Your New Lamb

	Your New Lamb

Before your lamb comes home, you should already have:

One other "buddy". Sheep are a flock animal and need another sheep for a constant companion. If you are getting a ram, also obtaining a wether is a great solution. Rams can develop bad manners especially when kept alone, and from my experience (and the experience of others) well-behaved, polite rams seem to consistently be ones with a constant companion.
Shelter - a three sided shelter is usually adequate. In the winter, hay or straw bales can be stacked to partially enclose the open side and give extra protection. Personally, my favorite is similar to a 3-sided shelter but the open side is also enclosed except for the center 1/3. It provides adequate shelter year-round with good ventilation. It is also portable so it is easy to keep "fresh". Keeping sheep closed up in a barn is not a healthy environment for them. I only do that for very short periods of time right after the ewes have given birth when the weather is cold. As soon as I think the lambs can handle it, I start opening doors and use hog panels across the doorways to keep the sheep inside. (I have not had a case of pneumonia yet, which is a fairly common ailment with newborns and research indicates the risk increases with lack of airflow.) In summer, sheep also need a shady place to lie during the heat of the day. You will soon discover that they are much more comfortable in cold weather than hot. Their ears can also be susceptible to sunburn if not provided access to shade.
Good grass for grazing, or good quality hay (and not old, moldy, or very dusty).
Loose mineral salt designed for sheep should always be available. Everything your lamb has access to should be evaluated for its level of copper. Feed designed for sheep will have extremely low or no copper in it. Goats, horses, cattle and other livestock will often have copper added to their feeds, minerals, etc. Copper can be toxic to sheep (and builds up over time), so letting your sheep be around other animals can be a problem if the copper is not managed properly.
Fresh clean water should be available at all times.
Good, predator-proof system for keeping your lamb safe from dogs, coyotes, and others. This can be fencing, a guardian animal (such as a Great Pyrenees dog), or a combination of several things. Having a very secure pen to "put up" your sheep at night (and when you cannot be available) is important, unless you are absolutely sure nothing can get to them. You will find that Predators and Worms (more about them later) will probably be the greatest "enemies".

Optional:

Lamb "grower" feed. You can provide this "free choice" until your lamb is 3 months old. Then you can feed a handful a couple times a day until your lamb is about a year old. However, if you feel your lamb is becoming overweight, decrease the lamb feed. If your lamb has access to good pasture/grass you may also want to supplement with less feed. (Here, grain is always a very minor percentage of their diets.)
A halter and lead rope. Some people use halters. If you plan to do this, it will go much easier if you train when they are young. Remember that the combination of food, routine, and trust are the key for the easiest training of most animals. I do not halter my sheep because I have quite a few...but I can see advantages, especially when trimming the hooves of a grown ram. He could be halter-tied to a fence and you could hold the side of his body against the fence with yours while trimming his hooves, letting him remain standing. If this is routinely practiced while he is young, it should make trimming much easier later.

Ongoing care:

CD&T vaccinations should be given yearly. If your adult ewe has been bred, the ideal time to give the yearly vaccination is about 3 weeks before lambing. That way the antibodies from her vaccination will be passed to the lamb through her milk and the lamb will have temporary coverage. (The lamb's immune system is not fully developed though, so what is passed from the mother is very temporary. The lamb will also need its own vaccinations at the proper ages.) Also, during the lamb's first year, some people give an additional CD&T vaccination at 6 months, just to ensure coverage in case that particular lamb's immune system was not fully mature when it was given during the first few months. I have not done this yet, but probably would if mine were fed more grain instead of pasture ("overeating disease" would be more of a risk).
Hoofs should be trimmed at least 3 times a year. If you have several sheep, you will learn which ones seem to need trimming more often, and which ones can go a bit longer. When you get your lamb, examine its hooves, then aim to keep that shape. The more often you do it, the easier the process will be when your lamb is an adult.
In the spring, your sheep will need to be shorn. Asking someone else who has sheep in your area, who they use, is probably the best way to start. Shearers make appointments early in the spring, so don't wait too long--especially if you only have a few and need to arrange to have yours done while the shearer is in the area for someone else. You may also decide to try shearing your sheep yourself. If you have been working with your sheep on a halter, this will make the procedure much more feasible. You may find that as your lamb's wool lengthens around its eyes, it has trouble seeing out. You may also find that your ewe lamb's wool gets rather dirty around its rear and down its back legs. (Some do and some don't.) For either condition, many people trim the wool in those areas more frequently themselves.
De-worming is not something to take lightly! Worms are a major problem for sheep and can cause a sheep to "suddenly" become very ill and die. In my experience, the most risky time in a sheep's life is during the first year. All sheep have worms. It is actually a normal condition and contributes to their immune system. But during the lamb's first year, their immune system is still developing so they need to be monitored closely so the numbers do not get too high. The best thing would be to discuss this with your vet and set up a schedule based on the conditions in your area and your particular situation. When you come to pick up your lamb, I will show you how to check the eyes for symptoms of worm overload, and you should check the eyes routinely. (If you want to learn more, FAMACHA classes are held in certain areas to teach a whole system based on deworming only when necessary.) Even if you plan to go to the FAMACHA system later, deworming routinely during the lamb's first year is a good preventative measure. One additional thing I have personally learned, is that nutrition plays an important part in lamb survival if one does get overloaded. Adding grain to the diet for a time afterward is a good idea until you are sure the lamb (or sheep) is again doing great.

Feeding considerations to always keep in mind:

Never change the diet of a sheep suddenly. Their digestive systems are very different than ours. Any changes should be done gradually over the course of several days or a week. This includes changing a type of grain, changing hay, changing pasture that has very different plants, and also includes changes in the percentage of the diet. This last item means that even though your sheep have had access to pasture during the winter as well as being fed hay, when spring arrives suddenly they will not be interested in hay if lush green grass is abundant. You will need to limit their access to the grass, or you will find that they will bloat. I handle this by leaving them in their pen with hay to eat until afternoon (while also waiting for the dew to dry on the grass--wet grass is another contributor to bloat) then allow them a little time in the afternoon to graze. I gradually increase their time grazing, until they are spending most of the day doing so.
Maintain your sheep's weight properly. After lambs are about 6 months old, grain can be used more as a treat than as a regular part of their diet. If healthy, they should be able to maintain weight well on good hay or pasture. In fact, some will become fat easily on even small amounts of grain. Allowing your sheep to get fat is not doing it a favor. In ewes that are bred, it will cause numerous birthing problems. For all sheep, it causes more problems with their feet, makes it harder for them to exercise, which in turn makes it easier to gain weight, etc. Weight maintenance is something that should be done year-round. However, never put your sheep on a diet to lose weight quickly! Also, they can look very fat, especially in the spring in the evenings after grazing, and yet be too thin. This often happens with lactating ewes (and during pregnancy). Learn to "score" your sheep so you know what is really going on under those fuzzy coats. There are several sites on the internet with pictures to illustrate how to do it. The minimal basics are that you lay your hand flat on the sheep's back. You should feel the spine. Now feel the flesh on either side. It may dip down very slightly on both sides if the sheep is in good condition. If the flesh drops down significantly, the sheep is too thin. If you are having trouble feeling the spine through a layer of fat, your sheep is too fat. If you have a sheep losing weight even though it seems the diet is fine, start considering whether it's time to de-worm again.

Resources for Beyond the Basics:

Internet Groups There are some Yahoo groups dedicated to Babydoll owners from across North America. They can be extremely valuable because of the combined experience pooled together, and are usually helpful and supportive. (However, keep in mind there are sometimes individuals ready to give a lot of advice although they don't have much actual experience.) Just use common sense, and they can be a good resource.
Books There are many well-written books aimed at the new shepherd. Visiting your local library should get you started. When you find that you are desiring information beyond the basics, I would highly recommend Laura Lawson's books. "Managing your Ewe" is a good one to start with and includes a lot of information about lambs also. One thing I should mention about books though--most are aimed for the owners of meat sheep with large flocks whose goal is profit. That is a very different goal than someone who owns a few primarily as pets. But there is much information that is applicable to both situations.
Internet Usually great for getting information as specific or general as you want, when you want it. One example is a Sheep Home-Study Course that is offered, and its lessons are available here: Home Study Other good resources are: Sheep 101 and Sheep 102

Your New Lamb