Lambs born in thick bags and a lot of liquid

[Keepers]

We are just over half way now in the indoor lambers

But getting most lambs born now in very thick bags and loads of fluid, bags very hard for ewe to tear and then the slime is so much around the head mouth that the lamb tends to drown if the ewe isn't very good or we are not so quick at spotting it.

Having to keep a very close eye but can't watch them all at once and still losing a few in the bag

Any clue as to why this is happening? and why with with the later lambing ewes and not with the ones at the start?

 

[Al R]

We are just over half way now in the indoor lambers

But getting most lambs born now in very thick bags and loads of fluid, bags very hard for ewe to tear and then the slime is so much around the head mouth that the lamb tends to drown if the ewe isn't very good or we are not so quick at spotting it.

Having to keep a very close eye but can't watch them all at once and still losing a few in the bag

Any clue as to why this is happening? and why with with the later lambing ewes and not with the ones at the start?

Younger ewes maybe? We're finding it's a thick bag and lambs are sometimes taking quite a bit of getting going as the bag/fluid is so thick with the ewe lambs ?

 

[jemski]

I seem to remember reading somewhere it can be a deficiency, but I can't remember what! Sorry! No help!!!

 

[Al R]

I seem to remember reading somewhere it can be a deficiency, but I can't remember what! Sorry! No help!!!

Deficiency of concentrates?

 

[Gulli]

I seem to remember reading somewhere it can be a deficiency, but I can't remember what! Sorry! No help!!!

Iodine I think? @bovine ?

 

[bovine]

There's been discussion in a sheep vet group recently. Iodine has been suggested but not proven.

I'm quite sceptical. Seemingly no association with stillbirth and weak lambs that you'd expect with iodine.

 

[Razor8]

had this myself in 2013 after bad year in 2012. i used alot of yellow lick buckets on top of meal they were getting and they were going through them like sweets so i imagine they were raising there minerals levels rapidly. i had huge problems with leathery water bags that year and even found it hard to burst bags with my fingers. now bolus instead of lick buckets and problem has gone away

when are you feeding?

 

[Nithsdale]

The TexX ewes lambing to the Suffolks - a lot of the first lambs born were in very thick/strong bags and the fluids were more like a gel, than liquid.

Lambs were very healthy and strong, so i cant see how it could be linked to a deficiency.

 

[Henarar]

Iodine would be worth looking at, we and someone else had thick bags at the same time as Iodine deficiency in cows

 

[jonny]

had this myself in 2013 after bad year in 2012. i used alot of yellow lick buckets on top of meal they were getting and they were going through them like sweets so i imagine they were raising there minerals levels rapidly. i had huge problems with leathery water bags that year and even found it hard to burst bags with my fingers. now bolus instead of lick buckets and problem has gone away

when are you feeding?

Do you still use any buckets before lambing?

 

[Al R]

had this myself in 2013 after bad year in 2012. i used alot of yellow lick buckets on top of meal they were getting and they were going through them like sweets so i imagine they were raising there minerals levels rapidly. i had huge problems with leathery water bags that year and even found it hard to burst bags with my fingers. now bolus instead of lick buckets and problem has gone away

when are you feeding?

All flocks/ages/breeds are on different systems. As an example our single Ewe lambs currently lambing have Been on grass Apart from 2 weeks on stubble turnip aftermath after the twin older ewes had levelled it. The grass they'd been on had been too good for them really so we restricted their diets a bit by having what was left from turnips plus a bale was with them.
All were given a ZinCoSel bolus plus levacur SC 4 weeks before they were first due. Not had any mineral buckets.

 

[Chasingmytail]

Our easycare ewes have been delivering in the sac (not leathery) and wonder if they are drowning or brain damaged as lost a few after. Havent seen this before. My ewes have been given plenty of minerals, lick blocks (since before going to tup) and nuts. They most certainly dont look like they have an deficiency. Lost a couple of good strong lambs as unstable and dont last after a couple of days.

 

[Jackson4]

A few underfed ewes had the hardest bags, could hardly bust them with my fingers and also obviously weaker lambs as well but then just disappeared. Apart from feed i suppose they were dorset x's which are known for it but something to do with nutrition?

 

[Razor8]

Do you still use any buckets before lambing?

Buy None at all now only a few mag buckets after there let out

 

[jonny]

Buy None at all now only a few mag buckets after there let out

Same here

 

[Ffermer Bach]

we had something similar years ago, and after applying trace elements to the fields, it stopped, I have no idea if that is a coincidence or it solved the problem, I know we as humans look for patterns, and we try to find things we have done that cause results, but we never had the problem again. We got the trace elements from trace element services ltd. We decided to use them, partly because I know a very good farmer (who is careful with his money) who used them, so thought it they were willing to use them, they must be worth it. I think the trace elements were zinc, selenium, copper, cobalt and iodine.

 

[Al R]

After looking at our buckets, our crystalyx organyx have 60g iodine per 1kg mineral. Is this standard amount? Only the twins and triplets have them, from 3-4 weeks before until 4-5 weeks after.

The previous farmer to us on this farm years ago (1960's) had a big problem getting his cows back in calf etc and was told to put seaweed from the farm beach on a field, they did this and the cows would graze in that field for 1 hour after milking before going to other fields and this transformed their fertility no end! I'm Unsure what's in seaweed mind?

 

[Ffermer Bach]

I am guessing seaweed is Iodine

 

[Jack Daw]

I have been told thick bags are caused by to much protein in ewes diet. When we have had problems tends to be towards end of lambing when feed for groups isn't cut back as fast as lambed ewes are taken out of the group.