• Our vaccination recommendations
• Preventing Clostridial disease in reared lambs
• Drenching
• Abomasal bloat in lambs
• Caring for orphan lambs

 

 

 

Our vaccination recommendations

If you are unsure whether your lamb has been vaccinated - vaccinate with lamb vaccine - especially at or before docking.

5in1 Vaccine

Within two weeks of the lamb vaccine, vaccinate with two 5in1 vaccines, four weeks apart.
To be absolutely protected, your lamb should also be vaccinated with a 5in1 vaccine at weaning (or after three months) and then given an annual booster.  This vaccine prevents pulpy kidney disease, tetanus, black disease, malignant odedema and blackleg.  
These diseases can kill the healthiest and largest of lambs, usually around pet days.

Preventing Clostridial disease in reared lambs

Most orphan lambs have been rescued out in the lambing paddock.  It is not possible to know if the lamb has received adequate colostrum from its mother in its first 24 hours of life.
Although the lambs mother may have been vaccinated prior to lambing, we should assume that it is at risk of death from Clostridial disease, such as Tetanus or Pulpy Kidney

Drenching

Drenching is an important part of rearing lambs when they start grazing grass.  Drench at about six weeks old and again at ten weeks with a combination drench such as First.  This drench does not cover lice, which are usually treated soon after shearing with a pour-on or spray product.  
At weaning, and every four weeks through summer and autumn your lamb will need a drench with a combination drench such as Matrix.  Remember to treat with products to prvent flystrike and facial eczema as well.

Abomasal bloat in lambs

Even if you are not familiar with the name, it is likely that you have or will encounter this condition if you are rearing lambs.  It can cause up to 30% of reared lambs to die before weaning.
Typically within 30 minutes of feeding warm milk, the 2-4 week old lamb will become bloated.  Pain, colic and death can occur quickly in severe cases if not treated.  Even in mild cases that progress in severity with each feed, treatment is often not successful and the prognosis is guarded.

The answer lies in prevention.  Feeding cold milk in amounts less than 60mls per feed is likely to be safer.  There is a link with Clostridial bacteria and vaccination with 5in1 is urged.

Another species of Clostridial bacteria Cl. Sordelli has also been implicated.  Its recent inclusion in Ultravac 6in1 makes it a good choice. 

A meal such as Mooslie provided from day 5 to day 28 also develops the rumen to adapt to grass earlier.

The most proven method of prevention is feeding soured milk to lambs.  Sour milk is made by adding acidophilus yoghurt to milk replacer and leaving it to convert for three days.  A copy of the actual process can be pick up from our clinics.  No lambs were lost from abomasal bloat when soured milk was fed to lambs.  Despite once per day ad-lib feeding from day 5.

Caring for Orphan Lambs

When rescuing an orphan lamb from a paddock, it is impossible to know if it has received adequate colostrum from its mother in the first 24 hours of life.
 
Although the mother may have been vaccinated prior to lambing, we should assume not. Likewise, the person supplying your lamb may or may not have vaccinated it with lamb vaccine.  
 
If you are unsure in either scenario, you should do this, at or before docking. Lamb vaccine protects against tetanus and pulpy kidney for 2 weeks. Within two weeks of this vaccine, the lamb will need two 5-in-1 vaccines, 4 weeks apart. This vaccine prevents pulpy kidney disease, tetanus, black disease, malignant oedema and blackleg. These diseases can kill the healthiest and largest of lambs, usually just before pet day!
 
To be absolutely protected, your lamb should also receive a 5-in-1 vaccine at weaning (or after 12 weeks) and then be given an annual booster.
 
Drenching is an important part of rearing lambs when they start grazing grass. Treat with an oral drench at about 6 weeks and again at 10 weeks. At weaning and every four weeks through summer and autumn, your lamb will need a drench with a combination drench such as “Matrix”.
 
This drench does not cover lice, which are usually treated soon after shearing with a pour-on or spray product. Remember to treat with products to prevent fly strike and facial eczema as well.