Preparations for lambing...

Planning ahead and preparing early is important for a successful lambing season. For a sheep enterprise lambing is the most important time of the year.

Preparations include managing and feeding the sheep correctly, getting the lambing facilities ready and gathering necessary supplies.

Lambing Facilities

Getting the lambing facility ready is as important as having the sheep ready. The lambing area should be clean. If an inside barn it will ideally be clean and dry, having been limed and disinfected. Fresh Bedding should be put in shortly before the ewes are brought in. Drafts should be avoided.

There should be enough space in pens to house 10% of the flock at any one time. If lambing is very tight then more pens may be needed. Pens should ideally be 4ft x 6ft or 5ft x 5ft for individual ewes and lambs. If lambing at pasture less facilities are required but lambing should occur in a clean, well-rested pasture with access to shelter. Check lighting for easy stock checking.

Ewe Management

Regular body condition scoring and health checks through pregnancy allow problems to be identified and rectified sooner, reducing the risk of problems in the last few weeks prior to lambing. In mid-pregnancy the placenta is developing and so under or over feeding in this period can have serious detriment to the success at lambing time.

If the weather suddenly changes in this period, have you got options to avoid too much stress, or lack of ideal nutrition and ensure the ewe is maintained? Do you know what your forage or grazing availability and quality is to ensure you consider feeding to meet the ewes’ requirements as she gets closer to lambing? If at lambing time you feed hay, haylage or silage get in touch with us now to get it tested so we can work out an accurate feed plan for you. Monitoring is the key to success.

Separate and treat any lame ewes well before housing.