Hi, I have a question I hope you all can answer for me. We purchased 4 sheep off of a slaughter truck about 2 weeks ago. We wanted them for pets. 2 of them are Baby Doll Southdown and one has a baby by her side. We got up this morning to find that the other one had a baby ram with her. We didnt' even know she was pregnant. Anyways, this baby is very very thin looking, he seems a little weak altho he is nursing very well. He is just really really boney. Is this normal for baby sheep?? We have had our goats kid and the babys are chubby and bouncing off the walls when they are born. This is a totally different scenario. Is this normal??? Thanks, Julie

-- Julie Banks (dabanks@harbornet.net), April 12, 2001

Answers

No, this is not normal for a lamb to be bone thin. I would concentrate on getting the ewe in better condition so she has enough milk for the lamb.I would worm her to begin with and than get her on a high protein grain plus good hay to keep her milk production up. Weigh the lamb if you can. They can gain 1/2 lb a day.Perhaps he will need some supplement of lamb milk replacer or goats milk that we use for our bottle lambs.Good luck. I can never understand someone sending pregnant animals to slaughter.

-- Kate henderson (kate@sheepyvalley.com), April 13, 2001.

Julie, you are taking a big chance buying from a slaughter truck. In fact nothing erks me more than selling an animal for slaughter only to find someone else has sold the stock. The reason I don't use auction barns. They could have been sold for slaughter because the person simply wanted out of the business, but in reality slaughter prices are so low the animals that go their are usually diseased. Mastitis, CL, CAE/Opp, Scrapie, are just a few of the problems these sheep could have. Keep them and their little ones away from your other stock. Vicki

-- Vicki McGaugh TX (vickilonesomedoe@hotmail.com), April 13, 2001.

Vicky, I really didn't want to explain how we got these sheep or why, but here goes anyways....These sheep had been advertised on a webpage..actually an animal rescue shelter.. the owner of the rescue place bought them from an aution about 2 years ago...actually one of them she had for the last 6 years..she trains dogs to herd with them. The day I call her about the sheep, she had just boarded them on the trailer that morning to take to slaughter figuring no one wanted them! So I bought them...they seemed healthy and fine. She has other sheep there too...all used for meat and herd dog training. It seemed to me that it was meant to be. I vaccinate all my animals, and the sheep are vaccinated also. When an animal gets sick at her house she brings them in and takes care of them. Obviously she cares about animals enough to do animal rescues. Other wise I would be careful. But anyways, the baby ram seems to be holding his own, and of course the animals have been on really good hay and good grain since they have been here. They all seem really healthy and I do have them with my goats and the Llama I bought from the same lady..who indeed is very healthy also. I do not have animals to breed them, nor milk them, or eat them...they are all strictly pets. I do not use them for financial gain in anyways. I do the best I can to maintain a bunch of healthy critters here. So far so good except this little ram we were not expecting. I guess I am just hoping someone might have some suggestions for what I can do besides what I am already doing. Thanks, Julie

-- Julie Banks (dabanks@harbornet.net), April 13, 2001.

Although Julie situation is different, Vicky is correct about slaughter trucks. I just sold two ewes to a slaughter truck at a very low price, because, one ewe had triplets with absolutly no milk, whether it was mastitis (which I treated for) or a hard bag (which is worst, OPP) I wanted that ewe off my property, the other had gotten pregnant in 3 years, so I am assuming she can't. Now, I would feel really bad if someone bought those ewes thinking they are good breeding ewes. Because I feed well, they look really good and in a condition of 3 plus. If I want to sell a good breeding ewe I will advertise, I get a little more (or maybe not) but the point is those ewes I sold for slaughter were meant as such.

-- Debbie (bwolcott@cwis.net), April 13, 2001.