Though it can be caused by other things, bottle jaw is by far most commonly caused by a blood sucking parasite, the barber pole worm. It is one of the only obvious external symptoms seen in severe barber pole worm infestations. Unfortunately, it does not show up until your animal is at death’s door, and sometimes not at all.

While we are going to talk about treating bottle jaw today, if you are not familiar with barber pole worms, we’d encourage you to take a few minutes to go back and read our series on the topic. There are much better ways to determine your animals parasite status without waiting for them to be ill enough to have bottle jaw.

Unfortunately, even the best shepherd can sometimes be blindsided by parasites.

Everyone needs to know what bottle jaw is and what to do about it. So let’s take a close look at bottle jaw and what you can do to maximize your chances of saving your sheep’s life.

If you have a sheep presenting with bottle jaw, you should immediately check their FAMACHA. Most likely you will find that their mucus membranes are white, indicating that barber pole worms have essentially eaten all of their blood. These animals need to be dewormed immediately following proper deworming protocol. Not tomorrow or next week. Right now, or they will die.

While deworming is the life saving measure, it doesn’t mean your sheep is cured or out of the woods yet. It can take a couple days for all the worms to die. It also takes a very long time to make blood. So while killing the worms stops them from eating any more blood, it doesn’t replace the missing blood. That process takes months. You need to provide supportive care to give the best chance of survival.

As a side note, this scenario is why you should always have proven effective dewormers on hand. Waiting for a shipment to arrive is in many cases going to be too little too late. Deworming with something your parasites are resistant to also won’t be enough to save your sheep. And by the time you find out the dewormer is ineffective, it will be too late.

If the sheep still has a good appetite, they should be provided top quality feed including plenty of protein, iron and B-vitamins to make sure they have the building blocks they need to generate new blood. Remove them from very wormy pastures to allow them time to recover if possible. If they are down and do not have a good appetite, you may need to take more drastic measures.

Sometimes treating the actual bottle jaw symptom can make your sheep feel better so they are more willing to eat on their own.

Though fluid under the chin is most obvious, it is also potentially accumulating in other places, most importantly, the lungs. Working to reduce the edema can help to prevent secondary complications like pneumonia. Something an already sick sheep definitely does not need to be contending with!

To treat the symptom, we need to understand that the fluid accumulating under the skin is mainly due to a protein imbalance in the blood. Thus, a high protein diet is the solution to helping to temporarily relieve the symptoms. Supplement their diet with high protein for a few weeks until their body can rebuild enough blood cells to re-balance itself. If your sheep is still eating well, this can easily be done through feeding extra alfalfa or soybean meal.

If your sheep is down with severe bottle jaw and not eating well, we have had good success at reducing symptoms by syringe feeding them a cup of milk replacer several times a day.

Milk replacer is high in protein and calories. This is true even for adult animals. Sometimes getting a few calories in and reducing the edema so that your sheep doesn’t feel like its drowning is enough to increase appetite and feed intake.

It can also be helpful to dose them with something like Nutridrench which contains propylene glycol for energy. However, don’t overdo propylene glycol, and discontinue its use as soon as possible. It can cause the rumen to shut down which is definitely not something you want. Syringe feeding milk replacer can be discontinued when their appetite has returned and the symptoms have receded. Usually in a week or two. Reduce the amount fed gradually to make sure the symptoms do not return. Be sure to continue to feed them a high protein, nutrient dense diet.

While it will take months to completely replace all the blood the parasites consumed, your sheep should be out of the woods in a week or two, and the bottle jaw symptoms should be gone. Please keep in mind though that it will take months for them to have completely recovered, and they should be monitored closely for a while.

You should start to see a blush of pink on their mucus membranes within a couple weeks.

It is a good idea to monitor their mucus membranes to make sure they are improving. It is also a very good idea to do a fecal egg count 10ish days post deworming. This is to make sure your dewormer was effective and to determine if you should deworm them again. You don’t want them to get loaded down with parasites again before they have a chance to replace all the missing blood cells.

We sincerely hope that you never encounter parasite problems or see bottle jaw in your flock. But it is always good to be prepared for and educated about potential problems before they arrive. If you are unfamiliar with how to deworm, how to check your animals for anemia, or how to determine if a dewormer is effective, our Barber pole worm series has the basics of everything you need to know.

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The information provided is for general informational purposes only. All information on the site is provided in good faith, for general informational and educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional advice. We make no representation or warranty of any kind, express or implied, regarding the accuracy, adequacy, validity, reliability, availability, or completeness of any information on this Site. Accordingly, before taking any actions based upon such information, we encourage you to consult with the appropriate professionals. We do not provide any kind of professional advice. THE USE OR RELIANCE OF ANY INFORMATION CONTAINED ON THE SITE IS SOLELY AT YOUR OWN RISK. View full disclaimer here.

The post How To Help A Sheep With Bottle Jaw first appeared on Snowdrop Farm.

It doesn’t matter how healthy you think the new animals are or how reputable the breeder. You should always quarantine new animals up on arrival. This is particularly true if you had him shipped and he was exposed to other animals on his journey. You should also quarantine anything that has gone off farm (like to a show or fair) and returned. Yes, quarantining a new animal takes extra effort, but it can potentially save you a lot of headache and expense in the long run.

Quarantining new animals goes hand in hand with farm bio-security.

Every farm, no matter how small, should have a bio-security plan in place. If you don’t have one, we would encourage you to spend some time doing research. Think about how to best protect your animals (and subsequently your profitability).

Of course, the best way to avoid introducing a disease into your flock is to keep a closed flock. A closed flock is a flock that has no external animals coming into it. Unfortunately for most farms, keeping a closed flock is not practical. New rams will need to be brought in occasionally to introduce new genetic material. However, doing your best to minimize the number of animals you bring in can help to protect your flock. You should also keep in mind that goats share many of the same diseases with sheep, and cows and other animals can sometimes also share diseases. They should also be quarantined accordingly.

It is never a good idea to purchase animals from a flock that shows any signs of disease whatsoever

Hopefully in the process of selecting new sheep, you took our previous advice. You did your research, made time for observation, and asked a lot of questions about flock health. Most of the time you can avoid bringing home most diseases by carefully inspecting the animals and farm they come from prior to purchase. Nonetheless, a seemingly healthy animal can sometimes be harboring a disease. Thus, it is important to treat every new animal as if it is contagious.

When you bring home new sheep, they should go in a quarantine pen where they have no contact with your flock. They should be housed as far away as possible. They shouldn’t share feeders, water troughs, or fence lines. You should feed them last so as not to expose your flock via your clothing or shoes. Additionally, the quarantine area should either be able to be sterilized or left empty for an extended time after use. This is just in case a contagious disease is brought in.

Sheep should be quarantined for a minimum of 2 weeks, but ideally for 30 days or even longer if practical. You need to give time for diseases to appear, and this also gives you time to do any desired testing/treatments. There is a laundry list of contagious diseases you could potentially be introducing onto your farm with new breeding stock. Some examples of these diseases include Campylobacter (vibrio), Chlamydia (EAE), ringworm, Foot rot, Johne’s Disease, liver flukes, OPP, Pink eye, Soremouth and dewormer resistant parasites. Some of these diseases are best found with blood testing rather than observation alone.

Foot rot might be one of the most commonly introduced contagious diseases.

Foot rot is extremely contagious, can sneak onto your farm particularly on young animals in dry conditions. Foot rot is a very serious animal welfare issue which can cause the performance of your flock to suffer. Plus, once established in your flock it can be very difficult, time consuming and expensive to eradicate. It is a disease where an ounce of prevention is indeed worth more than a pound of cure.

While in quarantine all the new sheep should have their feet trimmed and inspected for any signs of foot rot or abnormalities. It is also our preference to also expose the animals to wet muddy conditions if at all possible, prior to releasing them into our flock. This is because foot rot typically appears under wet conditions. Many farms choose to make the assumption that every new animal has foot rot and treats them accordingly.

Dewormer resistance is also something you’re more likely to encounter than not.

It is a good idea to triple deworm and do fecal egg count (FEC) tests on incoming sheep in an effort to avoid introducing any more dewormer resistant worms than absolutely necessary. The goal is to get your new sheep to have a FEC of 0 or as close to it as possible prior to letting them on your pastures. It can also be beneficial to discuss deworming practices and any known resistance existing on the farm you are purchasing lambs from.

In addition, something people sometimes don’t think about is the risk humans visiting from other farms bring to the flock. It is a good idea to ‘quarantine’ people coming onto your farm. Diseases can sometimes be transmitted on clothing, shoes and even car tires. It is a good idea to ask folks coming onto your farm to wear clean clothes, booties, or to walk through a foot bath prior to coming onto your farm. You should follow the same procedure yourself any time you have been to another farm or to a facility, like fair grounds, where sheep and goats are housed.

We hope this has prompted you to think about you handle incoming animals and people on your farm before you get into trouble. If you would like to read more articles about improving your flock and keeping your animals healthy, please sign up for our newsletter!

Please remember

The information provided is for general informational purposes only. All information on the site is provided in good faith, for general informational and educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional advice. We make no representation or warranty of any kind, express or implied, regarding the accuracy, adequacy, validity, reliability, availability, or completeness of any information on this Site. Accordingly, before taking any actions based upon such information, we encourage you to consult with the appropriate professionals. We do not provide any kind of professional advice. THE USE OR RELIANCE OF ANY INFORMATION CONTAINED ON THE SITE IS SOLELY AT YOUR OWN RISK. View full disclaimer here.

The post Quarantine: An Important Protection For Your Sheep first appeared on Snowdrop Farm.

Meningeal worm is endemic in most whitetail deer populations, and they are its target host. It rarely causes any symptoms in deer. Unfortunately, many other species grazing areas where deer have been can accidentally pick up this parasite. Llamas and alpacas are particularly susceptible and many camelid owners preventatively deworm their animals regularly. However this is generally not recommended for sheep and goats due to gastrointestinal parasite dewormer resistance issues.

So what is meningeal worm?

Meningeal worm is a round worm, Parelaphostrongylus tenuis. It completes its lifecycle in deer resulting in larvae being shed in the feces of infected deer. According to Cornell University up to 80% of whitetail deer are infected in endemic areas. So there is a pretty good chance if you have a lot of deer around, you probably have meningeal worm to worry about. It can accidentally infect a broad range of hooved species including sheep, goats, moose, elk, camelids, even horses and cattle occasionally.

As with other parasites understanding its life cycle is critical to understanding how to manage it.

In its desired host, the whitetail deer, this parasite lives on the meninges (the membranes covering the brain). It doesn’t cause any symptoms or an immune response. Female worms lay their eggs on the meninges. The eggs hatch into larvae. Then the larvae migrate through the bloodstream to the lungs where they are coughed up and swallowed. After passing through the digestive tract, the larvae are excreted in the feces.

Once the larvae have been excreted, they infect a variety of species of slugs and snails. They are ingested by or burrow into the foot of the slugs and snails feeding on the feces. Once inside the snails the larvae continue to develop. The life cycle is completed when deer accidentally consume the slugs and snails as they forage. They can also become re-infected when they consume plant material covered with the slime trails of infected snails. The ingested larvae then migrate from the stomach into the abdominal cavity and up the nerve tissue to the spinal cord. They ultimately return to the meninges where they mate and start the process all over again.

As you can imagine, its very easy for your sheep or goats to accidentally ingest the same slugs/snails and slime trails as deer.

Unfortunately when this happens things go a little haywire. Symptoms usually start to appear 30-60 days post ingestion. This means symptoms are typically seen late summer and early fall though they certainly can appear at other times of the year.

When ingested by an accidental host, the larvae attempt to start the same process as in deer. They migrate out of the stomach and into the nervous tissue of the abdominal cavity. However, at this point things go wrong. Unlike deer, who mount very little immune response, your sheep have a large immune response. This causes issues for the worms who get confused about where they’re going. Instead of migrating up through the nervous system, the worms end up burrowing around in the nervous tissue causing damage. The sheep’s immune response causes inflammation resulting in more damage.

This inflammation and nervous system damage create the symptoms you see.

Depending on where the damage is occurring the symptoms can vary. When the nerve damage is happening in nerves that aren’t in the spine, you get animals that are intensely itchy. They will often itch holes in themselves where the nerve damage is occurring. If the damage is occurring in the spinal cord you will see other symptoms. You may see things like minor lameness or stumbling on a rear leg, abnormal gait, incoordination, circling, head tilt, etc. If the worms reach the brain neurological symptoms may look similar to listeria or polio. The symptoms typically get progressively worse and can result in paralysis and death if left untreated.

Usually, the infected animals are bright and have good appetites. They do not appear ill aside from the above symptoms. It can be tricky to recognize symptoms, and they may even appear to recover briefly as the worms migrate through different parts of the nervous system. However, the symptoms typically reoccur, and prompt treatment is important as the nerve damage may become permanent.

There is no test for this parasite as the worm larvae is inside the nervous tissue and there are no eggs being shed in feces.

Diagnosis is made solely based on the symptoms and response to treatment. It is very important to treat meningeal worms using the correct deworming protocol. If you are treating for meningeal worm after symptoms have occurred, they are protected within the nervous system. Not all dewormers are capable of reaching them there. A few years ago Cornell did a study on a treatment protocol, and determined that meningeal worms can be most effectively treated using fenbendazole (Safeguard®) and Dexamethazone (or Banamine for pregnant animals) and ivermectin.

The recommended treatment protocol from Cornell University is to give:

• Safeguard® (10% Fenbendazole) orally for 5 days at 25 mg per kg of live weight
• Dexamethasone injectable 2 mg/mL IM at 0.2 mg/kg live weight for first 3 days and 0.1 mg/kg next 2 days. Ewes and does in last month of pregnancy are not to receive Dexamethasone. Instead, they will receive flunixin meglumine (Banamine® ) 50 mg/mL at the rate of 1 cc/100 lb live weight (1.1 mg/kg) orally for 5 days.
• Ivermectin 1% injectable administered SQ for 5 days at 0.5 mg/kg live wt. *It is thought that ivermectin can be a beneficial treatment, but significantly increases withdrawal times.

Keep in mind that this deworming protocol comes with a very long drug withdrawal period (90 days or more). The withdrawal times can change and vary from species to species. It is extremely important to verify and follow withdrawal times for any treatment that you use. If you are raising animals for meat, you must weigh the pros and cons of deworming vs. not. Many times symptoms appear late in the season when processing dates are not very far off.

If you have mild cases where there is just some itchiness in low value animals you may be able to manage the symptoms without deworming treatment. Sheep do mount an immune response to the worm and may be able to clear the parasite from their body themselves. However, treatment should be started promptly in severe cases or in valuable animals where you are not ok with the possibility of a wait and see approach resulting in euthanasia being necessary.

So is there anything I can do to prevent meningeal worm problems?

As you might expect, the answer is yes and no. The obvious answer is of course preventing deer and or snails from accessing the pastures where your sheep graze. Both are required to cause disease in your sheep. Unfortunately, that can be extremely difficult to execute. It takes months for the larvae to mature in the snails. This means that deer need to be excluded at all times, not just when your sheep are grazing. Plus, snails and slugs do not respect fence and can move into your pastures under fences.

However, there are things you can do to help prevent exposure. You can try to minimize deer on your grazing land through utilizing things like livestock guard dogs or fencing to repel deer. You can improve drainage and also avoid grazing wet areas that are heavily infested with snails. Though the infected snail and slug species are land snails, they do still require moisture, so if you can put snail repelling things like gravel roads devoid of vegetation between where deer graze and your pastures that can help too. Free ranging poultry may also help reduce your slug and snail populations.

Unfortunately, if you live in an endemic area and graze pasture, it is likely to be an occasional problem for you.

Therefore, it is wise to get good at recognizing symptoms. Then be sure to take some time to observe your flock daily. That way you can catch and treat infected animals early resulting in the best possible outcomes. And while you will likely always see a few cases in endemic areas, your sheep are capable of developing an immunity to the parasite meaning you will likely see fewer cases over time, particularly in your adult animals.

So as fall approaches this season, take some time to learn to recognize symptoms and observe your flock so that you can catch this parasite before it harms or kills any of your sheep.

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Please remember

The information provided is for general informational purposes only. All information on the site is provided in good faith, for general informational and educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional advice. We make no representation or warranty of any kind, express or implied, regarding the accuracy, adequacy, validity, reliability, availability, or completeness of any information on this Site. Accordingly, before taking any actions based upon such information, we encourage you to consult with the appropriate professionals. We do not provide any kind of professional advice. THE USE OR RELIANCE OF ANY INFORMATION CONTAINED ON THE SITE IS SOLELY AT YOUR OWN RISK. View full disclaimer here.

The post Meningeal Worm: How Deer Can Impact Your Flock first appeared on Snowdrop Farm.

As you probably know, mastitis is an infection of the mammary gland. The inside of the udder is supposed to be sterile. Mastitis occurs when bacteria has made its way up the teat canal into the udder. Milk, being full of nutrients, is the perfect place for bacteria to thrive. Mastitis is painful for your ewe and can cause loss of production and even death.

Most commonly, mastitis will cause damage and scar tissue to the udder resulting in permanent loss of milk production. The lack of milk production often causes the ewe to need to be culled (or her lambs bottle fed) because she will be unable to produce enough milk to feed her lambs. Thus, it is important to treat mastitis as quickly as possible to minimize the damage occurring. Mastitis is one of the primary reasons animals of prime reproductive age get culled.

How do I know if my ewe has mastitis?

There are two types of mastitis. Clinical and sub-clinical. Common symptoms of clinical mastitis include a swollen, hot, painful to touch udder. Ewes often have a fever, may be off food/ inactive/ acting sick. Clinical mastitis is usually pretty obvious, and it’s also obvious that it needs immediate attention.

Sub-clinical mastitis can be much more difficult to detect. In this case your ewes are not showing outward symptoms of being sick. However, if you did a mastitis test like they do on dairy cows you’d see a high somatic cell count (white blood cells fighting an infection). You might also be able to see flakes or chunks in the milk. There might be able to feel heat in the udder. The milk might look watery and, in some cases, might contain blood. Lambs from these ewes will not be growing as fast as they should be. They are often seen milk stealing from other ewes. Undetected sub-clinical mastitis is where most economic mastitis related losses come from.

Many times in sheep and goats, sub-clinical mastitis goes undetected until the next lambing. By then the damage is done and treatment is too late. These ewes present with only half an udder and are unable to feed both of their lambs. The side of the udder that was infected with mastitis is now hard and filled with scar tissue and produces little to no milk.

Treatment for mastitis

Mastitis treatment is typically with intramammary infusions and or systemic antibiotics. This should be done under the guidance of a veterinarian as there are no mastitis treatments labeled for use in sheep or goats. Mastitis will not cure itself, so don’t take a “wait and see” approach to this painful condition.

How do we prevent mastitis in our sheep?

First and foremost, sanitation. You need to keep everything clean. Your bedding should be clean and dry. If you’re milking your sheep, your hands, and their udders should be cleaned and disinfected before and after milking. Encourage them to stay standing after milking rather than going back to lay down.

Don’t overcrowd your sheep. Closely confined flocks have higher rates of mastitis. Additionally, the bacteria responsible for lamb pneumonia and sore mouth can also cause mastitis. So, keeping your animals outdoors on clean pasture in the fresh air can help reduce mastitis rates.

When you do find an ewe that has developed mastitis, it is important to separate them and their lambs from the rest of the flock. You do not want their lambs spreading mastitis by stealing milk from other ewes. For this reason, milk stealing should be discouraged in your flock, and the dams of lambs set on stealing milk should be checked for mastitis.

You should also go through your flock after weaning and pre-breeding and check udders

Ewes with hard masses in their udders should be culled. These ewes will have poor milk production and may be unable to feed their lambs. Additionally, it is thought that there is a genetic component to mastitis susceptibility, so these ewes that have proven themselves susceptible aren’t something you want in your flock.

It is also important to select for ewes with good udders. Compact, well suspended udders with small teats angled diagonally off the sides are ideal for minimizing mastitis in meat sheep. Unfortunately, these traits are in opposition to what we consider ideal for milking, so it’s a balancing act. If you’d like to read more in depth on udder shape and mastitis, this is an excellent article with diagrams.

Lastly, your ewes should be dried off carefully. Most mastitis cases are seen either in the first few days of lactation or post weaning. Earlier weaning can make ewes more susceptible to mastitis at time of weaning. Ewes that are dried off while producing very little milk are less prone to mastitis. Thus, late weaning and or restricting feed and water intake at time of weaning can help to reduce post weaning mastitis cases.

Unfortunately, this isn’t always enough

As we have learned from extensive research in dairy cows, many of your subclinical ewes and your treated and seemingly ‘cured’ ewes actually have chronic, incurable mastitis caused by Staph aureus. They don’t have symptoms, but even with antibiotic treatment this mastitis cannot be cured. These animals are latent carriers capable of infecting your other ewes either via the bedding or milk stealing.

The unfortunate reality, is that if you have high rates of mastitis in your flock (or have had milk cultures come back with Staph aureus), ewes that have had mastitis should be culled even if they seem ‘cured’. In dairy cows they even recommend culling daughters of infected cows. The heifer calves can become infected from drinking infected milk and or colostrum, and often have Staph aureus infections prior to their first lactation. Consider culling mastitis cases and their daughters, because as we mentioned before there is a genetic component to mastitis susceptibility.

Lastly, if you have a high incidence of mastitis, and you cannot seem to get it under control, you may wish to consider a recently released mastitis vaccine.

The VIMCO vaccine is only registered for use in goats in this country, so should only be used under a veterinarian’s supervision. However, it is licensed for use in sheep in other countries and has been shown to significantly reduce the incidence of mastitis.

Of course, some case of mastitis are inevitable in a breeding flock. However, through good management, careful culling and genetic selection it is possible to maintain mastitis cases at less than 1% in your flock. And if you do have a mastitis problem in your flock, we hope this inspires you to make some management changes to improve animal welfare and to reduce your economic losses.

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Please remember

The information provided is for general informational purposes only. All information on the site is provided in good faith, for general informational and educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional advice. We make no representation or warranty of any kind, express or implied, regarding the accuracy, adequacy, validity, reliability, availability, or completeness of any information on this Site. Accordingly, before taking any actions based upon such information, we encourage you to consult with the appropriate professionals. We do not provide any kind of professional advice. THE USE OR RELIANCE OF ANY INFORMATION CONTAINED ON THE SITE IS SOLELY AT YOUR OWN RISK. View full disclaimer here.

The post Keeping Mastitis Out Of Your Flock Of Sheep first appeared on Snowdrop Farm.

Let’s start by stepping back to the beginning. As you likely already know, gestation length for a sheep is about 5 months. If you saw your ewes get bred, you can mark 147 days on the calendar and can loosely predict their lambing date. This takes all the guess work out of it. Unfortunately, sheep are pretty discreet about getting bred, and many times you don’t see the actual event. Nonetheless, there will be signs that your ewe is bred.

The first thing you will notice is that she develops a distinct pregnant shape when you are looking at her from behind.

You can usually start to see this distinct look 2-3 months after they get bred. Keep in mind that ewe lambs typically only have a single lamb and are less likely to look pregnant early on. An adult ewe carrying a single might not look pregnant at all, but those carrying twins or triplets start to look pregnant quickly.

The shape we are describing can be seen in the picture below. She will of course look much rounder than a non-bred ewe, but she also develops a distinct shape due to her anatomy. If we look at the internal anatomy of a sheep from standing behind them we know that their rumen is high on the left side, and the lambs are carried low on the right. In the picture, on our pregnant ewes right side you can see a low lamb belly. Above the lambs is often a sort of straight flat ‘shelf’. The lamb bulge also often protrudes out further from their side than the rumen bulge does.

The next sign you are going to see is udder development

Now, udder development tells us that our ewe is for sure bred, but in our experience it is a terrible predictor of imminent lambing. Some ewes start developing an udder 2 months in advance. Other ewes seemingly fill their udder as the lambs are arriving. We have some of both in our flock though the majority of our ewes are somewhere in between. Most ewes probably make their udder within a couple weeks of lambing.

That being said, we find that our ewes tend to be fairly consistent about when they develop their udder. The ewes that do so 2 months in advance consistently produce an udder early. If you really get to know your ewes you may be able to approximate when they might lamb from their udder. However, we think there are better ways to estimate, and only use udder development as an indication that lambing is getting close so that we should start watching for other signs.

A more reliable predictor in our experience is watching for the ligaments around their tail to loosen

Prior to lambing the ligaments holding the sheep’s hips will loosen in preparation for lambing. This is easy to see. You will notice that she gets sunken spots on either side of her tail head. When this happens, you know that lambing is getting close. We find that in many cases our ewes will lamb within 24 hours of developing deep sunken spots by their tails, but it may be a few days, particularly for some of the older ewes. In some of the younger ewes/ewe lambs, this will be harder to see, and in the case of ewe lambs you might not notice it at all before they lamb.

Again, just like with udder development, the better you know your ewes the more predictable they become. We have an ewe that *seems* ready to drop lambs any minute for about a week prior to lambing. She does this every single year. Other ewes we have sneak out lambs every year.

After her ligaments have loosened, you might also be able to see that the lambs have ‘dropped’

In preparation for birth, the lambs have to line themselves up appropriately. As they do this and prepare to enter the birth canal, your ewes will often develop large sunken spots on their sides right in front of their hips, and a big bulging belly. They might look thinner than they have in a while. If you notice this then you can be sure that your ewe is preparing to lamb.

We don’t personally find that this is always as easy to see as the ligaments loosening. This is probably because the lambs move about during gestation, and your ewes abdomen changes shape depending on the position of the lambs. We also find that some ewes develop much more distinct sunken spots than others do.

If you see an ewe with loose ligaments or sunken areas in front of her hips, start watching her closely for behavioral changes that indicate she is in early labor

Usually when we go out to feed in the morning we can pick out ewes that are likely to lamb that day based on their behavior. Ewes in early labor might not come to breakfast, or they may be slow to come. You might see them standing/laying off by themselves looking uncomfortable. You also might see her pawing the ground frequently or baaing like she is talking to lambs. She will likely also stand up and lay down a lot and shift her weight around on her back feet. Ewes in early labor typically pick a location they plan to lamb in and they keep returning to that spot.

If you see an ewe displaying these behaviors, watch her closely, but do not disturb her. Though it is tempting to get involved, let her be. The majority of ewes can lamb unassisted. If you interfere when its not needed, you can cause more harm than good. Most ewes will progress from early labor to active labor within a few hours, but some will take up to 12 hours. So be patient and give your ewes time and space as long as they are showing no signs of distress.

Usually within 2-6 hours an ewe will progress to active labor

You will know that your ewe has reached active labor when you see the amniotic sac protruding from her vulva. At this point the ewe is close to ready to expel her first lamb. Shortly after the amniotic sac presents you will see your ewe pushing. She will likely lay down on her side, get up, lay down again etc. Leave her be, this is normal. It usually takes about 20-30 minutes for the first lamb to be born. Then your ewe will clean off the first lamb and rest before birthing the second one. Both lambs are typically born within 45-60 minutes.

As your ewe starts to push, the amniotic sac will likely burst. You should see two hooves and then a nose coming out first. This means the lamb is presented properly and the delivery should go smoothly. The only time you should assist your ewes is if the lambs are not presented properly, or the ewe has been straining for more than 30-45 minutes without making any progress. If she is straining and not making any progress, the ewe should be examined and assisted as her lambs might be tangled or presented incorrectly preventing her from expelling them.

Your ewe will clean off the lambs and get them up and nursing. Lambs are usually up within a few minutes of being born looking for their ewe’s udder. She should stand there and allow the lambs to nurse. Once you see the lambs have successfully had their first good feeding you can count your lambing a success!

Once all the lambs are on the ground, you will see material hanging from your ewe’s vulva.

Do not try to remove this material. If you try to pull this material out, you can tear the uterus or the placenta causing her to hemorrhage and bleed to death or retain portions of it inside her uterus. Within the next couple hours, the placentas will be expelled. Though sometimes it can take 24 hours or longer. There will be a placenta expelled for each lamb.

You should examine them and make sure that they are complete and that nothing was retained inside your ewe. Do not be alarmed if she continues to expel some blood for the next several days. This is part of the process of her uterus cleaning itself.

We hope that this helps you to see what a normal lambing process looks like. We didn’t discuss all the problems and complications that could happen. Those will be topics for future articles. Nonetheless, the best way to know when something is going wrong is to understand what normal looks like.

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Please remember

The information provided is for general informational purposes only. All information on the site is provided in good faith, for general informational and educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional advice. We make no representation or warranty of any kind, express or implied, regarding the accuracy, adequacy, validity, reliability, availability, or completeness of any information on this Site. Accordingly, before taking any actions based upon such information, we encourage you to consult with the appropriate professionals. We do not provide any kind of professional advice. THE USE OR RELIANCE OF ANY INFORMATION CONTAINED ON THE SITE IS SOLELY AT YOUR OWN RISK. View full disclaimer here.

The post Lambing: What To Expect When Your Ewes Start Expecting first appeared on Snowdrop Farm.

Pregnancy toxemia and milk fever are two completely different conditions. However, they are both the result of insufficient nutrition in the weeks surrounding lambing. Both disorders are life threatening, and seeing a frequent occurrence of either is a clear indication that your flock’s nutrition management needs an immediate reevaluation. Preventing these conditions through appropriate nutrition is much preferable to trying to treat them after symptoms have started.

Let’s start by taking a look at pregnancy toxemia

Pregnancy toxemia (also known as twin lamb disease or ketosis) typically occurs in the last 6-8 weeks of pregnancy. It is essentially that your ewe has extremely low blood sugar similar to what might happen to a diabetic person. Symptoms you might see include a sheep that isn’t staying with the flock, or that seems dull and listless. They likely aren’t eating and won’t move away if you approach them. Left untreated they will eventually be unable to stand and will die. If you see one of your late gestation ewes behaving oddly, don’t ignore it. Left untreated, the sheep with pregnancy toxemia will die within the next few days.

Treatment is simple, administration of glucose injections, propylene glycol drenches, and trying to increase the quality of their feed. Unfortunately, while in principle treatment is simple, in practice it isn’t straight forward. It can be very difficult to bring back an ewe that has succumbed to pregnancy toxemia. Not all ewes will survive despite your best treatment efforts. This is why it is ALWAYS better to do everything you can to prevent it.

Pregnancy toxemia disease is caused by the ewe being in a negative energy balance.

The calories your ewe is consuming are below her energy requirements. The reason pregnancy toxemia is often called twin lamb disease is that the risk of pregnancy toxemia goes up as the number of fetuses increases. More fetuses mean decreased rumen space. The majority of lamb growth occurs in the last 6-8 weeks of pregnancy. Your ewe’s nutrition requirements increase while the space inside her body for her rumen simultaneously decreases. The more fetuses your ewe has, the greater her energy requirements and the smaller her rumen.

If your ewe’s feed contains insufficient calories, the ewe starts to mobilize body fat to compensate. Blood glucose levels drop, and the liver gets overwhelmed as it is breaking down fat for energy. If excessive amounts of fat are mobilized in response to the low glucose levels in the blood, the liver may struggle to keep up resulting in incomplete fat break down and increased ketones in the blood. This is all bad news for both the ewe and the lambs.

Fortunately, pregnancy toxemia is easy to prevent if you ensure your feed has sufficient energy levels. It is also worth noting that ewes that are either over or under conditioned (too fat or too thin) are more prone to developing pregnancy toxemia. Thus it is also important to know how to body condition score your ewes. Aim for ideal body condition, and watch ewes that fall outside of that range more closely in late gestation. If you aren’t sure what the body condition score of your ewes please we posted an article about how to body condition score your sheep a couple months ago.

How do I know if my ewes diet contains sufficient calories?

Since you can’t determine the energy level of your feed just by looking at it, this is where your forage analysis comes in. You also need to know what the ewe’s estimated requirements are. If we look back to the NRC requirements and our forage analysis from our discussion on understanding a forage analysis we can compare our hay to our ewes requirements. Remember the NRC requirements are MINIMUM requirements.

Higher TDN = higher quality feed.

There are a variety of different measurements of the quality of our forage present on the analysis. Today we are mainly going to concern ourselves with TDN, DE, and ME. Total digestible nutrients (TDN), is a measurement of the quality of the feed. The TDN of low quality hay is typically 45-52%. Good quality hay is 58% or greater. DE is the digestible energy, and ME is the metabolizable energy. All 3 are measurements of the energy level in your feed. Not all forage analysis reports will show all 3 measurements, however, as you can see in the red circles above, the NRC provides a column for each.

Looking at our forage analysis where it is underlined in blue, you can see that our grass hay comes up short for meeting the energy requirements of our late gestation ewes. For example, TDN is only 52% whereas the NRC says our ewes need a minimum of 65%. If we don’t change our feed or supplement more nutrient dense feeds, we would likely see pregnancy toxemia in our flock.

This is a very common scenario, and also one very easy to remedy if you are aware that it’s likely to be a problem. Many forages do not contain sufficient energy to meet the needs of a late gestation ewe carrying multiple fetuses. If you look at your forage analysis and it comes up short on energy levels as compared to what your ewes need, you can supplement a concentrated feed for the last few weeks of pregnancy. It’s much better to know this ahead of time so that you can compensate before your ewes start going down.

Another very common condition seen in sheep is milk fever.

Milk fever is a calcium deficiency in the blood. As your ewes are growing their fetuses and starting to make milk to feed their lambs they need a lot of calcium. If their diet is insufficient in calcium, then you run the risk of them developing milk fever. Milk fever can occur in roughly the same time frame as pregnancy toxemia—the last 6-8 weeks of pregnancy—and also during early lactation.

Symptoms present similar to those described above. Progression is much more rapid though. Ewes might experience muscle tremors, be lethargic, and will eventually be unable to stand. Left untreated ewes can die in just a few hours. Fortunately, if caught in time, milk fever is easy to treat with a calcium injection. However, given how rapidly ewes can deteriorate and die from milk fever, this is far from an ideal scenario.

Just like pregnancy toxemia, milk fever is a result of poor nutrition.

And once again, just like you cannot know the energy level of your forage by looking at it, you cannot determine the calcium level either. Mineral status is even less predictable than energy from a visual inspection of a forage. It is not at all uncommon for forages to be calcium deficient. A basic forage test can save you a lot of headache.

Looking back at our example forage test above, we can compare calcium levels to requirements (underlined in red on our analysis). Once again you can see that our grass hay comes up short. It is only 0.34% calcium, and our ewes need a minimum of 0.4%. Based on this information, we now know that feeding this hay without feeding alfalfa or a mineral mix with added calcium, would be setting our sheep up for trouble.

If your feed tests low in calcium you have a couple options. You can provide extra calcium in your mineral mix and/or feed a high calcium forage. Feeds vary widely in their calcium levels. Legumes like clover and alfalfa are usually high in calcium. Grasses are typically lower in calcium. High energy feeds like corn are high in phosphorus and low in calcium.

This is important to keep in mind. Are you adding grain to your ewes’ diets during the last few weeks of gestation to meet their energy requirements? If so, you need to make sure you are compensating with sufficient calcium. You not only need to compensate for them eating less hay and more grain, but also for the high phosphorus levels in the grain.

Based on our typical forage conditions, our preference is to feed high calcium alfalfa and offer calcium in our mineral mix.

The grass hay here is often sufficient or borderline sufficient in both energy and calcium for the majority of gestation. Thus, we feed a mineral mix containing some calcium throughout gestation. Then during the last couple months of gestation, we switch from grass hay to a high quality, leafy, 2^nd or 3^rd cut alfalfa. Feeding alfalfa ensures that our ewes start to consume extra calcium as their requirements increase. This is something that a free choice mineral supplement cannot guarantee. For our flock switching to alfalfa also usually meets their increased energy needs in late gestation creating a win- win situation for our ewes.

Pregnancy toxemia and milk fever are just a couple examples of how the nutrition status of your flock and the quality of your forages can cause or save you a lot of headache and potential heartache. Knowing as much as you can about the nutrition of your flock can help you to make informed decisions. This will allow your sheep to be as productive and profitable as possible. Remember, nutrition is one of the foundational blocks upon which every shepherd’s success is built.

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Please remember

The information provided is for general informational purposes only. All information on the site is provided in good faith, for general informational and educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional advice. We make no representation or warranty of any kind, express or implied, regarding the accuracy, adequacy, validity, reliability, availability, or completeness of any information on this Site. Accordingly, before taking any actions based upon such information, we encourage you to consult with the appropriate professionals. We do not provide any kind of professional advice. THE USE OR RELIANCE OF ANY INFORMATION CONTAINED ON THE SITE IS SOLELY AT YOUR OWN RISK. View full disclaimer here.

The post How To Prevent Pregnancy Toxemia and Milk Fever first appeared on Snowdrop Farm.

Firstly, it is important to understand that mineral supplements are important, and in many cases vital to your success. A diet deficient in important nutrients can cause reduced productivity or much worse. Rarely does the limited diet we offer our animals come complete with exactly what they need. How far off their diet is from ideal depends on a lot of variables. This can include things like what types of feeds you’re feeding, the quality of those feeds, and where you live.

Where you live is important, but often overlooked. Different areas of the country produce forages deficient in different minerals. So beware, that fantastic mineral supplement your friend in Ohio swears by might completely fail you 500 miles away.

It is better to ask local producers, veterinarians, or extension agents what to use. Find out what mineral supplements they use and recommend and why. Also take the time to learn what the common deficiencies in your area are. Again local producers should know this. Then learn to recognize the symptoms of those deficiencies.

In addition, it is an excellent idea to get forage analysis done periodically.

While this doesn’t tell you exactly what your animal is eating in any given day, it does provide a snapshot. Plus, if you do periodic tests for several years, you will likely see trends. Forage analysis is inexpensive to do and gives you the best information you can get about which of your animals nutrient needs are or aren’t being met.

There are a variety of different labs that will do forage analysis for you. Which one is best depends on what part of the country you live in. However, an extension agent should be able to point you in the right direction.

Once you have your forage analysis back from the lab, you might not be sure what to do with it.

It has all these numbers on it associated with various minerals/nutrients. For example, my forage has has 0.37% calcium. But what does that mean? Is that good or bad?”

Fortunately, the National Research Council (NRC) periodically publishes what is currently known to be the nutrient requirements for various different animal species. Through research over the past decades we have developed a pretty good idea of the requirements for our animals. However, nutrition is extremely complex, and it’s not an exact science. Sometimes these requirements are changed based on new information, so it’s always a good idea to periodically check if there is an updated edition.

Additionally, it would be good to note here that outside of a lab setting there are a lot of variables and nutrient interactions that can affect the actual needs of the animal. So while the NRC guidelines are a good starting point, they are just guidelines, and the mineral requirements listed are the bare minimums.

Your animals may require significantly more of a particular nutrient if there is an excess of something else interfering with it.

A good example of this is iron. Most ruminant diets are filled with excess iron. Soil is typically rich in iron and your sheep unintentionally consume a lot of soil while eating. All that iron they are eating can prevent them from utilizing other nutrients in their diet. As a result, sometimes it is not the amount of a mineral in the diet but rather its ratio to a different mineral that is most important.

Keep this in mind as you work through analyzing your sheep’s diet, particularly if you are struggling with a deficiency of some sort. Because of nutrient interactions, it’s not always blatantly obvious what is going on, and you might need to dig a little deeper into nutrient interactions to remedy the situation.

How do I read a forage analysis?

To begin with you will need to look up the NRC nutrient requirements for sheep. An example can be viewed above. They can be found in various places on the internet. Then you will need to determine which category your animals fall into. Adult ewes at maintenance have different requirements than ewes during gestation, or lactation. They also have different requirements than growing lambs. Mineral requirements however do not vary as much during the animal’s various seasons of life as energy and protein requirements.

Today we are focusing on mineral requirements for selecting the correct mineral supplement for your sheep. However, you would look at energy or protein in the same way.

Once you have the NRC information and your forage analysis in front of you, you can start to compare the requirements to what the forage test shows.

So for example, on the analysis below, you can see that the hay we fed last winter had 0.34% calcium in it, and 0.26% Phosphorus.

I know from the NRC that an ewe at maintenance needs 0.25% calcium, but during late gestation she requires 0.4% calcium. This means that while my hay is fine to feed her without a calcium supplement early on, it is not ok on its own the last 4 weeks of gestation. So I need to provide her extra calcium at that time to prevent her from being at high risk of getting milk fever.

Additionally, calcium and phosphorus happen to be minerals where their ratio is important. You should strive to have a 2:1 up to a 7:1 Calcium:Phosphorus (Ca:P) ratio. If we divide the 0.34% calcium by the 0.26% phosphorus, you will see that we come out to a ratio of 1.3:1 so we should be striving to increase the calcium level in our overall diet even though technically the hay has enough calcium for our ewes.

You can continue down the list of minerals comparing each one in turn.

Note any that are deficient, or that are borderline sufficient. These are the ones you need to focus on finding in a mineral supplement. Ideally you find or blend a mineral supplement that gets your minerals as close to the ideal quantities and ratios as possible. It is typically a good idea to try to avoid minerals that contain a lot of iron as your sheep’s diet is likely to already contain an excess of iron and many times adding more iron can cause problems. It is also recommended to avoid ones formulated for other species that contain high levels of copper unless you know you have a copper deficiency problem.

As you are working your way through, some ratios that are good to keep in mind are the Ca:P ratio mentioned above, the phosphorus: magnesium (P:Mg) ratio which is ideally 4:1, and also both the iron:copper (Fe:Cu) and copper molybdenum (Cu:Mo) ratios.

A Fe:Cu ratio of more than 100:1, or an iron level of more than 150 ppm reduces copper availability. Your Cu:Mo ratio is ideally 5:1. Molybdenum also directly affects copper availability because it forms insoluble complexes with copper. So excess Molybdenum can cause a secondary copper deficiency. Unfortunately, sulfur plays a role also because it will bind up molybdenum, thus freeing up more copper despite a high level of dietary molybdenum.

As you can tell this all gets extremely complex very quickly.

If you are interested in learning more, I’d encourage you to delve into the research that has been done on the topic of nutrition. It’s fascinating. If not, don’t get overwhelmed. You don’t have to understand all the details to feed your animals right. Just focus on trying to get close to the NRC nutrient requirements, and make sure their diet is not deficient in anything.

Now, a lot of times your forage analysis will not include every single mineral your sheep require. Sometimes you can get them as an add on test if you are suspicious of a deficiency. Sometimes, it is just a good idea to offer that mineral just in case because the toxicity threshold is high. Iodine and cobalt are good examples of this. Most of the country isn’t cobalt deficient. However, the toxicity level is high and having some in your mineral supplement is good insurance.

Before we end this article, there are two minerals we would like to mention specifically.

The first one is selenium. Selenium is not typically tested for, but it is absolutely critical to animal health. Don’t neglect it. Be sure to check with your vet or extension agent to determine if you need to supplement it or not. The requirements vs. toxicity levels are relatively close to each other. Too little and too much can both cause serious problems.

The second mineral we want to mention is copper. There is a ton of confusion about copper and sheep. In fact, there is not a more misunderstood or maligned mineral. Contrary to popular belief, sheep DO need copper in their diet. They just have a much lower requirement than other ruminants. They are also very good at storing it in their liver. The combination of which can cause toxicity if you are careless. So yes, sheep can die from copper toxicity, but without it your sheep will also die. Your lambs will be born dead or with nerve damage that can’t be repaired.

As a general rule, its not a good idea to supplement copper to your sheep unless you and your vet have determined that you have a deficiency.

However, you should also understand that sheep need and can tolerate some copper in their diet. Copper is a very important required nutrient for your sheep, so if its been determined that your sheep need some copper go ahead and carefully supplement them. Many producers have lost a lot more animals to copper deficiency than they have to toxicity.

We hope this helps you with feeding your sheep, and that it has inspired you to read more about the fascinating intricacies of animal nutrition.

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Please remember

The information provided is for general informational purposes only. All information on the site is provided in good faith, for general informational and educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional advice. We make no representation or warranty of any kind, express or implied, regarding the accuracy, adequacy, validity, reliability, availability, or completeness of any information on this Site. Accordingly, before taking any actions based upon such information, we encourage you to consult with the appropriate professionals. We do not provide any kind of professional advice. THE USE OR RELIANCE OF ANY INFORMATION CONTAINED ON THE SITE IS SOLELY AT YOUR OWN RISK. View full disclaimer here.

The post Choosing The Right Mineral Mix For Your Sheep first appeared on Snowdrop Farm.

For someone new to sheep, understanding what the different condition scores written in guides translate to in the field can sometimes be tricky. Most guides have a written description and drawings, but not images of actual sheep at various conditions. To complicate matters more, for wool sheep that aren’t freshly sheared, you have to body condition by feel rather than visually.

Luckily, with Katahdins, particularly in their summer coats, you can easily see their body condition. Being able to see what the different condition scores look like should help you to be able to imagine what you are feeling under thick wool. So today we are going to discuss how to body condition score and what you are feeling for. Then we are going to look at pictures of some of our ewes at various different condition scores.

Keep in mind while body condition scoring that it is not so much the exact number that you assign each animal, but the relative scores that matter.

Try to be consistent, but don’t stress about whether an animal is a 3.5 or a 4. The important information is whether your animals are too fat or too thin. At any given time, the majority of your sheep should score between a 2 and a 4. If your flock skews differently than that it would be a good idea to reevaluate your feeding program.

If you aren’t sure what scores your sheep should be at various cycle times, that’s ok. There are plenty of resources on the internet that will enlighten you. However, in a nutshell, they should be a 3 or 4 when you enter breeding season. They should remain this way throughout gestation and lambing. By the end of lactation they should not be any lower than a 2, and then should return to a 3 or 4 by the following breeding season.

If the majority of your ewes are more like a 2.5 instead of a 3 or 4 entering breeding season, they will likely benefit from being provided extra nutrition (called flushing) for about a month prior to putting the ram in through the first month or so of gestation.

Now, let’s get started!

To body condition score a sheep you are going to focus on determining the level of muscle and fat over/around the vertebrae in the loin area. The vertebrae in this area of the sheep’s body have a bony protrusion that sticks up (called spinal process). They also have short ribs attached to them (called transverse processes). The below picture shows where you are going to focus your efforts. In this picture, you can see where my fingers are under the edges of the transverse processes. This area right behind the rib cage and up to the spine is where you are mainly looking/feeling.

We are also including pictures of each body condition scores from behind as well as above. While technically their rump has nothing to do with body condition scoring, pictures are 2-dimensional, and from above it can be hard to see what we are looking at in the pictures. Looking at the ewes from behind will hopefully help you to visualize how the top of their back changes as their condition scores change. We are also including some side by side comparison pictures to help you see the differences you are looking for.

Body Condition Score 1—Emaciated

BCS 1 is a score that you never want your animals to be. Animals who are this score are too thin. At this score, you can easily feel each vertebrae and between them. There is no fat cover at all. The same goes for the transverse processes. The edges of the bones are all sharp and hard. You can easily feel each individual process, and can hook your fingers under them. With a recently sheared sheep or a shed Katahdin, you can see their spine. From behind can see how bony and angular this ewe’s butt is. In a freshly sheared or shed animal, you might even be able to see their ribs through their coat.

Now, you don’t want your animals to come out of lactation this thin, but sometimes it happens. If it does happen, then you need to make extra effort to put weight back on them before breeding season. You should also try to determine why they are this thin (parasites, bad teeth, age etc.). Can it be resolved or should be culled? You ideally want to improve their condition score to a 3 before you breed them again.

Body Condition Score 2—Thin

BCS 2 is an acceptable score for your sheep to be at certain points in the production cycle. A lot of ewes will come out of lactation as BCS 2. They are thin, but ok. Often, they put weight back on quickly once they stop making milk.

At this condition score, there isn’t really any fat cover, and the spine is still prominent. You can still feel the individual processes and put your fingers under the ends of the transverse processes if you push a little bit, but the bones are smooth. From the rear of the Katahdins, you can see that their spine is still prominent, but less so. Their rump is still angular, but smooth because there is a little bit of flesh covering the bones.

Body Condition Score 3—Just Right!

This score is considered ‘average’. Ewes of BCS 3 are the perfect weight for breeding. They are at the ideal weight for them to be throughout gestation. This is the target weight you want to have your ewes back to before putting the rams in.

At BCS 3, the spinal processes are smooth and rounded. They are no longer sharply poking out of your sheep’s back. You can’t feel individual processes unless you use pressure. The same goes for the transverse processes. They are smooth and have a layer of flesh over them, and you can no longer easily stick your fingers under them. You should just be able to feel the ends of the processes with light pressure. From behind, you can see that while their hip bones are still visible, they are smooth and obviously covered with some flesh. Their rump muscles appear full, and the top of their back is a smooth arc.

Body Condition Score 4–Fat

Once you get to a BCS of 4 your sheep are starting to surpass their ideal weight. If your ewes are a score of 4 or above and are not bred, lactating, or in with the ram to get bred, you can probably cut back their feed intake a bit. You really do not want them to be fatter than this, however this is a perfectly acceptable weight to be going in to breeding season at.

At BCS 4, you can only feel the sheep’s spine as a hard line if you push on their back. You can no longer feel the transverse processes at all. These sheep have full loin muscles, and a thick fat cover. From behind on our Katahdins, you can see how the bones are no longer visible, and their but is full and round.

Body Condition Score 5—Obese

Sheep at BCS 5 who are at a production stage where it is safe to do so should probably be put on a diet. Ewes that are obese can start to have production issues. Ewe lambs who are too fat can deposit excess fat in their udder resulting in poor milk production. Overweight ewes can have trouble conceiving and are also more prone to prolapse and pregnancy toxemia.

At this condition score, you can no longer feel their spine at all. Where their spine is located is only seen as an indent in the fat. The transverse processes are completely hidden. Just like the spine you cannot feel them at all. Everything is covered in a thick layer of fat. From behind you will be able to see how round and excessively fat their butt is. They will probably have large fat deposits around their tail.

Because none of my sheep are at this body condition score, I do not have any pictures to share with you. This level of obesity is most likely to be seen in wethers, ewes that didn’t get bred, or rams on small farms. Based on what you now know, you probably can imagine what a sheep of this BCS might look like.

We hope this helps you to objectively evaluate the condition of your flock so that you can make informed decisions about your feeding program, flushing, and breeding your ewes. If you would like to read more about this topic, or see drawings of the internal anatomy of the spine where you are body condition scoring, there are a variety of excellent university publications such as this one.

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Please remember

The information provided is for general informational purposes only. All information on the site is provided in good faith, for general informational and educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional advice. We make no representation or warranty of any kind, express or implied, regarding the accuracy, adequacy, validity, reliability, availability, or completeness of any information on this Site. Accordingly, before taking any actions based upon such information, we encourage you to consult with the appropriate professionals. We do not provide any kind of professional advice. THE USE OR RELIANCE OF ANY INFORMATION CONTAINED ON THE SITE IS SOLELY AT YOUR OWN RISK. View full disclaimer here.

The post How To Body Condition Score Your Sheep first appeared on Snowdrop Farm.

During grazing season sheep absolutely need to have access to shade at all times. This is the only shelter they truly require in the summer months. Sheep can withstand a lot of cold, wind and even rain, however, they are extremely sensitive to overheating. They can become heat stressed at relatively low temperatures without access to shade.

This means that every pasture you rotate your flock to requires ample shade. Trees make the ideal summer shade, but if you have open, treeless fields like our farm, some form of alternative shade is required. However, if you are trying to rotate your animals to a new section of pasture every few days and not return there for 60+ days, building a shelter for each pasture is obviously very impractical (not to mention prohibitively expensive).

So what is a frugal farmer to do?

Create a portable shade structure, of course. We have tried various renditions of sheep shade. Some of them more successful than others. Today we are going to show you what works for us to save you some trial and error.

Now, the biggest hurdle to portable structures we face here on the coast is wind. Unfortunately, portable and wind are not particularly compatible. It is very difficult to make something easy to take down and move that withstands our day-to-day winds. However, when properly anchored, the portable shelters we will be creating today have held up well to an impressive amount of wind. They are light enough to easily drag making them easy to move from pasture to pasture. Plus, they are inexpensive and easy to make.

Let’s gather our supplies and get started!

Each structure will require the following supplies and should only take an afternoon to put together.

• 2 Cattle Panels (16’ long)
• 8 pieces of 10 foot long metal electrical conduit 1” in diameter. You will need to cut two of them into various pieces for braces
• 4 angle brackets (we used pieces of Simpson strong tie because we had it laying around) to hold the corners together
• 12 ¼” bolts long enough to go through 2 stacked pieces of conduit
• 8 metal screws that fit through the holes in the angle brackets
• Galvanized wire. We used left over fence wire we had.
• 10 x 10 (or larger) piece of 90% shade cloth or a tarp

We would like to note here that we opted to make these shade structures out of metal rather than wood because you get a lot more strength with less weight using the conduit instead of wood. You also do not have to worry about the corners pulling apart as can be a problem with using a wooden base. Dragging is very hard on your base so it must be sturdy.

In addition to your materials, you will also need a few basic tools. You will need a drill, ¼” metal drill bit, a metal drill bit slightly larger than the galvanized wire, sockets/wrenches for tightening bolts, grinder with a cut off wheel, pliers and wire cutters. Now let’s get started building!

Step 1: Cut your pieces

First, you will need to cut braces. You will need 4 pieces about 18” long, and 4 pieces about 3’ long. The short pieces will be used to brace the bottom corners. The longer pieces will be used to brace the side walls.

Once you have cut your pieces to length, take the grinder and carefully cut a slot in one end of each of the 3’ pieces large enough for the cattle panel to sit in.

Step 2: Assemble the base

Once you have pieces cut, lay out 4 of the 10’ conduit sections in a square. Place an angle bracket on each corner and secure it with the metal screws. Once your corners are secured, place the 18” pieces you cut diagonally across the corners. Drill holes through both the frame and the braces and secure with two bolts.

Step 3: Put on the cattle panels

Place an end of one of the cattle panels inside and against the end of the frame you just built. Thoroughly secure it to the frame using short pieces of galvanized wire. You could also use something like U-bolts to secure the cattle panels if you would prefer. Once one end of the cattle panel is secured, arch the panel up so that the other end fits into the frame. Repeat the process to secure the other end.

Take the second panel and repeat the same process at the other end of the base frame. At this point you will have two arched cattle panels with a gap between them. The gap has not been a problem for us, but if you do not want the gap, you can trim two of your bottom frame pieces to 8’ long before you put the base together.

Step 4: Brace the sides

Take the 3’ long brace pieces and place them at an angle to your cattle panel walls. Secure them to the base frame with a bolt approximately 32” from the corner. Once they are secured wedge them under a cross piece and into the grove you cut on the brace at approximately 32” high. Drill a small hole through the end of the brace perpendicular to the groove and outside the cattle panel. Secure a short piece of wire through the holes to prevent the cattle panel from coming out of the groove. Repeat this on all four corners.

Now that you have your four corners braced you need to brace the middle of the cattle panels by the gap. Take the last two remaining 10’ sections of conduit and run them between the braces to support the middle of the cattle panels. Secure them to the braces on either end with bolts. Then secure the cattle panel to the brace. This will keep the cattle panels from flattening sideways if the sheep rub on them or they are pushed against by the wind.

Note: If you are trying to use this structure for goats, you may need additional bracing. Sheep do not try to climb on roofs. If you expect your animals to try to climb on the roof we would recommend adding additional bracing to support the middle of the roof.

Step 5: Anchor the shelter and put on your shade cloth

The last step is to anchor and cover the shelter with shade cloth. We use shade cloth in the summer, but also cover them with a regular tarp during lambing season to provide some temporary extra shelter. We just use baling twine to secure our tarps onto the structure. Tie it on every eyelet to prevent undue stress on just a few eyes which could cause them to rip out.

It is VERY important to anchor your structure proportionally to your wind. Because these structures are light enough to be easily portable, without some sort of anchor they will blow away. Also keep in mind that a solid tarp cover will require you to anchor the portable shade structure even more securely than a shade cloth cover.

To anchor our structure with a solid tarp in it, we use 4 t-posts pounded into the ground at an angle. During the summer months, when it has shade cloth on it and we are moving it regularly, we use cement blocks to anchor our structure. We have two ropes, one on each side. They are permanently attached on one end and have a clip on the other end. We run this rope through several cement blocks and clip it back to the bottom frame. This keep the structure from blowing away, and makes it quick and easy to detach and drag to a new location.

That’s it! If you have made it this far with us, you should now have new, easy to move shade structure to assist with your rotational grazing.

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The information provided is for general informational purposes only. All information on the site is provided in good faith, for general informational and educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional advice. We make no representation or warranty of any kind, express or implied, regarding the accuracy, adequacy, validity, reliability, availability, or completeness of any information on this Site. Accordingly, before taking any actions based upon such information, we encourage you to consult with the appropriate professionals. We do not provide any kind of professional advice. THE USE OR RELIANCE OF ANY INFORMATION CONTAINED ON THE SITE IS SOLELY AT YOUR OWN RISK. View full disclaimer here.

The post How To Build A Portable Shade Structure For Your Sheep first appeared on Snowdrop Farm.

Diagnosis: Photosensitivity. You must act immediately

One afternoon we went out to check on our dairy sheep and discovered that one of them had a hugely swollen face. The following day some of the other sheep also had swollen faces. Turns out it was a photosensitivity reaction.

Photosensitization is something that we have never had to deal with prior to this. It went away as fast as it arrived, and to this day we have no idea what the cause was. Interestingly about the same time we had a photosensitivity problem with our sheep several other people in the area were asking on Facebook about the cause of similar symptoms in their sheep.

Photosensitivity is an allergic reaction to the sun. As you can imagine, being allergic to sunlight can spell big problems for livestock who spend their whole entire lives outdoors in the sun. Any animal, and even humans can have a photosensitivity reaction. It is not the same thing as a sunburn. The immune system is actively reacting to the sun and damaging the epidermis from within.

Photosensitization is a bit unique in that it does not affect animals of different colors equally. Typically photosensitization is limited to white animals or white portions of colored animals. Pigmented skin and areas covered with a thick layer of hair don’t typically suffer from photosensitivity. However they still can be affected if the reaction is severe enough.

Photosensitivity always has an underlying cause

With the exception of a congenital disease present in a few breeds, animals do not just spontaneously become allergic to the sun. There is an underlying cause that is making them hypersensitive. This underlying cause is typically liver damage due to a toxin of some sort. Livers are excellent at regenerating themselves, and sometimes this damage may be reversed. Sadly in many cases the damage is permanent. Sometimes it is severe enough that the whole flock needs to be culled because they will never be able to tolerate sun exposure again.

It is also possible for an animal to ingest a plant like buckwheat that directly causes photosensitization without liver damage. In some instances it may be caused by medications. However, these scenarios are much less common than liver damage.

There are a variety of plants that can cause photosensitization. Unfortunately it is tricky to study and discover what component is actually causing it. This is because these plants do not always cause photosensitivity when ingested. There are case studies where alfalfa and bermuda grass have caused photosensitivity. Both are considered excellent forages and typically do not cause any problems. What makes it even more complicated, is that it is possible that the ingestion of an insect or fungus growing on the plant caused the reaction not the plant itself.

This turned out to be the culprit in once case study. In this particular instance, the shepherd had mowed their pasture and allowed the grass clippings to lay there. This normally isn’t a problem. In that particular year the conditions were exactly right for a certain mold to grow on the grass clippings. The sheep ate enough of the mold when grazing near the grass clippings to cause liver damage and the resulting photosensitivity.

How does liver damage cause an allergic reaction to the sun?

This is an excellent question! There is a substance called phylloerythrin that is derived from the break down of chlorophyll (what makes plants green) in the digestive tract. Phylloerythrin is a photosensitizing agent which is typically efficiently excreted by the liver. If the liver is damaged by some sort of toxin, it cannot remove the phylloerythrin from the blood like it should. When this happens the phylloerytherin reaches the skin of the animal where it can react with the sun and cause damage.

Though this is a much less common scenario, it is also possible to temporarily cause too much phylloerythrin to be present in the blood without liver damage. This is possible to cause by suddenly moving animals from a dry desert pasture to a lush irrigated pasture.

Fortunately, the treatment for photosensitization is very straight forward

Affected animals need to be removed from access to the photosensitizing/liver damaging agent and immediately removed from sunlight. They should be kept in a dark barn until the symptoms have subsided. Moving the animals into the dark is essential to do quickly once you notice a problem. If the animal remains exposed to the sun the damage will continue to worsen. It will cause them a lot of pain and serious tissue necrosis will occur.

Sadly this damage is sometimes irreversible

Unfortunately, in most cases of photosensitivity we are dealing with a liver toxin and thus liver damage, and there are no guarantees. If the sheep’s liver can heal enough to resume removing phylloerythryn efficiently, they can return to grazing out in the sun. Sadly in some cases the liver damage is so severe that the reaction immediately returns upon sun exposure. These animals often must be culled for their own well being.

In the case of our sheep, we are not sure whether there was any liver damage involved. We hypothesized that it may have been the bermuda grass in their pasture. Or it could have been an over abundance chlorophyll exposure resulting from us allowing them access to a small patch of irrigated corn during a drought. Both seem unlikely, but we don’t know. What we do know is that there was a brief photosensitivity ‘outbreak’ on various farms in the area around that time. So perhaps due to the drought there was an unusual toxin affecting this area.

Regardless, we pulled the sheep from the pasture, put them inside eating hay and they all recovered within a couple days. In a couple weeks, they were able to return to the same pasture without issue. Thankfully none of them had any serious tissue damage to their skin, and they have been perfectly fine ever since.

How did we know our sheep had photosensitivity?

The first sign that something was wrong was seeing a sheep with a hugely swollen head. Her ears were flopped down, and she was clearly uncomfortable, agitated and repeatedly rubbing her swollen face. Upon closer inspection it was easy to see that her skin was red and angry looking. This was particularly obvious in the areas on her head and ears where the hair was thin. Her skin was also leaking yellowish sticky serum.

These are all textbook early symptoms.

If you see these symptoms in your flock get your sheep out of the sun IMMEDIATELY. Don’t wait to see if it goes away. Our sheep went from being fine at morning check to being so swollen they couldn’t see by mid afternoon. The reaction happens fast and the damage and discomfort continues to worsen until they are out of the sun.

If you do not help your animals quickly, they will have ever increasing damage to their skin which results scab formation and eventually necrosis. It can get bad enough for their skin to slough off and can result in them losing parts of their ears. At this stage they are in extreme pain, and highly prone to getting secondary infections. As you might imagine, at this point the prognosis is not good.

Thankfully, our sheep did not develop scabs or obvious lesions. The swelling went away within 48 hours of taking them off the pasture. We will note there was some tissue damage though. A couple weeks later our sheep lost all the hair on the backs of their ears and tops of their heads where they received the most sun exposure. This resulted in a new temporary problem—sunburn. We ended up putting sunscreen on their bald patches for a few days while we waited for the new hair to grow in.

Can you prevent having problems with photosensitivity?

Sort of. The obvious answer is to avoid allowing any weeds that are known photosensitizing agents to grow in your pastures. Also avoid feeding water damaged or moldy feed because they may contain fungi that cause liver damage.

Unfortunately there is no way to fully protect your animals. Sometimes we have no idea and are never able to figure out what the causative agent in photosensitivity is. That is why it is important to know the signs and symptoms of this less common ailment. That way you will be prepared to take action immediately to prevent more serious damage and suffering if this ever occurs in your flock.

We hope you never have to deal with this photosensitivity. However, if you ever see your sheep with a swollen face and floppy ears, you now know what to do to help them!

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Please remember

The information provided is for general informational purposes only. All information on the site is provided in good faith, for general informational and educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional advice. We make no representation or warranty of any kind, express or implied, regarding the accuracy, adequacy, validity, reliability, availability, or completeness of any information on this Site. Accordingly, before taking any actions based upon such information, we encourage you to consult with the appropriate professionals. We do not provide any kind of professional advice. THE USE OR RELIANCE OF ANY INFORMATION CONTAINED ON THE SITE IS SOLELY AT YOUR OWN RISK. View full disclaimer here.

The post How To Recognize Photosensitivity In Sheep first appeared on Snowdrop Farm.