Natasha,
I'm so sorry to hear about your lamb. Yes, death is part of raising
livestock, but lamb deaths are particularly painful, especially when
you work so hard to keep them alive.
It is important that we try to learn something from every death that
occurs. Unfortunately, all of my most valuable lessons have been
learned the hard way at the expense of an animal's life. If we learn
the lesson, then we are likely to not repeat it. Carefully review all
of the circumstances surrounding the lamb's short life and determine
if, in hind sight, there was anything that could have been done
differently. Do not beat yourself up; simply learn.
The only thing that occurred to me from reading your email is
wondering if perhaps it might be unnecessary to castrate your ram
lambs. That would reduce the amount of trauma that they have to go
through, especially so soon after birth. On my farm, ram lambs grow
up to be either breeding rams or freezer lambs, and neither require
castration. Unlike other breeds of sheep, blackbelly meat remains
mild flavored well past 3 years of age. The only time I castrated a
ram lamb was when I had to bottle feed a lamb whose mother had died.
I knew I'd never be able to butcher him, and sometimes it's very
handy to have a wether around.
It never gets easier. Don't let anyone tell you that it does.
Carol
At 03:29 PM 4/3/2014, R. Natasha Baronas wrote:
I put the lamb down about an hour after writing this. He started
crying like he was in pain. My friend talked to a nurse and they
feel that the lamb may have taken a hit to the head. It sounded
like neurological damage.
Sadly yours,
Natasha
Carol Elkins
Critterhaven--Registered Barbados Blackbelly Hair Sheep
(no shear, no dock, no fuss)
Pueblo, Colorado
http://www.critterhaven.biz
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