catchall for birthing issues
In our first five years of breeding British Soay sheep (2006-2010), our lambs’ birth weights ranged from 6 pounds 12 ounces all the way down to 2 pounds 5 ounces – quite a large spread. The largest lamb was almost three times as large as the smallest lamb, yet virtually all were healthy, and although […]
February 2014 update: Dalton no longer sells Supersmall ear tags, alas! We have had such excellent experience with Supersmalls that we put in one final big order from their warehouse stock, enough to last us for several years. If you have used Supersmalls in the past and need more, you might check with Dalton to […]
Answer? Yes. End of post? Not quite. In the world of pedigrees and registrations, identification is everything. Paperwork listing a Soay sheep’s name and parentage is a great start and required for registration, but in the final analysis, ear tags (or tatoos or imbedded chips) are the only way to positively identify an animal, by […]
Soay lambs benefit from a little human intervention shortly after they arrive on the scene and have had their first, critical meal of colostrum. At a minimum, sterilizing the remains of their umbilical cord and checking their temperature to be sure they have been nursing well goes a long way towards ensuring a healthy and […]
Soay sheep breeders delight in finding clever names and elaborate naming themes for their lambs, perhaps to compensate for the fact that we play no role in the lambing process — our ewes are entirely self-sufficient in that department. There are lamb “crops” named for trees, automobiles, famous scientists, spices, towns in Oregon, Native American […]
Yesterday the twins born under less-than-ideal circumstances celebrated their 2-week birthday, and they not only are surviving, they are thriving and growing like little ovine weeds. Tolcarne is, as usual, a superb mother and at least for now is cranking out milk sufficient to meet her lambs’ needs without losing her good conditioning. May I […]