I have had a couple of goat kids over the years that were small and not as
lively as their siblings but seemed okay until about three weeks, when they
went downhill rapidly. Since this is about the time the rumen should be
developing, I theorized that there was a rumen problem which is why they
were okay as long as they were only drinking milk. I nursed them along, but
they never did well and died within a couple weeks. The autopsy revealed a
malformed rumen and a lot of backed-up, undigested milk. I don't know if
this is what your lamb has, or if lambs can have this problem, too, but my
vet didn't think it was hereditary, only congenital.
Bonnie
----- Original Message -----
From: "Michael Smith" <mwsmotorspo...@gmail.com>
To: <blackbelly@lists.blackbellysheep.info>
Sent: Saturday, February 28, 2009 10:17 PM
Subject: [Blackbelly] Underdeveloped twin, please help
Had a ewe with one of her twins half the weight of the other. At 2
weeks, he's 4.5lbs and she is 8lbs.
His name is Bam Bam. here he is on his birthday, you can see the size
difference:
http://picasaweb.google.com/mwsmotorsports/February_LambS213091011AM#5302876349358364882
Noticed after a few days, he was always listless, hunched, not
frolicking, and I started to bottle-feed him some pasteurized goat's
milk from the store, to supplement what he was getting from his mom.
His mom would feed both sibs, but Bam Bam seemed never to be getting
more energy. After supplementing her feeding, he seemed to rally a
bit, At this point, it was time for us to separate the lambs, since we
were planning to bottle-feed them from here on out, anyway. He again
became more listless and no prancing around. He has never been a
bottle-puncher and always acts like he is full. trying to be patient
with him, you're lucky to get 1oz in in 10 minutes. The other 8-10 lb
lambs, of course, can kill 10oz in a feeding.
His temp was about 100.3 in the middle of the day. Being new to sheep,
I took him in to the local livestock vet who is also a sheep breeder.
He suggested tubing him, and taught me how, and we got 4oz in him the
first time. I was very encouraged. But, each time thereafter, I'd get
a bit in, and then when adjusting the tube a bit, the syringe/funnel
(no plunger in syringe) would fill back up with 20cc of milk or so,
with a rancid smell.
In the mornings, even in an enclosure with a heat lamp, his temp could
be as low as 95.5. Usually 97.5 or so. Two days of trying to tube
always resulted in the rancid milk and in one case, vomiting.
Took him in this morning and the doc tried to tube him himself. Same
result, he said the reticulum was holding the milk till it was going
bad, which is why he gets no nutrients. He credited the smell with the
milk being spoiled and mixed with mucous. I thought it was bile but he
said sheep don't have bile in their reticulum.
His diagnosis: the little ram is not fully passing the milk on thru
his digestive tract. He has "some" feces and urine, but not enough.
His prescription: Today has been sub-Q dextrose only 4x a day, and one
vit-B shot (1/2 cc) per day. Try to get any remaining milk thru his
system.
Tomorrow will be: electrolytes via tube, and vit-B. Towards the end of
the day, if I can mix in a bit of milk, to add to the tube, I will
try.
The point is to try to get his temp up and get him digesting.
My question: is he just mal-formed and doomed, or has anyone seen a
case where he could be less developed than his sister and be nursed
along until his digestive tract catches on?
Michael. Perino Ranch Blackbellies.
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