Foot bathing lambs

[James169]

Anyone got any tips to get lambs to run through better. I read somewhere put straw or wool clips in.

Just seems overly difficult even with ewes going through with them

 

[Jerry]

Straw in the bath to mask the water.

Once they’ve been through once they run better each time. Put 150 lambs through the bath this morning in 25 mins.

 

[Still Farming]

Train em

 

[Al R]

Ours run through it dry every time their in until we need to start footbathing, never really have many problems, lambs turning is the only problem but it is 30’ long.

 

[copse]

Anyone got any tips to get lambs to run through better. I read somewhere put straw or wool clips in.

Just seems overly difficult even with ewes going through with them

How wide is your bath ?

 

[neilo]

Straw in the bath to mask the water.

Once they’ve been through once they run better each time. Put 150 lambs through the bath this morning in 25 mins.

^this is what I always do for the first time through. Still get the odd 'sticker' but generally follow their mums through OK.

 

[Man_in_black]

Straw in the bath to mask the water.

Once they’ve been through once they run better each time. Put 150 lambs through the bath this morning in 25 mins.

+1 for straw

 

[Lili]

First time is always the worst but they soon get the hang of it and follow the ewes through ok. Got my bath so it's the last thing they run through out to the yard.

 

[exmoor dave]

Bit of staw in the bath

Use a cow sized bath (10ft x3ft) in a drenching race.

Single file sheep bath/ race combo's are complete

 

[Six Dogs]

We buy some cheap upholstery foam,use less,no splash and Sheep walk through nicely
Needs to be about 30 mm thick cut to fit the bath

 

[polk_farmer]

Bit of staw in the bath

Use a cow sized bath (10ft x3ft) in a drenching race.

Single file sheep bath/ race combo's are complete

Started using a cow size one this year, what a revelation! Far better than trying to shove them down a single race

 

[exmoor dave]

Started using a cow size one this year, what a revelation! Far better than trying to shove them down a single race

The beauty of it is that if one sheep jibs at the edge, the others can go round them.

The throughput at a nice steady flow is mental compared to a single fine bath

 

[Lovegoodstock]

Obvious, but also set up the bath in the direction they run out, as in ones that have left bath don't double back on themselves. That way they keep drawing to ones, down the yard and aim to get back to their field

 

[beardface]

I’ve always used a wider bath they tend flow through at a nice steady pace and get good coverage as they’ve got a mate with them. Tend not to try and jump it either. We usually bath some groups of ewes and lambs around first worming or at shearing (lambs only) as get a bit of summer scald. Bit of straw on top does the trick. Just not too much otherwise they don’t get full foot coverage

 

[Tim W]

Does everybody have a footbath?
Do you all use it every year?

 

[Lili]

Does everybody have a footbath?
Do you all use it every year?

Sheep come in for whatever needs doing and they go through the footbath as it's on their way back out to the yard. It is just part of the routine, they get used to it and makes life a lot easier. Its actually quite a job to stop them all barging in together. Have a homemade pen round the bath with small gate either end so can either hold them in or let them run through. Bath is big enough for 4 ewes in full wool.

 

[exmoor dave]

Does everybody have a footbath?
Do you all use it every year?

Yep, Feb born lambs seem to get scald out breaks as the farm drys up this time of year. Not really a problem when it's wet wet, or dried right out but in between is bad.
Fast growing lambs..... congregating round creep feeders is a recipe for scald.
Defo less in the mobs on 3 day moves though compared to the week moves.

Hate to say it (I'm sure you won't mind some constuctive criticism) but I'm foot bathing the April flock more than ever now all the lamb's are exlana, lambs 3 weeks old plus seem very prone to scald that progesses further if not treated.
Jabbing alot of ewes for foot rot as well when housed, they seem fine on grass the rest of the year. But their feet really don't like housing. (Yeah I know you'll say don't house, but even out door lambing I'd have to house prelamb to give pastures a chance.

 

[Tim W]

I have a foot bath that i inherited 12 years ago along with 4 tubs of ZnSO4 but it's still sat in my landlord's shed---i find it easier to just individually treat the worst cases
But i guess i don't have a yard or concrete standing & i may have a different approach if that was the case
This year does seem to be particularly bad , at least for 1 flock i have (but they got Tick Bourne Fever at lambing time and now seem susceptible to everything and anything imaginable )
Criticism/observation taken @exmoor dave ---always something to improve

 

[Nithsdale]

Ours is 3ft wide and 12ft long.

It's set up at 90degrees to the end of the dosing race. Everything has to go through it to get back out... aslong as there's ewes with the lambs, they run through fine. Once lambs have been through a couple times there's never any issues as they know it's the way out.

@Tim W it's always in place, everything goes through it. A few years ago I stamped out footrot by running them through formalin every time they were in (along with culling persistent offenders) over 2-3 years. It's usually full of water with silt in the bottom now

But it's there if I get scald... and I like to put the ewes through formalin once or twice during the winter. But definitely not 'routine'.

 

[castlehillfarmer]

I'm guessing it's fair to say the walk over pad things aren't worth a punt?