As lambing progresses the challenges increase

At this stage many flocks are well and truly in the middle of the 2024 lambing season. Michael Gottstein writes about some key areas that should be considered when attempting to reduce losses at lambing time.

Most farms will have facilities in good shape at the beginning of the lambing season, however as lambing progresses and the work load builds it becomes harder to keep on top of everything. The ultimate aim of every sheep farmers should be to attempt to save each lamb that will succumb to an avoidable cause.

After lambing conversations regarding lamb mortality frequently only deal with lambs that are born alive which subsequently die. Abortions, ewes that scanned in lamb but subsequently do not lamb, still births etc are often not counted. The target for most commercial flocks is to keep all lamb losses below 8% for low litter size flocks (less than 1.4 lambs reared per ewe to the ram). Flocks with higher litter sizes should aim to keep losses below 12%. Documenting / recording the number of losses and the causes of these losses is not only important from a benchmarking point of view but it also identifies areas where improvements need to be made in the future. Unfortunately this is something which often doesn’t happen on farms.

As the lambing season progresses it becomes more difficult to keep lamb mortality below the targets mentioned above. The reason for this is that disease levels in the lambing area increase as lambing progresses.  Identifying what the biggest challenges are will allow steps to be taken to reduce the risks.

By in large most problems in lambing sheds are watery mouth / scours  (E Coli etc.) and infections such as navel and joint ill. The following are some key areas that should be considered when attempting to reduce losses at lambing time;

• The aim should be to have the ewes as clean as possible at lambing time. Frequent bedding in straw bedded sheds (even when straw is expensive) or freeing up slats is important to reduce soiled hindquarters/udders at lambing time. Ewes that are extremely soiled should be dagged at lambing time.
• Take steps to reduce the amount of moisture in the shed. If sheds are damp look at issues such as the dry matter of the feed (i.e. wet silage), ventilation and sort out leaking water troughs etc. to reduce the humidity within the shed.
• Move ewes and newborn lambs to individual lambing pens as soon as possible after lambing. These pens should have soiled bedding removed and be disinfected after each ewe. Use lots of hydrated/cubicle lime and plenty of clean straw.
• Colostrum is the lamb’s best defence against infection. Ensure that the lambs get adequate colostrum as soon as possible after birth. Each 5 kg lamb needs to get 250ml (5% of bodyweight) in the first 4 hours and this needs to be repeated every 6 hours. Do not half feed lambs, e.g. give them 0ne or two syringes to keep them going – this will trigger the closure of the gut wall to antibody transfer.
• If ewes are short of colostrum at lambing time or the colostrum is very thick and sticky then there may be a nutritional shortfall. Increasing the protein level in ration by feeding additional Soya bean meal (100gm per lamb carried per day) may alleviate the problem. Where lambs are unable to suckle the ewes (weak lambs, poor teat placement etc.) intervene and use a bottle & teat / stomach tube to ensure that the required intake of colostrum is achieved.
• Turning out ewes and lambs at the earliest opportunity will provide the lambs with an outdoor environment that is cleaner than indoors. Where the ewes are not turned out (due to poor weather or insufficient grass) then steps should be taken to keep the pens as clean as possible (i.e. topping up with clean bedding and spreading hydrated / cubicle lime regularly).
• All items being used to assist in lambing ewes and to feed lambs (i.e. Stomach tubes, teats, bottles, lambing ropes etc.) need to be cleaned and disinfected after each use. Washing them in warm soapy water and immerse them in a suitable sterilisation fluid for 15 minutes to sterilise them between uses.
• Once infected lambs are identified prompt intervention is required. You may only have a window of a few hours to save a lamb. Seek veterinary advice as to what antibiotics etc will be required. Discuss with your vet as to what options are available in the face of an outbreak of disease in young lambs.
• Follow up the causes of lamb losses. Take every opportunity to send any dead lambs to your regional veterinary laboratory so that you get a definitive answer as to what has gone wrong. This is essential so that steps can be taken to prevent further losses.