Lambing season is almost upon you and you are gathering your supplies and arranging the barn. 

After waiting for months over the winter for lambing season to begin, suddenly the season is approaching

all too rapidly and you are starting to worry.  Will you be ready in time?  Do you have every thing you need? 

And what about all of those ewe lambs, was it really such a good idea to breed so many?  What if they give

you trouble?  Do you need anything special on hand?  Maybe you've heard scary stories about lambing out

yearlings, or maybe you've had troubles in the past,  but if you're wondering it if was really such a good plan

to breed all those little girls, then here are some tips to help.             

 

            When I first started breeding ewe lambs, I was both too young to know any better and too

inexperienced to be afraid!  By now I have blundered through enough lambing seasons with

yearlings that I feel relatively confident that I can sort out almost any situation these young ewes

might get in to.  I’ve come to realize that with patience and a calm demeanor, as well as some

preparation and a philosophical view about the results, that a shepherd can lamb out yearling

ewes and still stay sane.

 

            The first question to address is how to prepare for lambing, and the very first aspect of that

            preparation is to have made good and informed choices during the breeding and gestational

            seasons.  As covered in parts one and two of this series, by not breeding the smallest ewe lambs,

            and by carefully managing the nutrition during fall and winter, many potential lambing difficulties

            will be avoided entirely. 

 

            Even now, it is not too late to review the yearling nutrition.  How do they look?  Are they growing

            out well this winter?  One clue is to look for new horn growth in the horned gals, and if they were

            fall sheared, then whether the fleece is growing in well.  If you don’t like your answers to any of

            these questions, it is not too late to up the nutritional intake.  Offer either more or better hay, and

            if you have not been feeding grain, then start on up to a quarter to a third of a pound of 16%

            sheep feed.  If you suspect that any of them have really been undernourished during the past

            months, separate out the skinny ones and get them some top quality hay; second or third cut,

            alfalfa or clover hay if you can get it.  If they really need bulking up, try free choice hay and even

            switch to 18% grain.  My grain store carries 18% for milking goats, and I have fed it to pregnant

            ewes that have been ill, to older ewes that are looking peaky, or pregnant ewe lambs if I have

            cause to worry about their condition.

 

            Likewise, this is a good time to consider if perhaps the yearlings are over conditioned.  Are they

            excited about feeding time when you come out, or are they leaving good hay in the feeder?  Is

            anyone starting to look a little roly-poly?   (Remember that you are considering fat as opposed to

            pregnancy)  If so, it would be wise to back off on the feed a little bit.  Cut down from 18% to 16%

            grain, or decrease the amount of 16% grain that they are getting.  A quarter pound per ewe does

            not look like much when it is in the feeder, and especially when they have scarfed it all down and

            are desperately sniffing around for more.  It is very important that you measure the grain

            accurately every day to avoid overfeeding.  By eye, you are much more likely to toss in just a little

            more, and a little more, until you have fat yearlings with difficult births.

 

            Another important factor to review right now is the level of selenium in your yearlings’ diet.  

            Selenium is critical to growth, both maternal and fetal, and is necessary for strong, healthy

            muscle contractions during lambing, so you need to consider the supply of selenium you are

            offering your Moms-to-be.  Remember that the yearlings are trying to pass along selenium to the

            lamb(s) at the same time that they still need selenium for their own growth.  In the same way that

            human teenage moms need extra, extra calcium in their diets during pregnancy, Icelandic

            yearling moms need some extra, extra selenium in their diet during pregnancy.  Being so young,

            a yearling may not have yet built up a reserve sufficient either for her own use, or for that of her

            pregnancy, so it is very important that you take steps to supply that extra selenium before

            lambing.  Whether you choose BoSe shots, selenium and E powder mixed into the mineral

            feeder, livestock E/Selenium gel, or even some combination of the above, it is critical to strong

            labor and to strong lambs that you boost the level of Selenium for your yearling ewes.  It is

            important to note here that selenium is potentially toxic, and that any selenium supplementation

            program should be designed under the supervision of your farm vet.

 

            My approach to this issue is to add extra Selenium/E powder into the ewe lambs’ mineral feeder

            above what I would normally use in my mineral mix.  If you don’t house your ewe lambs

            separately from your adult ewes, a dose or two of the booster gel to each yearling can

            accomplish the same goal.  The importance of an adequate selenium supply for bred

            Icelandic yearlings cannot be overemphasized.  Selenium deficiency will lead to small, weak

            lambs, slow, ineffectual labor due to weak uterine contractions, as well as a high rate of retained

            placentas.  Extreme deficiency leads to Moms too weak or uncomfortable to stand at the hay

            feeder long enough to adequately feed herself, to support her pregnancy, or to develop her

            udder.

 

            The next thing to do will not affect the success of lambing, but will help ensure a healthy lamb and

            mother during the grazing season.   And that is to give your yearlings an extra C,D & T booster

            this spring.  Every pregnant mom needs her spring booster between 2 and 4 weeks prior to the

            beginning of lambing, to ensure enough time for her body to respond to the vaccine and produce

            antibodies.  It is these antibodies that will be dumped into the colostrum to provide protection for

            the otherwise defenseless newborn.  But remember that a yearling ewe is still young herself and

            may not have built up an adequate immune response either for herself or her lambs.  A mature

            ewe has had her spring shots for a number of years, building up a good background level of

            protection, whereas a yearling has only had her two lamb shots the prior summer.  If one of those

            lamb shots was ineffective for any reason, then she has been relying on only one shot for

            protection.  At the advice of my vet, I now give my yearling ewes two spring boosters, two weeks

            apart, to compensate for any deficiency in the prior year and to give them and their lambs some

            extra protection.  In order for the shots to have time to be effective, plan the two boosters to start

            no later than 4 weeks prior to the start of lambing.  Even if find yourself already inside that

            window, still go ahead and give that extra shot.  An individual ewe may be lambing a little later in

            the season, and in any case, Mom can still use the extra protection.  In a year that is particularly

            wet and rainy, that second shot may well save your yearling ewes and their lambs from

            succumbing to enterotoxaemia.

 

Another important preparation for lambing is to be sure that you have sheep colostrum in the

freezer.  Hopefully, you put some aside during last year’s lambing season, and have successfully

prevented your spouse from throwing it out.  But if you don’t have any, don’t despair.  Get right to

a livestock supply catalogue and order some of the prepared colostrums that are commercially

available; Colostrix is one brand name that comes to mind.  It is not as effective as the real thing,

but in a jam it is still a whole lot better than nothing.  Then get on the phone to see if you can beg,

borrow, or swap some real sheep colostrum from a sheep friend.  Two things to keep in mind

though: one is that most shepherds do not have enough colostrum for their own uses, so don’t be

offended if the answer is no.  And the other is that some diseases can cross through into the

udder and will show up in the colostrum, thus infecting the lambs.  OPP for example is a real

danger in borrowed colostrum, so be familiar with the health and the biosecurity practices of the

farm from which you get any colostrum.   And the last resort available is that you can snitch some

colostrum from the mature ewes that lamb in the very beginning of the season.  One very wise

shepherd I know, will breed her most milky ewes to lamb first, so she will have a plentiful supply

of colostrum in the beginning of each lambing season.  It is important to know that even though a

lamb can only absorb antibodies within the first 16 hours of it’s life, the ewe will continue to

produce colostrum for the first two or three days of her lactation.

 

            Your last bit of preparation is to check through your lambing supplies.  The following is a partial

            list of supplies that you should probably have on hand anyway, but are particularly important for

            lambing out yearling ewes:  Headgate, either cobbed up or commercial, lamb tubing kit, milk

            replacer with measuring cup, whisk and plastic juice pitcher, bottles and lamb nipples, hairdryer, a

            cardboard box, a hot water bottle, Nutridrench, a digital thermometer, needles, syringes and penicillin,

            and plenty of lambing towels.   

 

This brings us up to the actual lambing season.  Your ewe lambs are in the perfect condition, their

selenium levels are good, they’ve each had two spring boosters and you have some colostrum in

the freezer and lambing supplies in the barn.  Is there anything else to do?

 

            I have found that one important factor in a successful lambing season is to house my yearlings in

            an enclosure that opens onto the barn and is not too large.  That way I can easily bring a ewe into

            the barn if I need to help with a delivery.  I know that some shepherds do not find it necessary to

            do this, but I am more comfortable knowing that I won’t have to chase them around an open field

            if there is trouble.  Ever since the time when a yearling got into lambing trouble in the midst of our

            largest pasture and I was reduced to trying to creep up on the ewe, unseen, like a commando on

            my belly, I have decided that keeping the yearlings in a smaller enclosure, was a much better

            plan.  Now I keep my yearlings in one of our winter paddocks with plenty of legroom, both inside

            the barn and out, and where they are next to our warm room should I need electricity, warm water

            or any other supplies.   

 

Let’s jump ahead to the actual labor and some possible lambing scenarios.  Since the yearlings

are not as roomy inside as a mature ewe, they can be more likely to have a mal-presentation of

the lamb.  We will look at some of the most common lambing difficulties and I would also refer

you to more detailed texts on lambing for further reference.

 

            A very common problem is a lamb presenting with just one foot and a nose. Moms can often birth

            the lamb just fine with one leg back, so watch the ewe at first and see if she seems to be in

            trouble.  Usually the most you will need to do is to wobble the lamb back and forth, side to side,

            until Mom is able to push past that second shoulder.  One hand behind the crown of the lamb’s

            head and one hand gripping the hoof, will give you an adequate hold.  Pull and wobble sideways

            at the same time, until you are past the jammed up shoulder.       

 

What to do if there is just a head and no feet, or if Mom cannot get the lamb out with one foot

back?  You will have to reach in and find that foot, two if you can.  But if Mom is struggling and

you are worried for the lamb, settle for one foot if you can.  When you find the foot, cup the hoof

with your hand as unfold the joint, so that you will not inadvertently damage Mom’s soft tissues. 

With the jam-up sorted out, Mom may be able to birth the lamb by herself, but if not, get a good

hold on the feet, or on a foot and the crown, and pull.

 

            If the lamb is presenting two hoofs and no head, take a closer look at the hoofs to see if they are

            front or hind legs.  If you can’t tell, picture in your mind the way the first joint flexes on both hind

            and front legs, and then it should be clear.  If you are seeing front legs, you will need to go in and

            find the head.  The head may have flexed down on the chest, or be turned sideways and the

            contractions are just jamming the lamb up against the pelvic bones.  You might have to reach in a

            surprising distance to find the head, and will probably have to push the lamb back into the birth

            canal in order to get room to pull the head around into the correct position.  Remember to hang

            on to one or both feet as you do this so you won’t then find yourself in a different lambing

            difficulty.  Mom will also probably be yelling her head off at this point, but you have to have that

            head, so persevere.  Once you have your hand on that head, glom on as well as you can, turn the

            head to position it properly and pull.  With one hand on the back of the head, and one hand for

            the hoof or hooves, try to time your effort to coincide with Mom’s contractions, and pull.

 

In the Zen approach; I like to imagine that I have suction cups on my fingers while I am doing any

of this pulling or reorganization.  Just visualize that your fingers are stuck tight to that little skull

and cannot possibly slip off.  It is best if you have a helper to hold the ewe during these situations,

but I always find that Murphy and his Law take hold and that these births will almost invariably

occur when I am home alone.  You may be able to curl your offhand around Mom’s neck in a

secure hold, while your other hand is fishing around for heads and legs.   Or consider a halter for

Mom so you can tie her off to the fence.  I have even straddled the ewe facing backwards, and

birthed the lambs upside down, leaning over the ewe’s backside.

 

            If you find that you are looking at two back feet, then immediate intervention is necessary.  As a

            wonderful shepherd coached me once on the phone, “Pull out and down!  Pull out and down!” 

            It is especially critical to get the lamb quickly past the belly.  The constriction in the birth canal closes

           off the blood supply in the umbilical cord, signaling the lamb that it is time to breath in.  Obviously, you

            need the lamb to be out in open air when that happens!  So pull out and down as quickly as you can.     

            The birth is usually smooth in the breech position but once you have the lamb on the ground, you

            will need to give it a good swing to clear the lungs and passages of any inhaled birth fluids.  Hold

            on tight to the wet and slippery lamb while you swing, and be sure to be clear of any obstacles! 

            Keep a close eye on a breech lamb for the next few hours to watch for labored breathing. 

            Sometimes a lamb appears to be breathing normally after a breech birth, but will then succumb to

            fluid in the lungs later in the day. 

 

Once the lamb is on the ground, either through her efforts or yours, what to do next?  First, you should check to

see that the lamb is breathing.  You may need to clear the face of birth goop if Mom does not immediately do so. 

Then prop the lamb up on it's chest, front legs facing forward to hold it up.  This allows both sides of the lungs to

inflate.  If breathing still does not occur, then lay the lamb on it's side and move the two front legs back and forth

in an opposite movement as if it were walking.  This will move the chest wall which will naturally draw air into the lungs.

Remember that the lambs takes a moment or two to breath after the umbilical cord breaks.  The blood flow stops,

and then the lamb has to run out of oxygen before it is stimulated to breath.  If the lamb is STILL not breathing

despite vigorous towel massage and vigorous leg movement, then some artificial breathing can save it's life. 

Gently close the lamb's mouth with one hand, place your mouth around the lamb's nose and VERY GENTLY breathe

into both nostrils.   VERY GENTLY and lightly as the lungs are tiny and fragile.  Watch to see if the chest inflates with

your air and when it does, take your mouth off the nose to see if it will breath.  You may have to give it another breath or two

before it starts.  But then it will cough and sputter like a lawnmower left out in the rain, and then you will have breathing.

 

But back to the new, wet lamb laying on the ground.  If the lamb is breathing steadily, if it is not in the

midst of a frigid wind, and if Mom does not look like she is trying to stomp it to death, then the lamb is safe

for now.   The one thing NOT to do now is to immediately start fussing around the lamb and mom with navel

dips and towels and lambing jugs.  The best thing to do is to step away and let them get acquainted without

the distraction of your presence.  If you feel like you just cannot resist the temptation to jump in to help, go

inside to get another cup of coffee.  The yearling has just been through a tense and bewildering

ordeal, this strange creature is crying and wobbling at her feet, and she may not be sure of what

to do next.  You are waiting for her maternal instincts to kick in now and you do not want to distract

her from that process. 

 

This moment of decision for her can be fragile.  Is she going to lick and mother that lamb and

nicker to it softly?  Or is she going to freak out and run as if the seven devils of hell are after her? 

Even if you had just been helping to deliver the lamb, your presence now is unnecessary and

unwanted and you need to get out of the way.  That first lick on the lamb is sort of an exploratory

one for her.  What is this thing?  Why is it here, and what is she supposed to do about it?  But when

she gets a taste of that birth fluid, it seems encouraging so she takes another lick, and then another. 

The lamb starts to respond to that licking with movement, turning towards that big, warm presence,

or by baa-ing.  And the response of the lamb spurs the mother to more licking and washing, and starts

her talking to the baby.  This is what you cannot interrupt.  If you were to jump in now with your iodine

and your towels, you could panic the mother and we all know that a panicky sheep does not think

clearly.  So let that mother investigate the lamb, and let the lamb respond.  You will see that the mother's

attention is often in response to the movement of the lamb, and the lamb moves in response to the

mother's attention.  It is a reinforcing cycle that you need to let get going well before you take the risk of

distracting the ewe. Once the ewe has clearly accepted her lamb and is licking and nickering those

special mother sounds, then you can step back in to clip and dip the lamb’s navel.  If it does not

upset the ewe, then you can also help to dry the lamb, although if the weather is not cold, then it is not

necessary to do so.  If you are are uncomfortable leaving the barn, then just step out of Mom’s line of

sight and keep an eye on them.  Most of the time, Mom will settle down and respond to her lamb.  At this

point you are more than half way home to a successful birth. 

 

The next step of course is to get the lamb to find the teat and to get that all important first meal. 

Unfortunately, some yearlings are so enthusiastic about washing up the lamb that she won’t

stand still for the lamb to find the teat.  That hungry lamb will stumble forward, bumping, bumping

along the belly looking for the teat, find the teat, start nursing finally and getting some of  that

warm, wonderful milk into his empty belly, and then Mom will turn around so she can continue to

wash her lamb, pulling the teat out his mouth.  Sometimes you may need to distract her with

some of your very best hay so she will stop washing the lamb.  Very rarely, you may need to

halter tie or hold the ewe so that she cannot continue to turn around.   Once the lamb is really

nursing, the udder is stimulated to release a fresh supply of oxytocin, the maternal hormone that

will both cause the uterus to contract and expel the placenta, and to continue to focus Mom’s maternal

attentions on her lamb. 

 

            As a general approach, avoid direct intervention for as long as you safely can, and intervene as

            little as you safely can, since the ewe can find it confusing to have you to deal with, as well as this

            strange, wet creature.  Watchful, non-intervention can be your best approach at this point, as long

            as you are ready to help should it be necessary to do so.

 

Occasionally a ewe will be so overwrought by the birthing experience that she cannot calm down

in time to feed her lamb in that critical first hour or half hour before the lamb gets too chilled to

nurse.  This is when you will need that headgate listed above as a lambing supply.  Just twice in

14 years of lambing out yearlings, I have had to resort to confining the ewe in the headgate, but

on both occasions, an overnight stay gave the ewe time to settle down, and the lamb the chance

to nurse vigorously.  The massage of the udder inherent in the nursing process stimulates the

release of oxytocin, which in turn stimulates maternal behavior in the ewe, claming her and solving

your mothering problem.

 

            Also occasionally, the lamb will be too cold or too weak to nurse on her own, even with

            assistance from the ewe.  Perhaps too much time has passed without a meal for the lamb, or

            perhaps she is small and chilled by the weather, but sometimes you will find a lamb that is too

            weak to nurse.  Immediate intervention is required in this situation in order to save the lamb.

 

There are wonderful publications on care of the newborn and I would refer you in particular to the

book “Managing Your Ewe and her Newborn Lambs” by Laura Lawson, published by LDF

Publications of Culpeper, Virginia.  Lawson has some great flow charts at the back of the book

that walk you through the decision making process of deciding how and when to intervene with a

difficult birth or a weak newborn.  This article is not an effort to duplicate the detailed information

offered there, but to give you a quick overview of assistance methods.

 

            You have several choices when you are presented with a cold, weak lamb.  Your first job is to get

            some milk into the lamb’s belly.  External warming can only help so much; the lamb really needs

            nutrition.  If the lamb has a sucking response, then either defrost some of that colostrum in the

            freezer or milk out either Mom or another newly delivered ewe and bottle feed the lamb. 

            (Remember when you are defrosting colostrum to use very warm water; the microwave will kill the

            antibodies).   You may find that this one assisted meal is all that is required.  Feed the lamb in the jug

            if at all possible so Mom won't "forget" that the lamb is hers.

 

If the lamb is too weak to suck, then rinse your lamb tube set in hot water both to clean it and to

soften up the tube.  Using the instructions you had previously printed out, insert the tube, and

gently pour one or two ounces of colostrum into the open syringe.  DO NOT FORCE the

colostrum down the tube, but rather let gravity draw it down.  If the lamb is really tiny, then one ounce is

plenty.  Knowing that the lamb has some hot milk working in her belly, you now have some time to solve

your other problems. 

 

            After a successful tubing or bottle feeding, all that may be required then may be to warm the

            lamb.  Use your digital thermometer to see if the lamb is chilled.  Anything less than 102 is too

            cold.  Either a soak in some body temperature water, (being sure to wrap the lamb’s body in a

            plastic bag first to preserve the smell of the birthing fluid), or some time in a hot box with a

            running hair dryer and a hot water bottle, will get that lamb up to a healthy body temperature.  

            I try to drape the lamb over the hot water bottle so her belly is warmed from below, while the rest

           of her is warmed by the hair dryer above.   Fold the top of the box down partially to help keep the

           warm air in the box.  Be sure that the dryer is on low, and is not blasting directly on the lamb. 

           You want the lamb surrounded by warm air, but not blasted by an air furnace.  Once during a

           very busy lambing day, I put a mildly chilled lamb inside my coat to stay warm until I could set

           up the hot box and settle the mother in a jug.  In a pinch, I’ve held the lamb in my lap, holding the

          dryer in one arm, and tenting the towel up over the both with the other. 

 

If you use a hot box, be careful not to overheat the lamb.  Sometimes very small or very weak lambs

cannot yet regulate their body temps and will readily overheat so be careful to check the lamb’s

temperature; you are aiming for between 102 and 104 degrees. 

 

            If a lamb is very small, or was very chilled, then you may still need to tube feed the lamb for the

            next meal or meals.  If at all possible, keep the lamb with the ewe and only enter the jug for

            feeding.  As long as the ewe is continuing to care for the lamb, it is very likely that the lamb will

            quickly strengthen enough to nurse unassisted.   If you do have to take the lamb in the house, try

            to return it to Mom as quickly as possible.   You may still need to show the lamb where to find

            the teat, or you may come out to the barn to find that the lamb has already learned to nurse.  At

            this point, you have done your job and just need to watch the family for another day or two to

            watch for any backsliding in condition. 

 

If you have had to bring the lamb into the house for any period of time, you may find it difficult to

reintroduce the young mother to her lamb.  Be watchful that she doesn’t try to stomp the “intruder”

when you bring the lamb back to the barn.  I had a yearling mother once who would recognize her

lamb’s voice as I carried her back to the jug, and would call out to her, but then not recognize her

lamb by sight or smell once I put her in the jug.  I tried several times to reintroduce the lamb, even

rubbing her up against her twin to equalize the smell, but the ewe had become suspicious at that

point and was determined to catch me out in the act of foisting off a stranger.  We had to set the

ewe up in the headgate and in a few days time she had forgotten her suspicions and accepted

both lambs as her own.  Sometimes however, the ewe just will not accept the lamb back, even as

she may be grieving for her “lost” lamb, and you will have to bottle raise the lamb or foster him

onto another ewe.  In either case, be sure that the lamb has gotten enough colostrum.  My vet

tells me that you should provide 2 oz. of colostrum per pound of the lamb’s birth weight.  An 8 lb.

lamb for example, will need 16 ounces of colostrum within that precious 16-hour window of

opportunity.   

 

            Very rarely, even tube feeding will not save a lamb as he has chilled so far down that his body

            cannot digest the milk.  The only choice left then is to give the lamb some warmed sugar solution 

            via an inter-peritoneal shot.  You are delivering what is essentially predigested nutrition right to

            the body cavity where the lamb can absorb it directly into the bloodstream.  Once the lamb gets

            some sugar, only then can your warming efforts be useful.  If the lamb is starving, no amount of

            warming will save him.  While scary to perform, inter-peritoneal shots can be one of those rare,

            “miracle saves”.  It is critical to have the correct equipment and solution on hand, as well as to

            understand the correct technique, so you will need to prepare ahead of time, and perhaps even to

            be coached over the phone by your vet or by an experienced shepherd.

 

A quick note on seemingly scary interventions; whether it is an internal exam, or tube feeding, or

the inter-peritoneal shot, if you have never done it before, you may be afraid that you will

accidentally kill the lamb through your inexperience.  It is important to understand in this situation,

that without your intervention, the lamb is going to die anyway.   So go ahead and give it a

try; the worst thing that will happen is that the lamb will die, which would certainly have been the

end result without your help.  In the best case, you will save the lamb, and regardless of the

outcome, you will learn a new and valuable technique.    

 

            If the worst happens and the lambing results in a dead lamb, still don’t despair.  It is not a

            complete waste for the ewe, or for you.  The ewe has “primed” her fertility pump and developed

            her udder, both all to the good for next year.  You know that the ewe is fertile, and you have the

            opportunity to either save her colostrum, or to foster another lamb onto the ewe.  If the ewe is

            clearly pining for a lamb, she may be very willing to accept another newborn with just a minimum

            attempt on your part to convince her that it is really her lost lamb.                

 

We have run through some potential interventions, roughly in the order that you might use them,

from least invasive to very invasive.  Yet in the vast majority of assisted births, you will only have

to go as far as one or two steps, or none at all.  It will be rare that you have to progress much further than

helping a confused lamb to find the teat, or to prevent an overenthusiastic ewe from licking her

lamb too much.  The Icelandic ewe is indeed a wonderful mother and your most helpful approach

to lambing out Icelandic yearlings will almost always be watchful non-intervention.   

 

            That is not to say however that you should ignore the yearling family entirely.  Too often because

            Icelandic ewes are such good mothers, shepherds feel they can ignore a yearling mother in labor

            and just assume that she will be fine.  She may well be fine, but she may well not be fine, and

            when you return to the barn you may be disappointed to find a lamb dead of cold and starvation. 

            A little bit of vigilance at this point, and potentially a little bit of help, goes a long way towards

            ensuring that you will have a strong, healthy lamb in the fall, instead of a wasted year for the dam. 

 

If your philosophy is to let nature take care of things, regardless of the cost to the animals

involved, you will find no support here.  Yearling mothers are both beginners at lambing, and are

still immature themselves, and it is no shame to them or to you as the shepherd, or to the breed

as a whole, when a mother needs a bit of help her first year.  I have no patience with producers

who willfully let a lamb born to a yearling mother die for lack of assistance, for the privilege of

then saying that they “never” have to help their yearling mothers.  Sometimes lambs do die, and

sometimes they die because we could not be there to help, but that is a vastly different situation

from a lamb dieing because the shepherd would not help. 

 

            I strongly believe that when we take domestic animals into our care, that we are obligated to care

            for them with compassion.  Yes, each producer will make his or her own decisions as to what

            level of intervention they can afford to make, whether it is an issue of available time or money. 

            We may even decide to let a lamb die that is clearly disabled in some way, but even that is a

            decision of compassion, rather than a result of neglect.  If you are philosophically opposed to

            assisting during lambing, then you should not be breeding your yearling ewes.  If you find a ewe

            in trouble, I feel you are obligated to help her birth her lambs and to help the lambs get started,

            even if you then decide that you will cull her from the ewe flock after weaning. 

 

It is important to note here that as mentors of beginning shepherds, we have an obligation to

express a reasonable expectation of what first year mothers are capable.  While the majority of

yearling mothers are indeed fine during lambing, some of the first timers will need help.  I am

always sad when I get a phone call for help only to find out that the shepherd waited too long to

intervene, because someone, somewhere, had told the owner that Icelandic ewes are such great

mothers that they will “never” need help.  If we want our new shepherds to be happy with their

animals and with the breed, we will need to give them the information and the tools necessary to

help ensure a successful lambing season.

 

            Longwinded as I may have been, there is still plenty more to be said and learned about

            successfully lambing out any ewes, and yearling ewes in particular.  I would urge the reader to

            prepare for lambing by reading the many useful texts available, by conferring with experienced

            shepherds, and perhaps even by purchasing some tutorial time from a vet experienced in small

            ruminants.  Find out ahead of time what resources are available to you, either in the

            neighborhood, your veterinary clinic, or within the Icelandic community.  Know who you can call,

            and at what time of day, lay in your supplies, practice your calm and patient demeanor for the

            lambing barn and then relax and joyfully wait for your lambs.       ;-D

 

 

Barbara Webb
Jager Farm Icelandics
barbara@jager-icelandics.com
www.jager-icelandics.com

 

Reprinted from Spring 2005 Newsletter ISBONA, Volume 9, Issue 2 

revised April 29, 2008