Pearlie & Puddles
I'm a bit teary and sad.
The ewes are lambing and the weather has been horrific.
Icy winds and torrential rain.
Pearlie was the first ewe to lamb.
Three days ago she had a creamy coloured girl with brown legs and nose. But the lamb died during that first night.
Then last night triplets were born - two boys and a girl. The mother rejected one of the boys. I named him Puddles.
It breaks my heart to see an unwanted lamb. It's wee tummy sunk in with lack of milk. And the pitiful baa.
I've had success with mothering on lambs to ewes who have lost theirs. But it was always done straight away. Luckily we'd kept Pearlie's dead lamb so even though it had been a few days it was still worth a try.
We penned Pearlie up and restrained her while Puddles had a good feed. His tummy grew round. :)
Next, this is upsetting and gruesome, I skinned the dead lamb and put the skin on Puddles. In an instant Pearlie rushed over and sniffed him.
You could almost see the confusion on her face as she could smell her own lamb but also smell Puddles. She wouldn't accept him and backed away.
I'm still hopeful that it will work. She doesn't bunt him which is a good start and I will keep making her feed him.
At least Puddles is getting the milk he needs and if worst comes to worst I'll bottle feed him and he can be our pet.
:)
Puddles in his 'skin jacket'.
6 comments:
So pleased to have a post Niki, so sad it is not the best news. I have been reading about all the rain - slips on Dyers Pass and flooding in Lyttelton!
I do hope Puddles is accepted in his leather jacket! I remember the wee kid and how sunken his flanks were until you finally managed to get him to latch on. I don't think Puddles jacket is gruesome so much as a clever and practical solution. Good on you!
Hope the rain is letting up and the sun shines soon for the lambs - and humans!
Good work re the jacket! Isn't that how "Jacket" got his name another time? A joy of nature .. not knowing.
Ohhh, poor little Puddles :-(
When you say keep him as a pet does that mean care for him his entire life?
Touching and clever and flat AMAZING! I send all my best hopes that Pearlie and Puddles will respond to your matchmaking skills. Skin jacket! Whoever would have thought of it. If that's not a fabulous children's story, I don't know what is. I'm curious about the dead lamb. How did you preserve it?
Your life on a sheep farm continues to razzle dazzle me.
My grandma is currently looking after an unwanted lamb at her farm. She has black patches on her knees and her name is Petal (:
Sorry I'm so slow in replying.
When Puddles gets big he will keep the ram company :)
Re preserving dead lamb. It was so cold that it didn't go off. The skin jacket didn't work, Puddles is our pet :)
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