sh!t lambing

[Smokey16]

Hi just wondering if anyone else has had or is having a sh!t lambing this year

 

[copse]

Hi just wondering if anyone else has had or is having a sh!t lambing this year

Haven’t heard of anyone having a bad lambing around here was just bad weather at the time but that’s thankfully improving now.

 

[beardface]

Not brilliant weather and stupid problems plus alot of shearlings in flock this year with no experience. Hope this week is the last of the shite weather and its onwards and upwards. Need a jetski in places on the farm where ewes are. Shame really as run up to lambing was grand no twin lamb and no prolapses ewes were fit too. Always something to take the shine off, but always another year. Sounds a bit cheeky but glad it's most people in same boat this time. Think spring 2023 will be quickly forgotten.

 

[SamN]

Hi just wondering if anyone else has had or is having a sh!t lambing this year

In what way crap? I've had several doubles with one big lamb and one small lamb that's less keen to suck

 

[Anymulewilldo]

Too many small lambs at the start. I haven’t been through them yet but I reckon we will have had more absorptions this time too. Took too long to get to full bore proper twins everywhere.

 

[Northern territory]

Too many small lambs at the start. I haven’t been through them yet but I reckon we will have had more absorptions this time too. Took too long to get to full bore proper twins everywhere.

Okish start here but a few more singles this year than ideal, prolapses, never known as few up to now.

 

[MOG]

Had a terrible week prior to d-day. Weather was shite and had about half a dozen shearlings abort or throw weak premature lambs which despite loads of TLC all died anyway. As soon as lambing proper started it has been OK. The weather improved and plenty of big healthy lamb without too many malpresentations. Weather looks to be about to take a turn for the worse tonight though so we will see what tomorrow brings. Better go shut the south facing door on the lambing shed.

 

[Anymulewilldo]

Okish start here but a few more singles this year than ideal, prolapses, never known as few up to now.

We had 2 right at the start, I bought some fresh harnesses as I’d lost a couple. Not even opened the box yet. maybe the ewes being too thin has advantages?

 

[Estate fencing.]

We had a good lambing but a terrible start when I lost 5 ewes in the first morning (tld/calcium). Got another load starting next week but haven’t seen them for 10 days but the misses says they look good.

 

[Estate fencing.]

We had 2 right at the start, I bought some fresh harnesses as I’d lost a couple. Not even opened the box yet. maybe the ewes being too thin has advantages?

I only had 2 before lambing and one in the single pens after that I just managed to catch in time.

 

[Northern territory]

We had 2 right at the start, I bought some fresh harnesses as I’d lost a couple. Not even opened the box yet. maybe the ewes being too thin has advantages?

I was worried ours were thin but turning some decent lambs, just what to do with them from now, grass is slow, never usually feed out in the field but tempted to improve ewe condition

 

[Anymulewilldo]

I was worried ours were thin but turning some decent lambs, just what to do with them from now, grass is slow, never usually feed out in the field but tempted to improve ewe condition

Tipping carrots out with the merlo to keep everything full. My ewes have definitely improved since they came in.

 

[Gulli]

The actual lambing here went fine, everything associated with it has been a sh!t show this year, started with tld then the weather turned, struggles with joint ill in a fair few lambs and then staggers the last week.

More rain forecast for this week but had one week of dry weather at least. lost more ewes this time than the last 5 or 6 years put together.

Haven't done the sums but they've lambed over 200% this year and I've barely had a bad one to lamb. Can't decide if it's a good or bad one overall. Don't fancy another year like it though

 

[Northern territory]

The actual lambing here went fine, everything associated with it has been a sh!t show this year, started with tld then the weather turned, struggles with joint ill in a fair few lambs and then staggers the last week.

More rain forecast for this week but had one week of dry weather at least. lost more ewes this time than the last 5 or 6 years put together.

Haven't done the sums but they've lambed over 200% this year and I've barely had a bad one to lamb. Can't decide if it's a good or bad one overall. Don't fancy another year like it though

200% good going, is that mules

 

[Gulli]

200% good going, is that mules

Exlana/easycare

 

[neilo]

Probably tempting fate, but 9 days into the commercial flock outside so far and never had so few lamb losses. Lost a couple of ewes after prolapses &having rotten lambs, but third prolapse ewe lambed through her harness last night. Never had so few prolapses either.

Ewes are in ideal condition, thanks to the weather post-scanning (when I thought they were plenty lean enough). Not fed anything other than forage, and grass is coming nicely now.

On the other hand, in the pedigree flock lambing indoors in March, most of the lambs were big and ewes well fit, so plenty of malpresentations and too many lost as a result. Ewes milked well, but warm/cold since has meant several have had mastitis and lambs needed rescuing. More mastitis in them than I can ever remember, but only lost one of them and cull price is looking very good on strong ewes.

Still got 2t of the 6t of expensive ewe rolls I bought this year (almost all going into the indoor lambers), so happy enough on the cost front.

 

[Longlowdog]

Thinner than average ewes here this year hasn't stopped some monstrous singles being born. I haven't used so much hay over a winter in 16 years including some with crazy snow as I've done this year.
Things not helped here by a borrowed tup declining to remain with his lovely synchronised maiden gimmers and leaping the fence to my cull ewes 5 of which happened to cycle together on his one night of freedom. So I have a bunch of empty gimmers and three elderly culls who lambed and told the kids to fend for themselves, a ewe with a one sided bag with twins and a ewe I deemed too small to breed with twins sucking the life out of her.
However, loses were minute even if the milk powder bill will be bigger than hoped for. No lamb loses from 25 ped' Beltex bar one lamb that was alive in the birth canal till a mate insisted 'there's no need to call the vet, I always get them out'. I guess I should have asked if that included the words alive and kicking?

 

[Bracklandbarn]

Lambing so far has been a lot easier this year, they started 5 days early but all ok, only had to catch half a dozen ewes to lamb them due to mispresentations/ large singles, ewes are milking very well etc. However I’ve had 10 sets of twins so far where one lamb has been born no problem, got up, sucked then gone down with what looks like colic type symptoms. They haven’t passed meconium, so once I’ve warmed them I’ve given them a soapy enema - after this they have gone for a huge sh!t & they appear fine. Problem is they don’t all respond to this as they go cold and there’s a huge pressure on their lungs due to the colic. Lost a large tup lamb this morning so opened him up only to find a stomach of curdled milk and a discoloured intestine. Anyone have any ideas why this is happening?!!

 

[Northeastfarmer]

You either get a sh!t start
A sh!t middle
Or a sh!t end
Rarely a lambing where you escape everything

 

[neilo]

You either get a sh!t start
A sh!t middle
Or a sh!t end
Rarely a lambing where you escape everything

That’s about what I said to someone yesterday, when asked how lambing was going. Great, I said, but I expect it will balance itself out later on.