My boss has her sheep at my place again this summer. I have fenced shaded pasture and she has a small pen with no shade. The weather has been terrible with over 100 degree heat for weeks now. It has cooled down to the 90's now but this is a recent improvement. I noticed her neutered ram lamb walking with a limp and back legs rather stiff. Watching him for awhile I noticed his front legs would get wobbly and shakey at times. I could not catch him so decided he wasn't too bad and perhaps the other older ewe had butted him(she is a meany). A few days later he was worse and I did catch him. I looked all over this guy who is good sized and could not find any obvious wounds. He had a big puffy area below his jaw that means worms in a goat, so I wormed him and gave him a long acting penicillin injection and a Clos C & D and tetnus shot even tho my boss said she had immunized and wormed all of them. He is better and getting around much better every day but his front legs still wobble from time to time. Oh yes, when he was easy to catch he had his back humped and dribbled urine. I also massaged his urinary system from body to end(is that a nice way to say it). When he got up he urinated for several minutes. Is there anything I missed on him?? I am a goat lady and sheep baffle me. It is cooler now and he is better and it is my boss's sheep. I do not want the darn thing to die on me. I feed all the sheep and goats a feed mix that is 18% protien and lots of fresh water and had to give them alfalfa cause it was all I had but now am feeding prairie hay. I have another big ewe lamb that needs to be wormed but can not catch the silly thing. the big sack under the boy lamb has gone down to nothing now. Sorry this is so long but wanted to include as much info as possible. My sheep guru is a baffled as I. Thanks karen

-- Karen Mauk (kansasgoats@iwon.com), August 19, 2001

Answers

I would also give him a bo-se shot {seliaum -vitamen e} most area are defficent in it .Does his back end look o.k. ?{butt}

-- Patty {NY State} (fodfarms@slic.com), August 19, 2001.

He doesn't need anywhere near an 18% protein, espeically with a grass pasture to eat out of, the prarie hay is fine. I would get some ammonium chloride and treat him for stones, espeically if he is only dribbling urine. This could also account for the edema under the chin, though remember sheep are much more sensetive to worms than goats are. You also want to give the wormer like sheep, injected or poured on, remember they have very slow sluggish metabolisims, opposite of goats. In a dirt lot he had no access to worms, now with the stress of the move, and worms naturally in your pasutre, he could have quickly became over burdened! vicki

-- Vicki McGaugh TX (vickilonesomedoe@hotmail.com), August 19, 2001.

Yes that swelling sounded like bottle jaw which is from severe worm infestation. That dribbling sounds odd.

-- Alison in N.S. (aproteau@istar.ca), August 20, 2001.

thanks for the help. My pasture is pretty much burnt up due to the extreme heat 100+ degrees for weeks and no rain for months. That is why I was feeding the alfalfa, it was the only hay I had until I got some prairie hay. My sheep guru thought it had to be several different problems brought on by the stress of heat plus moving. I did wonder about the feed too. He never did have loose stools. I will try to never have the responsibility of my boss's sheep again but the poor things would have died for sure staying in that tiny pen with no shade. Oh, one stupid note, I have 3 ewe lambs now!! Will try my hand at raising sheep, I really like the silly things, but LOVE my goats. Thanks again, his front legs still tremble/wobble but only occasionally, hope it stops so I can quit worrying.

-- Karen Mauk (kansasgoats@iwon.com), August 20, 2001.

I agree with Vicki on the ammonium chloride. And unless the ewes are pregnant or lactating, you don't need that grain, especially not the ram. The hay alone is fine. And plenty of fresh water.18% grain is high. Mine usually get 14% or 16% tops. Get a fecal test done on the ram to see if you are dosing for the right parasites. ( have your post pick up the tab) Good luck.

-- Kate henderson (kate@sheepyvalley.com), August 20, 2001.

Ooops, I meant to say have your BOSS pick up the tab!

-- Kate henderson (kate@sheepyvalley.com), August 20, 2001.

Another dumb question. Where do you get the ammonium chloride and what form is it in(liquid, powder, paste?)?. And how do you give it? Thanks one more time. karen

-- Karen Mauk (kansasgoats@iwon.com), August 20, 2001.

Sounds a lot like what happened to our ram earlier this summer. It was hot, he was down, swelling, and dribbling urine. We don't know a whole lot about sheep ailments and we thought he was overheated. Well, we kept offering him water and he died about 24 hours after we noticed the problem.. Took his body to the vet for an autopsy and he finds that he had waterbelly, calculi stones in his urinary system. Seems if we had a clue we could have done the massage thing as the stone was at the end of his penis. You may want to treat him for that or talk with the vet. The vet also told us that feeding too much grain in the summer could cause this to occur especialy if they don't get enough salt. Hope yours gets better.

-- JoAnn in SD (jonehls@excite.com), August 20, 2001.

I always purchased my ammonium chloride from pipestone.com they have a really good catalog and I like that they are a vet clinic that also sells stuff, they also have a phone number that if you call during the day on your nickle they will answer even animal health questions. goatworld.com also sells this, and with the Boer goats influence, most mills mix this into their grains, so you can pick it up locally that way also. Very inexpenisve, 4$ for 5 pounds, looks like salt, use at a teaspoon per head per day for prevention, use 1 tablespoon per head per day for control if you see problems. I would drench it if you are seeing dribbling. Even though we have never had calculi in our bucks, I think this is because I have always used AC, I still make a point of watching each day to see if the boys are peeing freely. Protein, and the excessive feeding of it, is what causes most calculi to form, though sulfur in your water, a scewed mineral feeding can also cause it. Vicki

-- Vicki McGaugh TX (vickilonesomedoe@hotmail.com), August 21, 2001.