Warren sheaf. [volume] (Warren, Marshall County, Minn.) 1880-current, 1914-03-11
Live Stock
Care of the Eve Before and What Have Learned from
During the Landing Testing my Cows.
Season.

Much depends upon the care and
feed of the farm "fock'' at this time
of year if profits are to be realized
from the sheep end of the farming
operations. To be sure, previous mat
tention cannot be entirely overcome,
but extra care now will result in
heavier and stronger lamb crop gen.
orally. ..'-..
If the ewes are thin in flesh and
have Wintered on corn fodder, wild
hay or straw, some grain feed should
be used to build them up and insure
good milk flow. Oats, being most
commonly at hand, may be fed at the
rate of about one-half pound per day.
If clover hay is available, now is the
time to feed the eve some of this ex-
excellent roughage. 1t is to be hoped
that sheepmen who have only linn
tied amount of clover hay use some,
at least, to furnish the eve previous
to and after lambing. Good, clean,
sweet silage or roots are also excellent
feeds for pregnant ewes, because they
tone the digestive system and encour-
age the milk flow. Two pounds day
of these feeds is about the proper
amount for each eve, as very often the
feeding of these in large amount tends
to make large, weak, flabby lambs.
The old trouble of ewes not owning
their lambs can in most instances be
traced to lack of milk flow, which is
the result of poor feeding before lamb
ing. It is only natural for a eve to
disoWn her lamb when she knows that
she cannot feed it.
1t is always good plan to watch the
ewes carefully at this season of the
IA
to lamb before they are expected to-
In many instances the first two or
three lambs are lost because their ar
rival was unexpected and it is gen.
erall these early ones that make the
best lambs if they are saved.
The eve flock should be gone over
thoroughly and all dirty tags removed
from the hind quarters and the udder
Isolation.
At lambing time the eve should be
in pen by herself. This is best &C.
complished by providing a hinged
hurdle with four-foot wings at each
end. These hurdles can be placed
alongside of the barn, thus making
a convenient little pen with each. Thus
keeping eve by herself the newborn
lamb does not wander off with the rest
Of the ewes to become chilled or
trampled. The use of hurdles will
soon pay for the cost in the case of
twin lambs, as the first born is apt to
wander away from the mother before
the other twin is born and very often
the eve loses her scent for it. The
sense of smell is the only way the eve
has of recognizing her lamb in the
early period of it's life.
Too much stress cannot be laid on
the necessity of closely watching the
lambing ewes, especially in cold
weather. The good shepherd is always
on hand to see that the youngster does
not get chilled, and that it gets it's first
meal before it becomes weak, also to
provide assistance to the eve when
necessary. Observing this rule saves
many ewes and lambs. More attention
need be paid if the ewes are thin and
weak
If a lamb becomes chilled, it should
be put in warm place, rubbed and
wrapped in a warm cloth. If, how
ever, the lamb is badly chilled, putting
it in a pail of warm water is the most
effective way of reviving. 1t should
be thoroughly dried after this treat
ment and watched for a few days, be-
cause lambs so treated very often be-
come constipated.
The eve should be kept quiet after
Landing, so that she will have chance
to rest. If the milk flow is all right,
she should not be fed heavily for two
or three days. Give her little bright
clover hay, some roots, and a mixture
of bran and oats, if possible. All these
feeds cool the system and keep the
bowels in good shape.
She should have dry shed and be
kept free from drafts. Wet beds and
drafty quarters are the cause Of in
famed udders, which often result in
permanent total disuse. Ewes and
lambs that are given good, careful