How's lambing going for ye?

Username John · 01-04-2015 08:23PM

Lambing is going well... Ish...

After keeping ewes and lambs in for days, waiting for good weather - I left em out last night... Lovely night, cool but no rain...

Out this morning, happy with the mining weather - lambs all fine, ewe in theiddle of the field on her back dead...

She had 2 lovely lambs... Sold em on as I don't want to be dealing with pets, and I didn't think I'd have a single lambing soon...
One of the singles lambed just now acourse...

Also - the shed is full of fcuking midges tonight for some reason, they'd drive ya mad...

But other than that, not so bad I pose...

westman1 · 01-04-2015 09:01PM

80% lambed in 19 days .....very happy with lambing not so happy with the last week of weather ....and don't talk bout grass but got to send a big thankyou to my sheep they stopped lambing on the last day of the six nations so i got to see the irish match and the second half of the english match live so i was made up

sea12 · 01-04-2015 09:38PM

Lambing is going steady. Coming nicely. No real issues. Have one lamb that can't raise his neck or get up himself but can stand when you lift him up. Not able to drink ewe so he is an usual pet lamb now. Otherwise no major issues but shed is filling up fast and need some dry weather to let off a batch of them.

fanadman1 · 02-04-2015 12:13AM

Lambing about to start again ha
call me greedy or crazy but bought another 30 springers ha

sea12 · 02-04-2015 01:03PM

fanadman1 wrote: »

Lambing about to start again ha
call me greedy or crazy but bought another 30 springers ha

Had 3 ewes lambing at the same time this morn at 7 before I went to work. 2 needed assistance as heads only coming. All done quickly and off to work. Off on lambing holiday for from this evening for 10 days. Should have most of hem lambed at that stage. As lambing and full time job makes it difficult.

arctictree · 02-04-2015 02:20PM

sea12 wrote: »

Had 3 ewes lambing at the same time this morn at 7 before I went to work. 2 needed assistance as heads only coming. All done quickly and off to work. Off on lambing holiday for from this evening for 10 days. Should have most of hem lambed at that stage. As lambing and full time job makes it difficult.

Nice timing. I have the next 4 days off and hoping that a good few will lamb then. Didn't get them scanned but a few are looking really big and need a few twins/triplets to get my numbers up. Self employed so very hard to take any holidays but I do have the advantage of working close to home so I can pop up when needs be.

sea12 · 02-04-2015 02:36PM

I have them scanned which is great. Well worth it. I'm the opposite it's all the twins coming so far with very few singles.

orm0nd · 02-04-2015 02:49PM

about 15 ewe lambs left ,

best lamb crop ever,

hope to sell about 50 or so of the january born lambs next week , and most likely will wean the remainder and house the ewes for a while , (grass is scarce)

arctictree · 02-04-2015 03:21PM

Since I don't have them scanned does anyone know if there is any way to know if a ewe is lambing a single? Would love to catch her in the act and try a bit of fostering....

sea12 · 02-04-2015 03:33PM

arctictree wrote: »

Since I don't have them scanned does anyone know if there is any way to know if a ewe is lambing a single? Would love to catch her in the act and try a bit of fostering....

When she has lambed one you can examine her and check.

ihatewinter · 02-04-2015 03:47PM

Well after a disaster at the start, things are starting to pick up. Ewes are lambing great on their own. 2 deaths that I couldn't do anything about, 1 had bent legs that dead straight after birth and another with no anus opening.

But muck and water everywhere.

arctictree · 02-04-2015 04:28PM

sea12 wrote: »

When she has lambed one you can examine her and check.

Yes, just wondering if there is any way before lambing so I can get a foster ready?

rangler1 · 02-04-2015 04:30PM

Had an interesting one here on Tuesday night, I had a pair of recently born lambs short of milk.,usually if I have a case like that late at night and there's a newly lambed single around, I'll catch the ewe and put the hungry lambs on her for 5mins and that gets them through till morning when I have more energy, but as I held her I realised she was quiet and I could go off and give water around the pens so they were well filled.
Yesterday morning despite the mother of the double having got oxytocin and put out on good grass, she still came in with one lamb fed and one hungry, so I put the hungry one in with the single and they're happy still.
Definitely not a text book example :cool:

MayoAreMagic · 02-04-2015 05:05PM

rangler1 wrote: »

Had an interesting one here on Tuesday night, I had a pair of recently born lambs short of milk.,usually if I have a case like that late at night and there's a newly lambed single around, I'll catch the ewe and put the hungry lambs on her for 5mins and that gets them through till morning when I have more energy, but as I held her I realised she was quiet and I could go off and give water around the pens so they were well filled.
Yesterday morning despite the mother of the double having got oxytocin and put out on good grass, she still came in with one lamb fed and one hungry, so I put the hungry one in with the single and they're happy still.
Definitely not a text book example :cool:

Used to have a ewe like that once. She would take to lambs that were trying to suck off her. Plus she used to have loads of milk - she would have twins herself and would still raise the extra lamb with them. All of this would be completely unheard of for horn ewes, who would generally be hard to foster onto and barely be able to feed 2 lambs. I had great plans to breed from her and have a gang of easy fostered, twin bearing mountain ewes who have loads of milk

Of course, I come out one morning and she is dead on her back, leaving my plans in ruins and 3 pets to feed

Bleating Lamb · 02-04-2015 10:22PM

Horrible day around here all day,mizzly soft rain all feckin day,lands is so wet that quad is actually struggling to get through mucky gaps.At one stage today it was like something from a cartoon,all four wheels spinning up wet mud and me going nowhere fast!!....got 3 sets of twins in an hour this eve just coming to darkness outside.Had to catch one ewe in field as had a hunch the lambs were dawny looking,got them to suck biestings under the shelter of a whin bush.Its only at this time of year you appreciate the great shelter that whin bushes give on a wet evening.Rest of year I hate the sight of them:)

rangler1 · 02-04-2015 10:26PM

Bleating Lamb wrote: »

Horrible day around here all day,mizzly soft rain all feckin day,lands is so wet that quad is actually struggling to get through mucky gaps.At one stage today it was like something from a cartoon,all four wheels spinning up wet mud and me going nowhere fast!!....got 3 sets of twins in an hour this eve just coming to darkness outside.Had to catch one ewe in field as had a hunch the lambs were dawny looking,got them to suck biestings under the shelter of a whin bush.Its only at this time of year you appreciate the great shelter that whin bushes give on a wet evening.Rest of year I hate the sight of them:)

Ground conditions are horrendous, hope this fine weather comes.....grass'll surely grow if we get temperatures in the teens like is forecast

Green farmer · 02-04-2015 10:27PM

[QUOTE=rangler1;

I'll catch the ewe and put the hungry lambs on her for 5mins and that gets them through till morning when I have more energy, [/QUOTE]

Tiredness is an issue alright. Getting tired and cranky here and beginning to make mistakes. When the ewes do their job right, it makes my life easy. Going to cull a lot of ewes after this season. I'm not going to carry ewes that aren't performing. You'd spend the day taking up the slack on non performing ewes.

rangler1 · 02-04-2015 10:41PM

Green farmer wrote: »

Tiredness is an issue alright. Getting tired and cranky here and beginning to make mistakes. When the ewes do their job right, it makes my life easy. Going to cull a lot of ewes after this season. I'm not going to carry ewes that aren't performing. You'd spend the day taking up the slack on non performing ewes.

Sometimes it's hard to foresee, that ewe was only four year old, had milk alright in both teats but not enough to feed the lambs....yet worked perfectly for the last three years....reared a single and then two sets doubles.
There's always surprises,
Ewes and lambs that are out are really under pressure here in this wet weather

Green farmer · 02-04-2015 10:46PM

rangler1 wrote: »

Sometimes it's hard to foresee, that ewe was only four year old, had milk alright in both teats but not enough to feed the lambs....yet worked perfectly for the last three years....reared a single and then two sets doubles.
There's always surprises,
Ewes and lambs that are out are really under pressure here in this wet weather

You couldn't be up to them. I heard the weather is meant to be dry next week alright. Was misting on and off here all day today. I suppose it's better then the cold wind and rain we've had for the past week. The lambs could do with some sun on their backs.

sea12 · 02-04-2015 10:57PM

Had 7 doubles today. All ok. Had one difficult lambing where two heads were practically out. Managed to untangle them ang get out 2 healthy lambs. Serious tight for pens now as can't get lambs out in this weather. Anyway off yo the scratcher for a few hours.

Username John · 02-04-2015 11:01PM

rangler1 wrote: »

Sometimes it's hard to foresee, that ewe was only four year old, had milk alright in both teats but not enough to feed the lambs....yet worked perfectly for the last three years....reared a single and then two sets doubles.
There's always surprises,
Ewes and lambs that are out are really under pressure here in this wet weather

I think we must be escaping the worst of the weather - today was wet on and off, but not that bad a day.
And I had a digger in for a lot of last week and there was only one day where things got a small bit mucky... Was desperately cold wind and rain last week tho for some it it...
Forecast is good tho I think, so will able to get out some more lambs...

rangler1 · 03-04-2015 08:11AM

Username John wrote: »

I think we must be escaping the worst of the weather - today was wet on and off, but not that bad a day.
And I had a digger in for a lot of last week and there was only one day where things got a small bit mucky... Was desperately cold wind and rain last week tho for some it it...
Forecast is good tho I think, so will able to get out some more lambs...

We got half an inch rain in the last 24 hrs, have a lot of sheep kept in now too

Username John · 03-04-2015 08:37AM

rangler1 wrote: »

We got half an inch rain in the last 24 hrs, have a lot of sheep kept in now too

Change of day now today, after turning very cold, any showers will be very wintery...
No lambs going out tonight me thinks...

Green farmer · 03-04-2015 09:40AM

I'm putting on my blinkers and keep focusing on the good weather coming next week. I'll keep mealing ewes in the mean time. Otherwise I'll crack myself up at the state of the current weather.

Connemara Farmer · 03-04-2015 09:43AM

Green farmer wrote: »

I'm putting on my blinkers and keep focusing on the good weather coming next week. I'll keep mealing ewes in the mean time. Otherwise I'll crack myself up at the state of the current weather.

I think most are in the same position re grass, it's been too cold for it to grow. Only started putting out fert here yesterday, lime before that. I'll be feeding what's outside for a while yet until the grass catches up. Figure on lambing a little later again next year, as one guy I met recently put it no point in looking for grass when the nature isn't in it.

Cran · 03-04-2015 10:02AM

Bit slower than normal here, about 25 a day at the moment need it pick up to 50 ideally. Lucky here farm is well sheltered but weather is terrible, harder on humans than sheep so far. Real issue is grass, we turn lambed ewes onto closed fields that got 1 1/2 bags N month ago and stop meal. Cover still good but another week of this growth with more ewes going in will have to feed lambed ewes again.

razor8 · 03-04-2015 10:35AM

Feeding ewes outside here too and lambs seem to be thriving well despite the elements. Have them split into handy patches of 20/30 so im not trampled into the ground

Still have 55 lambed ewes inside shed as I've plenty silage but lambs are lying and sh##ting all over silage as well as flattening the bales when playing on top of them

Overall been a good lambing with minimal loses and didn't have to handle many sheep. I still havnt lost a ewe all lambing which will be a first here. Got a lot of triplets fostered in first half of lambing but I've 6 on feeder ATM

Green farmer · 04-04-2015 11:34AM

Thank God,

A mild day. The lambs can finally warm up in the field. Lambing here going into the final stretch. Wife barely talking to me. Says I smell of sheep, sweat , iodine and a hint of tar. Lucky to be allowed inside door of house. Lovely

AntrimGlens · 04-04-2015 03:03PM

Horsing lambs out here today, warm and no wind. 4 ewes still penned up, 3 fosters and one whose lambs I don't think will ever walk so bottling them. Seven left to lamb, no pets (yet), haven't lost a ewe this year which is the first time I can ever remember that happening. Had a couple cases of mastitis when ewes lambed which are marked for the road. Had a couple lambs with joint I'll as a result of being housed too long but resflor appears to have cured it. Haven't done a cursory count yet but losses were low from scanning to turnout. I'd say sub 3% which is well below my usual.

rangler1 · 04-04-2015 08:13PM

AntrimGlens wrote: »

Horsing lambs out here today, warm and no wind. 4 ewes still penned up, 3 fosters and one whose lambs I don't think will ever walk so bottling them. Seven left to lamb, no pets (yet), haven't lost a ewe this year which is the first time I can ever remember that happening. Had a couple cases of mastitis when ewes lambed which are marked for the road. Had a couple lambs with joint I'll as a result of being housed too long but resflor appears to have cured it. Haven't done a cursory count yet but losses were low from scanning to turnout. I'd say sub 3% which is well below my usual.

Under 3% is very good, don't know what we're at, but things seem to be straight forward...no surprises'
Huge growth here too, I think grass grew yesterday in anticipation of the good weather, thought I was going to run out of grass on one batch.....170 ewes in the batch so meal feeding or moving would have been difficult, it would be great to have all the farm together in the one lump, any way it looks like I'm outa trouble for the moment.
The ewe lambs are going grand, lambing away on their own, the most problematic ewes I have now are about 20 2yr old ewes that didn't lamb as yearlings....two of them put out their lamb bed after lambing, a couple ran away and rejected their lambs and they all seem to need help. they seem to be very tight, the two that put out the lamb bed I wasn't there to help

How's lambing going for ye?

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