The Middlebury register and Addison County journal. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1883-1885, 1885-01-30


is so completely exhausted when the
lamb is born that she cannot rise, and
the lamb may crawl of; and when it
does do so it will work itself into some
hiding place, or mingle with any other
ones that may be in the same apart
ment. When the eve is able to rise
she will probably smell where the lamb
was dropped, and if she does not find
it there, then she does not have any
way of finding it. Nature has implant-
ed III dumb animals the laws of in
stinct. Now instinct directs the moth
err where to look for the newborn
lamb and to identity it by the sense of
smell. If the lamb is not where in
stinct directs, and she does not get a
smell of it at that place, she may never
own it. Another cause of disownng
the lamb is when two or more lambs
are dropped at or about the same time,
as when a eve gives birth to pair of
twins, or two or more eve lambs at the
same time. Another instance is when
a eve drops her first lamb. 1t often
happens that she does not recognize it
apparently, even by smell, and if she
be hungry will desert it for the feed,
or for the sake of the company of the
rest of the flock. These are the more
ordinary cases of disowning lambs
with flncks in the house.
In an experience ofmany years the
writer has most decided opinion that
the better way to prevent all these cases
is, as the lrishman would say, "not to
have them" The plan is to have a
number of pens four feet square in the
/ sheep. house. As soon as the shepherd
! discovers that eve is about to lamb,
or has LANDED, he should pnt her i'll a
pen, and unless there is trouble in
| Landing he may leave the rest to the
| mother. Once in the pen, she finds she
cannot get out, and not being annoyed
by any other sheep, she becomes quiet
aud will if the throes are on her, lie
down, as there is nothing to attract her
attention, she will speedily complete the
labor. After the labor is ended and
| the eve gets up, as the lamb cannot
| get away but little from her, and as
! there is nothing e'se in the pen, she
readily finds it and almost invariably
cares for it. The writer thinks if this
! plan was generally in practice, lit would
add a considerable percentage to the
number of lambs raised annually. This
plan aims to relieve the shepherd of a
large part of tie care and toll of the
lambing season, by having the eve and
lamb together and apart from all 9TH
ers at the exact time when the lamb
needs the care of its mother A glance
from the shepherd will tell him wheth-
er any assistance is needed, without
disturbing the eve by getting into the
| pen.
AS a rule, when once a lamb gets on
| its feet, and of itself sucks it, mother S
milk, it is successfully started. Yet
the careful shepherd will see if it is
getting enough of milk. Sometimes a
eve has not full flow of milk at once,
and to keep her lamb up until the flow
comes it is necessary To allow it to take
from another one that is flush, or give
it seine milk from fresh COW. 1t Oft
en- happens that the first discharge from
lambs bowels hardens around the
vent and fastens the tail down and so
prevents any more discharges without
pain to the lamb. This Is called "pin-
ming" The best mode of relief for this
is to moisten the crust with water, then
after little time the tail can be raised
without difficulty. A little dry earth
or clay pulverized and dropped on it
ends the trouble.
If the eve own the lamb, and every
thing is going on right, if desired she
may be turned out of he pen after halt
day. Over large part of the coun-
try during Landing time the ewes are
turned out to pasture during the day,
when the ground is bare. When ewes
lamb in the field they generally do well
if the weather is not too cold. But il
the field is exposed to cold north or
west winds, and the eve drops her
lamb late in the evening, it often per-
ishes before it can be gotten to the fold
Or sometimes eve will drop one of a
pair of twins. and before she is deliver
ed of the second the first has crawled
away some distance, and the eve may
only own the second and leave the 9th.
err to the care OF the shepherd. The
question of what disposition to make OF
it might be easily solved on cold
April day, where the shepherd is not
particularly tender-hearted. But an.
other item may enter INTO the settle
ment of the question. The disOwned
lamb, as often happens, may be the
better one of the twain, and as h ppen.
often also, the mothers tavorie may be
more or less of runt. This is one OF
the most trying cases for the shepherd
1t makes no difference it the shepherd
can see in the orphaned embryo before
him his long -looked-tor ideal of per
feet ram or eve; nor does it matter t.
the fond mother il the shepherd cal
figure out prospectively many dollar.
for his orphan when at maturity
Sometimes the shepherd will take away
from the eve her favored runt, and pu
with her the rejected one of the pair
hoping that after Time tor reflection
she will adopt it also. Often it is
vain hope. Upon going to her he find
her butling it down every time it ap
proaches, and when, in despair, he tIie
to attract her attention by returnin!
the one that was her favorite, lol sh,
will not own it either. When. for All,
reason, eve does not own her lamb
f the shepherd should speedily remov,
her from the flock, and, If possib BILE, on