Good morning all from a much milder but soggy Wiltshire! Yesterday was a busy one - when I went to feed the twin and triplet carrying ewes I noticed that 3 of them were showing signs of ‘twin lamb disease’ - pregnancy toximia’ which can come on very quickly in the late stages of pregnancy and can be fatal if not treated quickly. The ewe becomes unable to stand, can become temporarily blind and stops eating. I normally get 1 or 2 each year but to have 3 showing signs on the same day is a new one on me and I imagine it’s been exacerbated by the stress of being bought in for their jabs and bolluses the other day and harsh weather. I gathered the 3 poorly ladies up in my quad bike trailer and put them in the ‘sick bay’ before treating them with calcium injections and a twin-lamb drench. By last night all 3 were back on their feet and eating so crisis averted I hope. If they continue to do well they can rejoin the flock today but I’ll have to keep a very close eye on them. Sometimes, if the ewe doesn’t improve, the only cure is to give them a jab to abort the lambs to save the sheep, as once the pregnancy is ended, they have a chance to recover, but obviously this is a last and sad resort.
Further excitement late last night as Rich Tea the cow calved and an older, more dominant cow, Hatty, decided that the newly born calf should have been hers and bullied Rich Tea away from her calf. This can happen with both cows and sheep when pregnancy hormone run a muck! It’s known in farming life as being an ‘aunty’ and can cause a big headache. The solution was to move Hatty out of the calving area of the barn (which she wasn’t happy about!) and into the nursery with the older cows and calves to give Rich Tea a chance to clean up and bond with her new calf. I expect Hatty will calve in the next couple of days then her hormones will settle down and peace will be restored!
Family zoom quiz tonight so I’m hoping that the ladies yet to calf will keep their legs crossed and allow me to quiz!
Wishing you all a happy and peaceful day and to those with troubles and worries, ‘ this too shall pass’ .