Let me start off telling you a little about Elsie.
We got Elsie at the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival last May. She was one of her owners favorites, and he obviously struggled with selling her. I had researched what kind of sheep I would like to raise and found
Jacob Sheep. I was excited to find such a beautiful sheep. She is white with black spots like a Holstein pattern. A friend called her our cow sheep. But, she acts like a goat. Many people think she is.
Goats are often referred to as Houdini, being able to get out of fences we thought we had secured. And she is smart. One of the things she would do was to use her horns to to hook under the electric net fencing, throw it up onto her fleece, and escape. When she escaped she either went to find the food she really wanted, such as the neighbors garden, or come up to the house to say hello her people.
She would follow us when we'd take our dog on a walk, and lay at my oldest son's feet when he'd sit in the field and read a book. She is not so interested in following the other sheep around, not even the ram or the alpacas. She likes to do her own thing. Which kinda explains the situation i found myself in with her this past weekend.
Elsie rejected Little Bob
With Lady Sif having Key, I was very excited for Elsie to have her lamb or lambs. So, when my phone, rang Friday morning, 11 July, I was excited and hopeful. Did she have twins?!
Elsie had her lamb, but she was rejecting him!
We had two days to fix it: if she didn't except him in two days, we'd have a bummer lamb who would need to be bottle fed or maybe we could foster him to another ewe.
I, in my geeky fashion, got on my computer and did more research on rejection.
After reading a bunch of info, it seemed to me that there were two types of rejection.
The most common one people were writing about was where the mother ewe would favor one of a set of twins, and reject the other. The consensus being that it was nature taking care of itself. Maybe she didn't have enough milk for two lambs, or one of them had some health thing where they wouldn't survive. Prognosis isn't good for future bonding. Luckily, this wasn't what was happening with Elsie.
My sheep fell into the second category-first time mothers not acting motherly.
That was my first bit of good news. She just might not know what to do, or be overwhelmed by the whole thing. And, I found a few things we could try to help with bonding.
Elsie wasn't being mean to her lamb. No kicking or head butting, but whenever he would try to nurse, she would move away from him. She was completely ignoring him- she did not reply to him crying out for her and she would wander away from him.
Luckily, the lady watching the sheep found the placenta. She gave Elsie and her lamb Little Bob a placenta bath. The idea is that if he smells like her she is more likely to accept him. We had to hold Elsie so Bob could feed. She didn't like it, but Bob did get to eat.
We checked her milk supply. It was starting to turn white, which meant he got the colostrum.
We also isolated Elsie and Little Bob.
On my first day, as i sat there holding her lead, she let him eat. He pooped and peed, which means he is getting nutrients from her. Then she smelled him! It was the first time she seemed to notice him.
I was so relieved. I knew we weren't done with the bonding process, but it was progress.
I spent the four days after Little Bob was born being there to help with the bonding process.
We would let Elsie out to roam and eat grass. I would watch to make sure Bob was feeding.
I celebrated each little victory.
When she squatted so that he could eat.
When he called for, she went looking for him.
When Key called for Lady Sif and Elsie went looking for Bob.
After four days, I think Elsie has accepted Bob pretty well.
But, we are still keeping them isolated because she isn't doing everything as well as she should be.
She doesn't call out to him. And, if she's really hungry she doesn't stay still, and she doesn't go looking for him when he calls.
I would say she is no longer rejecting Bob.
But, she is a negligent mother.
I hope she continues to get better every day.
I tried having them near Lady Sif and Key. Lady Sif butts Little Bob, as is to be expected. She also followed Elsie around, and is obviously lonely without her. Elsie didn't seem to care until Lady Sif stood between Elsie and Bob. Bob started calling for his momma. Elsie looked around for him and saw what Lady Sif was doing. She then head butted Lady Sif a few times and then went as far away from her as she could.
On a positive note, she seems to like Bob better than any other sheep she has met.
We got Elsie at the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival last May. She was one of her owners favorites, and he obviously struggled with selling her. I had researched what kind of sheep I would like to raise and found
Jacob Sheep. I was excited to find such a beautiful sheep. She is white with black spots like a Holstein pattern. A friend called her our cow sheep. But, she acts like a goat. Many people think she is.
Goats are often referred to as Houdini, being able to get out of fences we thought we had secured. And she is smart. One of the things she would do was to use her horns to to hook under the electric net fencing, throw it up onto her fleece, and escape. When she escaped she either went to find the food she really wanted, such as the neighbors garden, or come up to the house to say hello her people.
She would follow us when we'd take our dog on a walk, and lay at my oldest son's feet when he'd sit in the field and read a book. She is not so interested in following the other sheep around, not even the ram or the alpacas. She likes to do her own thing. Which kinda explains the situation i found myself in with her this past weekend.
Elsie rejected Little Bob
With Lady Sif having Key, I was very excited for Elsie to have her lamb or lambs. So, when my phone, rang Friday morning, 11 July, I was excited and hopeful. Did she have twins?!
Elsie had her lamb, but she was rejecting him!
We had two days to fix it: if she didn't except him in two days, we'd have a bummer lamb who would need to be bottle fed or maybe we could foster him to another ewe.
I, in my geeky fashion, got on my computer and did more research on rejection.
After reading a bunch of info, it seemed to me that there were two types of rejection.
The most common one people were writing about was where the mother ewe would favor one of a set of twins, and reject the other. The consensus being that it was nature taking care of itself. Maybe she didn't have enough milk for two lambs, or one of them had some health thing where they wouldn't survive. Prognosis isn't good for future bonding. Luckily, this wasn't what was happening with Elsie.
My sheep fell into the second category-first time mothers not acting motherly.
That was my first bit of good news. She just might not know what to do, or be overwhelmed by the whole thing. And, I found a few things we could try to help with bonding.
Elsie wasn't being mean to her lamb. No kicking or head butting, but whenever he would try to nurse, she would move away from him. She was completely ignoring him- she did not reply to him crying out for her and she would wander away from him.
Luckily, the lady watching the sheep found the placenta. She gave Elsie and her lamb Little Bob a placenta bath. The idea is that if he smells like her she is more likely to accept him. We had to hold Elsie so Bob could feed. She didn't like it, but Bob did get to eat.
We checked her milk supply. It was starting to turn white, which meant he got the colostrum.
We also isolated Elsie and Little Bob.
On my first day, as i sat there holding her lead, she let him eat. He pooped and peed, which means he is getting nutrients from her. Then she smelled him! It was the first time she seemed to notice him.
I was so relieved. I knew we weren't done with the bonding process, but it was progress.
I spent the four days after Little Bob was born being there to help with the bonding process.
We would let Elsie out to roam and eat grass. I would watch to make sure Bob was feeding.
I celebrated each little victory.
When she squatted so that he could eat.
When he called for, she went looking for him.
When Key called for Lady Sif and Elsie went looking for Bob.
After four days, I think Elsie has accepted Bob pretty well.
But, we are still keeping them isolated because she isn't doing everything as well as she should be.
She doesn't call out to him. And, if she's really hungry she doesn't stay still, and she doesn't go looking for him when he calls.
I would say she is no longer rejecting Bob.
But, she is a negligent mother.
I hope she continues to get better every day.
I tried having them near Lady Sif and Key. Lady Sif butts Little Bob, as is to be expected. She also followed Elsie around, and is obviously lonely without her. Elsie didn't seem to care until Lady Sif stood between Elsie and Bob. Bob started calling for his momma. Elsie looked around for him and saw what Lady Sif was doing. She then head butted Lady Sif a few times and then went as far away from her as she could.
On a positive note, she seems to like Bob better than any other sheep she has met.