Indoor lambing set up costs

ISCO

Member
Location
North East
I wasn't joking @neilo :bag:

Ewes are usually pretty content in that weather and newborn lambs are a hell of a lot more resilient than most people seem to give them credit for! You've plenty shelter in around the trees - as long as there's no strong winds I'd have no fear lambing in that.
This year we have experienced the most prolonged spell of cold weather we have had in our limited outdoor lambing experience and lambs do not appear to have taken any harm. We were a little concerned the first few frosty nights but all was fine. It has been dry though.
 

Nithsdale

Member
Livestock Farmer
but I’d get my hands cold ringing lambs!

Thankfully, my ladies had more sense and must have crossed their legs last night. There have been 20-25 lambing at first light most mornings, but this morning only five.
Very handy as I was itching to get off to market with some woolly gold.

It’s been cold and dry for most of lambing here, which is fine by me.


Good maternal ewes bred for outdoor lambing will hold off. They know what the weather is doing before we do (y)


Just hug the lambs for a minute, they'll keep you warm
 
Can’t remember many wet April’s in last ten years
April 2018?, beast from the east year,neighbour had a horrendous lambing, highlander ewes dropping lambs out onto cold wet saturated fields, he was filling dumpy bags with dead lamb's, as I had probably one of my best ever lambing inside , hell of a lot of work, but rewarded with a large number of lambs turned out of the sheds which sold well as many other outdoor lambers were also filling dumpy bags but many wouldn't admit it
 

neilo

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
Montgomeryshire
April 2018?, beast from the east year,neighbour had a horrendous lambing, highlander ewes dropping lambs out onto cold wet saturated fields, he was filling dumpy bags with dead lamb's, as I had probably one of my best ever lambing inside , hell of a lot of work, but rewarded with a large number of lambs turned out of the sheds which sold well as many other outdoor lambers were also filling dumpy bags but many wouldn't admit it

Really? The ‘Beast from the East’ hit in mid-March. April lambing outside was spot on here. Meanwhile, everyone round about that was lambing inside in March was fetching lambs back in and stacking them on top of each other, the result being big losses in lambs a few weeks old.

Maybe everyone should have spare sheds sat idle, just in case?
 

Northern territory

Member
Livestock Farmer
April 2018?, beast from the east year,neighbour had a horrendous lambing, highlander ewes dropping lambs out onto cold wet saturated fields, he was filling dumpy bags with dead lamb's, as I had probably one of my best ever lambing inside , hell of a lot of work, but rewarded with a large number of lambs turned out of the sheds which sold well as many other outdoor lambers were also filling dumpy bags but many wouldn't admit it
Yes but that was March and too early for most people outdoor I would imagine
 

Mc115reed

Member
Livestock Farmer
Really? The ‘Beast from the East’ hit in mid-March. April lambing outside was spot on here. Meanwhile, everyone round about that was lambing inside in March was fetching lambs back in and stacking them on top of each other, the result being big losses in lambs a few weeks old.

Maybe everyone should have spare sheds sat idle, just in case?

23rd of March was the first day of proper beast from the east just found a picture of my dads milk tanker buried in snow on our drive in cumbria 🤦🏻‍♂️ he’d parked at the end of the lane too wait for us too clear the snow off for him that was only 6inches deep, by the time we got too him he couldn’t open his cab door a drift had buried it
 

ISCO

Member
Location
North East
Really? The ‘Beast from the East’ hit in mid-March. April lambing outside was spot on here. Meanwhile, everyone round about that was lambing inside in March was fetching lambs back in and stacking them on top of each other, the result being big losses in lambs a few weeks old.

Maybe everyone should have spare sheds sat idle, just in case?
It certainly hit our March lambs, born inside and turned out harder than the outside April lambs. Remember bringing one lot back in and filling warmer box and dead bag.
 

Nithsdale

Member
Livestock Farmer
23rd of March was the first day of proper beast from the east just found a picture of my dads milk tanker buried in snow on our drive in cumbria 🤦🏻‍♂️ he’d parked at the end of the lane too wait for us too clear the snow off for him that was only 6inches deep, by the time we got too him he couldn’t open his cab door a drift had buried it

You sure? The beast hit here right at the start of March just as my first ewes started to lamb.

22nd/23rd March bad snow was 2013. Easily the worst lambing weather I've ever seen and the beast was very easy going in comparison.
 

Anymulewilldo

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Cheshire
You sure? The beast hit here right at the start of March just as my first ewes started to lamb.

22nd/23rd March bad snow was 2013. Easily the worst lambing weather I've ever seen and the beast was very easy going in comparison.
2013 it filled our sheds with snow, drifted for days outside. Luckily we only had 40 Suffolk Mules lambing at the time, the others started just as it melted. Jesus it was wet and horrible afterwards
 

Estate fencing.

Member
Livestock Farmer
It’s always a problem with lambing inside, when do you turn the buggers out. They have to go out at sometime, i had it when they are in a week then start dieing of other things and then get joint ill later on.
 

Mc115reed

Member
Livestock Farmer
You sure? The beast hit here right at the start of March just as my first ewes started to lamb.

22nd/23rd March bad snow was 2013. Easily the worst lambing weather I've ever seen and the beast was very easy going in comparison.

Appologies yes the photo would be 2013 I didn’t live at home anymore on 2018 so couldn’t of been then [emoji23]🤦🏻‍♂️

1/2nd of March Iv got loads of photos of snow clearing from 2018 so that must be the beast from the east
 

Ploughteringindubs

Member
Mixed Farmer
It’s always a problem with lambing inside, when do you turn the buggers out. They have to go out at sometime, i had it when they are in a week then start dieing of other things and then get joint ill later on.

next day after lambing or day after if milk suspect, odd midjet stays in if wet. lambed outside for 15y and last 10 inside. Never had any bother with diseases housing inside at lambing time, once took hoggs in one year and had to do lot for footrot, bought ins with homebred.
 
You sure? The beast hit here right at the start of March just as my first ewes started to lamb.

22nd/23rd March bad snow was 2013. Easily the worst lambing weather I've ever seen and the beast was very easy going in comparison.
According to my diary (kept because I can't remember anything). We had 4ins snow on the 2nd April followed by a horrible week of sleet and rain
 

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Red Tractor drops launch of green farming scheme amid anger from farmers

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quote: “Red Tractor has confirmed it is dropping plans to launch its green farming assurance standard in April“

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