It can also occur if you allow your feeding lambs to rapidly engorge themselves, or if you feed your lambs during irregular feeding times. Allowing nursing lambs access to large amounts of milk to consume can also cause an increase in the bacteria's growth. Type C enterotoxemia affects most often nursing single lambs that have a mother that is a heavy milk producer. While Type D enterotoxemia mostly will affect weaned and feedlot lambs that are placed on a high energy roughage and grain diet. It is also common in vigorous, healthy, and rapidly growing lambs.
Death is usually the first sign of the disease.
Enterotoxemia progresses very rapidly, with death occurring within two hours after onset of clinical signs. Some animals will show some symptoms of colic, muscle tremors, or convulsions. However, the animal may rise between seizures, but soon will collapse again. Some other nervous system signs are frothing of the mouth, grinding of the teeth, and oscillations of the eyes. Diarrhea may also be present.