Heat, and the signs of it
In heat means the animal has entered a period in which it is fertile and most receptive to mating. Fertile means able to produce young.
Physical signs are changes you can see in the body. Behavioural signs are changes in how the animal acts.
| Behavioural | Physical |
|---|---|
| Rubbing their necks on the ram | Swollen vulva |
| Staying very close to the ram | Reddened vulva |
| Tail fanning | |
| The ram constantly seeking them out | |
| Increased dominance behaviour |
Assisting with mating
Artificial insemination
Humans collect semen from a male and use it to impregnate a female. In sheep:
- Inject the ewe with a PRID — a progesterone releasing internal device — which creates the hormones to bring her into heat
- Collect semen from the chosen ram
- Use a syringe to inject it into the ewe
Natural
The male mates with the female. A flock is generally mated by a single ram chosen by the farmer.
- The ram is introduced to the ewes and seeks out those in heat
- He mates for around two weeks, then is removed
- He can be fitted with a raddle — a harness carrying a crayon that marks every ewe he has covered
Gestation and the signs of imminent birth
Gestation in sheep is around five months.
Within a few days of lambing, ewes behave differently:
- Lying down and standing up irregularly
- Pawing the ground
- Acting out of sync with normal flock patterns — separating from the group
- The udder fills out quickly
- The vulva swells
Preparing for lambing
The best thing for lamb safety is to bring them inside and create a comfortable space. At NESCOT that meant a big bed of straw and a heat lamp overnight.
Weaning
Lambs cannot stay with their mothers forever. At 6–8 months they are separated from the ewes and put into different fields to graze separately.
Health and safety when lambing
Ewes can lamb at any time — often late at night, in bad weather, in awkward places. The rules from the original:
- Never check on sheep alone, in case you get injured
- Correct hand washing and hygiene
- Wear the correct PPE
What PPE should we wear whilst lambing?
The zoonosis nobody mentions at the gate
It is caused by the bacterium Chlamydia abortus, and it is carried in the birth fluids, the placenta and the aborted lamb. In a pregnant woman it can cause miscarriage, stillbirth and serious illness in the mother.
Because of that, official UK advice is that pregnant women should not help with lambing at all — not with the ewes, not with the afterbirth, not with newborn lambs, and not with the clothing of anyone who has been. This is not a "be a bit careful" situation. It is a "do not go in the shed" situation.
The other organisms in the same shed
- Toxoplasmosis — same risk group, same route, same advice
- Listeria — also causes abortion in ewes and is a risk to people
- Q fever (Coxiella burnetii) — spread in birth fluids and dust
- Cryptosporidium and orf — both common, both catchable, both unpleasant
Your research table
The blank table used in the original, with room to fill it in.