Sheep Doctor
April 12th, 2015 · 2 Comments · Posted in farming
Just when things seemed to be going so smoothly, one of our yearling ewes experiences a terribly difficult pregnancy.
After a full day’s labor, the premature and stillborn lamb refused to exit the womb. Only the top of its head was showing. I rolled up my sleeves and reached in to assist, finding that the lamb was jammed in there good, with its front legs folding backward instead of pointing toward the exit. It took about an hour before the mother was on her feet again and I breathed a sigh of relief, thinking we’d dodged a bullet. But the next day I found her on her side in the walk-in shelter, not moving.
When she hadn’t budged the following day, I called the vet, who discovered not only signs of a vaginal infection, but a really bad case of worms. She was terribly anemic, no pink showing in the eyes, no strength to stand, reduced to skin and bones.
Worm? I thought we only needed to worry about parasites in the summer. But I must have missed the memo explaining that sheep carry worms around with them in winter as well and they apparently can flare up if a sheep’s health is compromised.
It’s a chicken-and-egg question whether internal parasites caused the abortion, or whether this particular ewe already was suffering from a weakened condition, which led to the still birth and allowed the worms to take over. What’s especially baffling is that other ewes from the same class romp around fat and happy as clams, with no signs of worms at all.
At this point, the sick ewe’s condition is pretty desperate. We’ve made a makeshift hospital room for her in the makeshift milking parlor inside the walk-in shelter. I’ve treated her with worming medication and she gets penicillin shots twice daily. She has bowls of grain and water within easy reach. She sucks down the water, but won’t eat the grain or hay either. I wonder how she lives from day to day.
Looking to the internet for anything that might help, I found stories of miraculous cures with cider vinegar. So I’ve given her some of that. A commercially available liquid nutrient supplement might help, but of course our local Tractor Supply had none left on the shelf when I called yesterday. I’ll spend part of my morning calling around to see if anyone else does.
I can’t help wondering if there’s something more I should be doing to make sure my animals are healthy. One thing’s for sure: farming ain’t for sissies.
How is your sick ewe doing?
Thanks for asking, Tammy. She died shortly after I posted that. I mention it in today’s post. Also, if you “friend” me on Facebook you get more up-to-date news about the farm.