First and foremost is to make sure that the lambs are getting enough to eat. Typical lamb behavior is to stretch when they get up, ears should be alert and they should readily seek the udder. Lambs that cry, stand around hunched up, or simply don't get up most likely need more to eat.
Starvation typically occurs during the first three days of life. A lamb will be found standing with its head down, ears drooping back, or it may become too weak to stand. Hungry lambs frequently bleat. The stomach would be empty upon palpation.
Newborn lambs need to be fed every 2-3 hours for the first two weeks of life (the night feeds can be stretched to 4 or 5 hours) and then every 4 hours for the next few weeks, depending on how well they are doing. Divide up the total recommended milk amount per day and aim to match your feeds to this total.
Without these antibodies rather minor diseases can weaken a lamb, make it sick or let it die, even later on and not just immediately after birth. This colostrum must be consumed by the lamb ideally within the first 12 to 18 hours but no later than 24 hours after it was born. There are two reasons for this time limit.
One- to two-day-old lambs should be fed a minimum of four mes a day, while older lambs can be fed only twice. Inially, the milk should be fed luke-warm to smulate intake. A warm, dry pen is important for the health of arficially reared lambs.
Lambs less than 30 days of age will need a liquid diet until about 60 days of age. They will start to nibble lamb ration pellets at about 30 days of age. Provide fresh drinking water at all times for the lamb in a clean bucket that the lamb can easily reach.
But, we learned from some hurried research in our books and on line, if you overfeed a bottle lamb, the milk will fill their abomasum and the excess will back up to their immature rumen, where bacteria can ferment it, leading to acidosis and bloat.
At between one and three days of age, a lamb requires one litre of Lamlac, split across four or five separate feeds. When bottle feeding, at between four and seven days of age, a lamb requires one litre of Lamlac, but only split over four feeds.
It is normal for new babies to sleep a lot – newborn lambs will sleep for 12–16 hours a day.
They eat grasses and other low-growing vegetation and ruminate (chew the cud). They spend most of the day alternating between periods of grazing and resting/ruminating. Sheep only sleep for around 4 hours per day.
Water: provide access to fresh, clean water from day one, and at a height which is easily accessible to lambs at all times. Creep feed: top quality creep feed should be introduced from one week of age, and offered fresh at least once a day. Refusals can be fed to the ewes.
It is recommended that milk be fed cold, about 40°F (~4°C). With cold milk, there is less tendency for lambs/kids to overeat, thus helping to prevent bloat, diarrhea, and other digestive upsets. Feeding cold milk is essential if milk will be offered free choice.
Lamb Shaking after a feed
If a lamb shakes following bottle feeding it could simply be a sign that the milk is too cool rather than a lamb fever. The change in temperature when the cooler liquid enters the body compared to the normal body temperature can cause the lamb to shake.
As soon as the lambs are eating dry feed well, wean them to a high quality, dry ration and manage them as early weaned feeder lambs. Lambs can be weaned from milk feeding at 25-30 pounds body weight or when they are 30-45 days of age.
When feeding lambs inside: Lambs need 10-15% or their body weight of milk daily. Milk should be 35-40 degrees (which feels very warm). Should be fed at least three times a day until around 2 weeks old, then can be reduced to two times a day and once a day from 3 weeks old.
Weaning can begin as early as 6 weeks of age but most lambs benefit from milk feeding up to 12-14 weeks of age. At weaning the lamb should be eating solid food for a minimum of 10 days and drinking water freely. Weaned lambs should be given access to high quality pasture to ensure continued growth rates.
Lamb creep pen
A creep pen is designed for young lambs to have access to additional feed concentrates separate from their mothers and other mature sheep. A lamb creep pen should be set up to allow the lambs continuous access to fresh creep feed and a clean and dry environment.
A reading of 37-39°C indicates mild to moderate hypothermia and if the thermometer shows below 37°C, the lamb is severely hypothermic.”
Abomasal bloat seems to occur most commonly in lambs that are 2 to 4 weeks of age. It may occur later in goat kids, as they are typically fed milk for a longer period of time.
The main sign is a swollen left abdomen. Other tell-tale signs include restless acting sheep that get up and down repeatedly, kicking at their belly, grunting and extending their neck and head. A bloated sheep might lay down in distress and not be able to get back up.
Deworming Lambs
Begin worming your lambs when they are about 8 weeks old, and continue monthly (or at the very least bi-monthly) until they reach a year in age. Ivomec and Cydectin are recommended for lambs, and Valbazen should be used to treat tapeworms.
Cold, wet weather is especially problematic for small, newborn lambs that lose heat quickly. This can be fatal if they don't have enough energy reserves to burn to keep warm. Minimising stress and time off feed is crucial, especially in cold, wet weather.
It usually happens in the first 2-3 days of the lamb's life. A lamb 2-3 days old should be nursing well and be "filled out." Keep an eye open for constipated lambs the first week.