Bottle fed lambs?

[photo chick]

We have recently acquired a couple of bottle-fed ewes. They are about a week and a half old now. We originally got them at 4 days. They are so sweet and lots of fun too. However, they are currently living in my dining room. Which is sweet and convenient but a little messy and a little stinky. I'm wondering when I can move them out to the barn? I'm in Vermont and while it's been way warmer than usual, it still gets quite cold at night. I don't have electricity out at the barn so I wouldn't be able to use a heat lamp on them. Any advice would be helpful.

 

[remuda1]

It's plenty warm here, I've got a ram lamb whose first time mom rejected him but kept his twin sister. I'm keeping him in a giant dog crate in our garage during the night so I don't have to trudge to the barn for night time feedings. I made him a pen in the lambing barn for during the day.

Do you have a garage? Would make a heat lamp convenient as well.

 

[Epona142]

If they stay DRY and out of the WIND, they will be fine.

It's when they get wet and blasted by drafts is when you have problems.

A good rule of thumb is to kneel in the bedding of your shelter - do your knees get wet? Then it's too damp. Either put down more bedding or clean it out and put fresh bedding.

If a lamb/kid have companions to snuggle with, it'll be fine. If not, then a soft heat lamp, SECURELY fixed so it cannot cause accidents, can help keep them warm, but make sure they can get away from the warmth if they need to as well.

 

[Skyesrocket]

Lambs are on my bucket list. I did have goats born in late December and we had temps in the teens and 20's at night. Mine were with mommas but many times during the day when moms were eating they would cuddle up together inside of a doghouse that I put inside of the pen. They were warm as toast in there.
Straw makes warmer more water resistant bedding than hay does. If you provide them with a doghouse or wooden box with a top on it that will hold in their body heat better.
On the coldest of nights I put ski type dog coats on the babies. Then took them off during the day. I would put them outside during the warmest part of the day so they have a chance to acclimate before nighttime.
Keeping them out of drafts and dry is excellent advice. If you do use a doghouse check it every couple of days and change the straw out when damp. You can also use the straw or hay to insulate around the outside of the doghouse or box.
Someday I will raise a couple of lambs...as soon as I convince hubby....lol.

 

[zzGypsy]

dog sweaters or jackets.

if the bedding is dry, and they're out of the draft, and there's two or more to snuggle up together, that's good. for extra insurance, pick up a couple of dog jackets (I like the ones that are like parkas, slicker material on the outside and have some fiberfill in them). the knit sweaters will do also, but aren't as warm. they come in a variety of sizes and you can often get the sweaters at walmart for $6 and the jackets for $10. I've never lost a lamb wearing these.

generally I'll take them off during the day if it's nice enough, dry and not windy, and put them on at night, but you can leave them on all the time. I keep them jacketed if it's cold until they fill out enough to not be wrinkly any more, somewhere between a couple of days and 2 weeks.

 

[purplequeenvt]

Hello fellow VT'er!!

To keep things clean while they are in the house, I highly recommend diapers. Nothing cuter than a lamb tripping around the house in a diaper.

As for moving them out.....you can make them jackets by cutting the arms of an old sweatshirt or sweater and then making leg-holes. Easy and cheap. If your barn is nice and snug (do you have other sheep?) you can set up a small pen full of straw or hay and they should be fine.

What breed are your lambs?