What a good idea! Do you think that I could start using a stanchion gate now, five days after the lamb was born?
I'm still putting the lamb on the ewe---I haven't softened or given up---and I plan to do it even without the stanchion gate for two more days, but if it might work at this late date, I can whip one together today or tomorrow.
Jenny Albert
Have At 12:01 PM 4/8/2004 -0600, you wrote:
Date: Wed, 07 Apr 2004 15:06:05 -0500 To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] From: Mary Swindell <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subject: [blackbelly] Re: Rejected lamb: what to do? Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Hi Jenny,
To help reluctant ewes accept their lambs (or to graft an orphan lamb onto a different ewe), I have built a stanchion gate and it works very well. It has rounded vertical wooden posts (adjustible distance from each other), and it can be set up as one side of a lamb pen. The pen should be small (about 5 feet square). The ewe and lamb are placed in the pen, with the ewe's head sticking out between the middle two verticle posts. The posts (or rungs) are adjusted so that they are close enough to keep the ewe from withdrawing her head into the pen. Her bucket of water and a small amt. of hay and/or grain are placed directly in front of her head outside the pen, where she can drink and eat. She should also be able to slide all the way down into a lying down position (rungs should go to the floor).
The lamb is inside the pen. The lamb also has his own little water bucket (away from where the ewe can kick). The ewe may struggle at first when the lamb tries to nurse, but she will eventually settle down. The important thing is to not let the ewe out of the stanchion gate until she has fully accepted the lamb. It may take several days, even a week! Don't soften or give up! Eventually when the lamb smells like her and her milk, she will accept him. Just keep an eye on things frequently to make sure the ewe hasn't gotten out, etc.
I had heard a lot about stanchion gates, but only used it once. The ewe I had in a stanchion gate fully accepted her lamb after 5 days.
You can also buy these gates ready made from Premier Fence and Equipment company, too. Theirs are metal, and also are adjustable. Sydell also makes them, I think. But I made mine from a couple of 2 x 4 horizontal cross bars, and several vertical 2 x 2 posts. It is about 36" tall. The middle two vertical posts are the ones that I made adjustable. The corners of the middle two posts were sanded or filed off so that they aren't sharp against the ewe's neck. I drilled a bunch of holes (5 or 6) n the top & bottom 2 x 4 crossbars, about 1 inch apart. And I bolted the middle two posts to the desired set of holes with wing nuts so I can change the width between posts quickly. Hope this helps,
Sincerely, Mary Swindell
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