The sheep we raise are Katahdin sheep. They are a hardy hair sheep breed, raised for meat. Unlike the better known wool breeds, Katahdins shed their winter coat in the spring, which means they don’t require shearing!! This is one of the reasons we chose this breed, along with their reputation for strong maternal instincts, good milk production, and uncomplicated births - for the most part. Their lambs are quick to stand and nurse from the ewes, which is a huge advantage during cold-weather lambing. Katahdins are also well known for their resistance to internal parasites and certain diseases, unlike many other breeds, which helps reduce the need for the costly vet visits. Katahdins easy keepers, able to maintain good health and weight, raising healthy lambs on quality hay and pasture without needing excessive grain. We do offer free choice of a salt lick and loose minerals, especially formulated for sheep health. We have been working at shepherding for about twelve years now and we still learn something new every lambing season.
Late-Winter Lambs
Late winter, this year, was one of the most exciting times on our farm. As the days slowly began to lengthen and the coldest part of winter started to diminished, lambing season arrived. It’s a time filled with anticipation and the joys of welcoming new life.
Last year brought an important change to our flock management. For the first time, we separated our ram, Dodger, from the ewes for four months during late summer and fall (don't worry we gave him a buddy). Our goal was to avoid lambing in the harshest part of winter when temperatures here can easily drop to –30. The result has been an overwhelming success.
Nearly all of our ewes lambed within a week of each other, in temps hovering around zero. This created a busy but manageable lambing season. Only our youngest ewe is still expecting. So far, we’ve welcomed nine lambs — four ewe lambs and five ram lambs..
This is Dodger, our herd sire.
Listening for Lambs
For the last couple of years, we relied on a surprisingly simple solution to keep an ear on the barn overnight: an old baby monitor set up between the house and the lambing stalls. Being able to hear the sheep, and in particular the sound of a newborn lamb crying, turned out to be incredibly helpful and alerted us twice, this year alone, when lambing was about to begin just as we were turning in for the night.
We’ve since upgraded to a video monitor, which allows us to quietly check the lambing stalls from the house without disturbing the ewes. During lambing season, this extra peace of mind is invaluable.
Above is a pic of our heavily pregnant ewe, Pearl, about to lamb.
A Few Lambs Needed Extra Help
Most births went smoothly, but a couple of lambs needed a little extra attention.
One ram lamb, one of a set of triplets, struggled to stand on his back legs after birth. Sometimes this can happen if lambs are overcrowded in the womb or for other reasons. We brought him inside the house and tube-fed him colostrum to ensure he got the critical nutrition he needed in his first hours of life.
Soon after, we found him a wonderful new home as a bottle lamb. As luck would have it, the boyfriend of the woman who adopted him has extensive farming experience — and he also happens to be a friend of one of our sons. Knowing this lamb went to a caring and capable home made the decision much easier
A subsequent ram lamb presented with his back feet first, which meant I needed to step in and gently assist with the delivery. A firm grip and couple of gentle tugs were successful in moving the process along to prevent him drowning in the birth canal. I then tied off his umbilical cord and helped the ewe clean him up. For the first few days he seemed fine, but on day three I noticed him standing hunchbacked and generally poor. That was a sign for me to bring him straight into the house.
Fortunately, we kept the lamb playpen set up in the kitchen from the first lamb, and keep as supply of diapers and puppy pads for situations like this. He took to the bottle immediately and perked up within a few hours. His mother, Pearl, had sadly rejected him, so he officially became one of our bottle lambs. He’s now back with the flock but gets a bottle from us every six hours and will stay on milk until he’s weaned at about eight weeks old.
This is the little guy we are currently bottle feeding.
Here are three lambs checking up on the bottle baby under the heat lamp.
Caring for Newborn Lambs
Each lamb receives a selenium shot shortly after birth to protect against white muscle disease, which can be deadly in young lambs. Otherwise, the ewes provide everything they need.
Our ewes are fed high-quality hay along with a nutritious ewe ration, and it’s always fun to watch the lambs begin nibbling at the hay and feed almost immediately as they copy their mothers.
We’ve been lucky to have relatively mild weather this lambing season, but we always prepare for the unexpected. A lamb warming box is ready in case a newborn becomes chilled, and both lambing stalls have securely mounted heat lamps available if older lambs need extra warmth.
The Lambing Kit
During lambing season, preparation is everything. Our lambing kit is always close by and stocked with the essentials: arm-length gloves for assisting births, iodine for navel dipping, feeding tubes for emergencies, bottles for bottle babies, markers for differentiating lambs, ear tags for ID and vaccines. Powdered colostrum and milk replacer are stored in the freezer, ready to reconstitute as needed. The vet's number is on speed dial, just in case. One year, the vet delivered healthy triplets, by emergency c-section, on our barn floor!!
Lambing season is equal parts joy, worry, exhaustion, and wonder. But producing healthy lambs each year makes it completely worthwhile.
As the lambs grow stronger each day and begin bouncing around the barn with the others, the farm feels full of new energy. Lambing season is always a mix of long nights, learning opportunities, and incredible rewards. We feel grateful for a successful first season with our new breeding schedule and for the healthy flock we’re building here. Watching these lambs grow is a reminder of why we love farm life so much, and we’re excited to share this experience alongside everyone who follows our life here at At the Farmhouse Table.
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As you know Jenn, I am not a farmer but found your information on sheep and lambing very interesting.
You certainly know what you’re doing, and we enjoy seeing the new baby lambs on our visits. See you soon.
Yes, Easter weekend will be the perfect time for a farm visit here!!
Wow! So interesting- lots that even I didn't know about. Great post - thanks for sharing!
Glad you enjoyed it!