lambing paddock. At first I thought it was an Arapawa sheep, similar colour and size, and I thought why was it out on it's own. As I got closer I realized it was a dog, so I yelled at it to "go home". Hopefully a familiar command all dogs are taught. The dog left the paddock but only to get stuck in the fence and needed assistance to be freed. It's collar somehow latched itself onto the fencing wire. After I just yelled at the dog, I approached with caution, and fortunately the dog was friendly and let me untangle him. He was then on his way running down the roadside... accompanied with my parting words "go home go home".

I am just loving this lambing season.