Although we recommend washing your lamb's legs, you do not want to wash your lamb's body. This is because you want to keep their natural oils, called lanolin. The only time you want to wash your lamb's body is when you shear with a fine or surgical blade.
Lambs less than 30 days of age will need a liquid diet until about 60 days of age. They will start to nibble lamb ration pellets at about 30 days of age. Provide fresh drinking water at all times for the lamb in a clean bucket that the lamb can easily reach.
It is not necessary to wash a lamb, the lanolin on their wool is important. If you need to wash a messy bottom use a gentle soap and ensure the area is dried quickly especially in the winter.
Washing them 2-3 times a week is adequate, and follow washing with a conditioner like Kleen Sheen for cattle, that will condition their hair and skin and help them stay clean. For lambs and goats, if you are close to show day, tube or blanket your animals to help them stay clean.
Make sure your lamb's bum and genitals (as well as the rest of their body) are clean and dry. It may be necessary to give them a quick spot wash in some warm, soapy water. Ensure they are properly dried afterward and not left wet or damp.
Washing beef, pork, lamb, or veal before cooking it is not recommended. Bacteria in raw meat and poultry juices can be spread to other foods, utensils, and surfaces. We call this cross-contamination.
Mix ¾ cup of water with ½ cup of baking soda and syringe some (carefully) into the lambs mouth. This will help neutralise the gas. Massage the lambs stomach area, this helps the gas move. The lamb may belch or pass gas, this is a good thing.
Any livestock soap or liquid dishwashing soap works well for washing lambs, but be careful to remove all the soap when rinsing the animal.” Even when roughing them out, lambs should be shorn smooth.
Weaning drenches
Drenching lambs weaned at 12-14 weeks after lambing commenced is recommended because lambs have not developed their natural immunity to worms at this stage.
All lambs should be drenched at weaning. In spring-lambing mobs this usually coincides with the 'first summer drench'. Weaned lambs are highly susceptible to worms and there is usually a higher worm-risk in wet seasons.
To maintain its body temperature, the newborn lamb must produce as much heat as it is losing to the environment. If the lamb cannot do this, its body temperature will start to fall, and, if not remedied, lead to death.
It is better to split the daily feeding for lambs in two and feed in the morning and at night. This will allow their stomachs to digest a consistent amount of feed throughout the day, rather than all at once. A healthy lamb is alert and active. They will frisk and run and jump with other lambs.
Lambs born after prolonged second stage labour may be covered in meconium (the first faeces) and appear yellow, green or brown in colour at birth. This is an indication of foetal distress before birth. This is reduced by ensuring ewes are monitored regularly and interventions are carried out in a timely fashion.
Cold, wet weather is especially problematic for small, newborn lambs that lose heat quickly. This can be fatal if they don't have enough energy reserves to burn to keep warm. Minimising stress and time off feed is crucial, especially in cold, wet weather.
Sheep need salt. However, offering salt as the only mineral available to your flock won't meet all their needs. It's not uncommon in some pastures to see sheep only receiving a salt block.
Some common garden plants, such as azaleas, chrysanthemums, acorns, buttercups, daffodils, holly and elderberry are poisonous for sheep to eat.
These damaged tissues need repair which means less nutrients are left for growth. In severe cases permanent damage can occur in the gut and this will reduce nutrient absorption therefore, worm control is a priority to minimise the effect that internal parasites may have on lamb performance.”
To maintain its body temperature, a newborn lamb must produce as much heat as it is losing to the environment. If it cannot do this, its body temperature will start to fall. A smaller lamb will chill faster than a larger lamb.
The majority of sheep killed in Australia are lambs, slaughtered around 6 – 8 months of age. Sheep can naturally live up to 20 years, with a typical lifespan of 10-12 years. Every year an average of 22.72 million lambs are slaughtered.
One would expect to see this disease most often in the spring when lambs are about 4 - 12 weeks of age. Treatment of the lesions is relatively simple. You just mix up a mild disinfectant such as Dettol or Savlon and "dab" this on the lesions with a sponge.
Benefits of Apple Cider Vinegar for Sheep and Lambs
Improves the quality and yield of wool. Reduces the incidence of urinary calculi and kidney stones. It has powerful healing, cleansing, and natural antibiotic and antiseptic qualities.
Goal: 2-2 oz ACV/day. Kids/Lambs 1/4-1/2 oz/day.
But, we learned from some hurried research in our books and on line, if you overfeed a bottle lamb, the milk will fill their abomasum and the excess will back up to their immature rumen, where bacteria can ferment it, leading to acidosis and bloat.
Waterbelly is caused by stones forming in the bladder. If the stones are large enough, they can cause partial or complete blockage of the urethra, making the animal unable to urinate. Initial signs include reluctance to move and straining to pass urine.