How to castrate ram lambs

Recoil

Member
Location
South East Wales
I'm new to sheep keeping and am not having much luck with the rubber rings. I can't seem to get the rams balls into the sack, they just suck them back inside themselves (i think they know what i'm going to do). With calves they usually drop easily enough. So just wondering if there is a special technique. I've tried with the lamb standing up and also sitting up.
 

Woolgatherer

Member
Location
Angus
I lift the lamb by the front legs, put my left foot on a step or the bottom of a hurdle left arm round the lamb with my hand down to the "bits". Elastrator in right hand ready with ring (prongs down to lambs body, not out the way) put the ring round the sack but don't release, use your left hand to gently push the stones down into the sack . Release the ring as soon as you can feel both in. If your foots up a bit you can take the weight of the lamb and it gives you chance to use both hands. If your facing a gate you can put the lambs legs through the bars of the gate if it's a kicker too. Be careful to get both stones in, and keep the teats out. Practice is key here, if you get it wrong, cut the ring off or pull off with the prong and try again. If you can't get the lamb castrated (some aren't possible) then leave the tail long too. That way you can see the entire lamb if it's kept back long enough that it could breed and you know which one to take out of the ewes! Would be much easier to show you but I hope this has helped.
 

Clive Tee

Member
Location
Shropshire
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Downton_shep

Member
Location
Leintwardine
I lift the lamb by the front legs, put my left foot on a step or the bottom of a hurdle left arm round the lamb with my hand down to the "bits". Elastrator in right hand ready with ring (prongs down to lambs body, not out the way) put the ring round the sack but don't release, use your left hand to gently push the stones down into the sack . Release the ring as soon as you can feel both in. If your foots up a bit you can take the weight of the lamb and it gives you chance to use both hands. If your facing a gate you can put the lambs legs through the bars of the gate if it's a kicker too. Be careful to get both stones in, and keep the teats out. Practice is key here, if you get it wrong, cut the ring off or pull off with the prong and try again. If you can't get the lamb castrated (some aren't possible) then leave the tail long too. That way you can see the entire lamb if it's kept back long enough that it could breed and you know which one to take out of the ewes! Would be much easier to show you but I hope this has helped.
Good description. Same way i do it.
Always balls first tail last
 

Blod

Member
Hang the lamb by its shoulders between my knees so that its body flops down and forwards of my legs. Keep its head forward of my thighs . I've then got the belly and back legs hanging down and the balls fall into place. Open the elastrator wide and as I hold it over the "right place" gently apply pressure with the fingers of the other hand just above it's balls. You don't usually need to do this though. loosen grip on elastrator but don't remove it until you've checked the balls are both in properly and the nipples are both out. Simples.;)

And yeah, balls first tail last. Easier to do the tail when it's wriggling than the balls.
 

Derrick Hughes

Member
Location
Ceredigion
As above the lamb needs to be in a as standing position between your legs same with calves , tipping them over makes it twice as hard, you can do it on the pens with them standing if your quick
 

Komatsu

Member
Location
Thurso caithness
Pretty much same as some above pick it up by front legs and grip it between my legs with its back legs dangling ring over sack and if required little squeeze above ring to encourage stones down let pressure off pliers and check everything in right place before releasing ring from pliers. Def balls first tail second beware of getting kicked in face by back legs! Always find texel and beltex easier to do hill Cheviots can be right bugger to get balls to drop, before my time but as mentioned earlier used to be boys out here did them with teeth!!
 

Gulli

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Somerset
If you pull the sack through then they usually suck them back up ( I sure would!) But you can usually find them in the woolless bit of the belly and gently persuade them back down. Practice makes perfect
 

AJR75

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Somerset
Exactly the same as others although I find that pressing the open pliers gently into it's groin area tends to make them pop straight back into the sack
 
If you are struggling you could try cryptorchid them, - push both balls into the body and put a rubber ring around the sac, the testes are held closer to the body and the hot temperture makes the ram infertile, commonly done in the southern hemisphere.
 

GTB

Never Forgotten
Honorary Member
If you are struggling you could try cryptorchid them, - push both balls into the body and put a rubber ring around the sac, the testes are held closer to the body and the hot temperture makes the ram infertile, commonly done in the southern hemisphere.
A friend of mine used to do his lambs like that. He reckoned they grew like entire lambs but were infertile. I think the problem was that they still thought they were rams and behaved accordingly, therefore couldn't be run with ewe lambs during the autumn.
 

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