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Post by bluejeans on Apr 29, 2015 13:02:33 GMT
I know nothing about sheep...and this is the perfect place to ask my question. A good cyber-friend has a few Barbados; one ewe had triplets !! How common is that? Mamma and babies are fine; the babies are a bit small but lively and hardy.
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Post by bergere on Apr 29, 2015 13:54:06 GMT
Congrats on your new lambs! But you are teasing us without showing photos.
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Post by bluejeans on Apr 29, 2015 14:02:26 GMT
No photos yet. The mamma is very skittish with her little ones; and it's not wise to upset her while she's doing such a great job with all three. My friend lives in another state...and I'll, of course, get her permission before sharing photos when she gets some. This is thrilling. We've been waiting and worrying about this ewe for weeks. Happily she knew what she was doing.
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Post by Callie on Apr 29, 2015 15:01:28 GMT
It's good that triplets are smaller- it's easier for the ewe to carry them to term. They will catch up in size soon enough. Triplets can be common or not so common depending on your flock. Is the momma able to feed them all? That's always the question with multiples. If one is smaller than the other two- it might get shoved aside and the other 2 get most of the milk. Hope they do well for you!
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Post by bluejeans on Apr 29, 2015 15:39:20 GMT
The triplets are near the same size. My friend is keeping a sharp (if rather distant) eye on that situation. Everybody gets their turn. If anybody had triplets, she is glad it was this ewe. She has always been a very attentive mother. No lamb left behind .
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Post by PNP Katahdins on Apr 29, 2015 17:44:15 GMT
Barbados are usually considered a prolific and relatively parasite-resistant breed. That means lots of lambs with triplets being pretty common. They should have enough milk to raise them on their own, or something is wrong. A first-timer might have trouble with triplets but be okay the next year, for example. An older ewe could have udder problems from mastitis the year before. That's NOT okay for next year.
We always have frozen colostrum and lamb milk replacer powder in the freezer in case of emergencies. The colostrum comes from a neighbor's clean dairy cow herd. We freeze it in ice-cube trays and put the frozen cubes in baggies.
Barbados Blackbellies, the pretty polled ones, are what I am referring to. American Barbados are horned and have another breed mixed in a way back.
Just plain Barbados may be purebreds but are usually a mix of several breeds and are commonly found in the Southwest. The mixed breeds may not be as prolific or parasite-resistant as the original Barbados Blackbellies from the Caribbean, but are usually larger and grow a little faster. It's all a trade off with sheep.
I hope your friend enjoys the new lambs! It sounds like the ewe would be a good one to keep daughters from.
Peg
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Post by bluejeans on Apr 29, 2015 17:58:13 GMT
Thank you for your information. These friends recently bought a young ram, after selling their old one a year ago. They thought the new guy was "not old enough"...but obviously he had his own agenda. So far, they've had 3 singles...two sets of twins...and triplets. One more ewe to go...a first timer, so a single is hoped for. I love the internet !! What fun getting in on so much excitement in another state !!!
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Post by bluejeans on Apr 29, 2015 23:01:19 GMT
Here's a photo.
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Post by PNP Katahdins on Apr 30, 2015 5:31:38 GMT
These friends recently bought a young ram, after selling their old one a year ago. They thought the new guy was "not old enough"...but obviously he had his own agenda. Hair breeds like Barbados, Katahdin, Dorper, etc. mature quite young. We wether all our males now at a few days old, but when we did keep a few back for breeding, we separated them from the females by 3 1/2 months. Learned that lesson the hard way when Redneck became a daddy on his 9-month birthday. His sire Wiley was with another ewe group and Redneck was the only other possibility. Thanks for the photo! Peg
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Post by bergere on May 1, 2015 12:02:16 GMT
They are beautiful, love the color!
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