Late night activity may cause ewes to begin lambing after producers have returned to the house. Lambing cubicles placed around the walls in the lambing area of the barn measuring 4 ft x 6 ft have been used successfully as a place for ewes to lamb away from the other ewes in the barn. The cubicles have a 2 ft wide opening with a 10 inch board as a threshold to keep lambs inside. After lambs are born, move the ewe and her lambs to a lambing pen with minimum dimensions of 5 ft by 5 ft. Check the ewe's udder to see that she has milk, strip each teat to removed the waxy plug that may be present at the end of the teat, and make sure lambs nurse within 30 minutes.
Colostrum is critical for baby lamb survival.
For ewes without milk or for lambs that fail to nurse, lambs must be given colostrum by stomach tube. If sheeps' colostrum is not available, cows' or goats' colostrum can be used. A supply of frozen colostrum should be available at all times using pre-measured amounts stored in resealable freezer bags. Colostrum should be thawed using indirect heat. Thawing by direct heat destroys the antibodies that are present.