Question On Bottle Lambs

[Patchesnposies]

My husband brought home a couple of bottle lambs that I am trying to feed with a bottle.

I am giving them kid milk replacer. They seem to be about 2 and 4 weeks old. They are Mouflon sheep.

The largest one will not drink from the bottle at all, but will drink milk from a bowl-she is also eating hay (alfalfa) and some type of sheep sweet feed.

The tiniest one will drink, incredibly slowly, from a bottle. She just doesn't seem to be getting enough into her. I have seen her nibble at the other feed.

Her tummy never seems nice and full like the other one's does.

The one who drank from the bowl has diarrhea this am, I am sure she drank too much at once.

If anyone can give me some advice before I kill these sweet babies, I would greatly appreciate it.

Thanks so much!

 

[twotmama]

I have goats and sheep and if the babies will eat feed or drink you could try and put the milk in a bowl, babies are so delicate they have to stay warm and fed. How old are the babies?

 

[Patchesnposies]

The fellow that we got them from was selling off his flock and these babies were too young to go. I think they are both less than a month old.....the smallest still has the remnant of its umbilicus.

It is obvious that the largest spent more time on mom as it is just healthier looking all around.

I did get the baby to eat from the bottle this morning, by cutting the hole in the nipple a bit larger. I think it was too difficult for her to get the milk out before.

I plan to feed her every hour and a half. Isw that too often? I figure that feeding small amounts more often would have to be more like what they would do with mom.

Thanks for the advice and encourgement!

 

[twotmama]

I have raised both goats and lambs and if you can get them to eat feed for that extra bit of nutrition, even a little alphalfa or hay, plenty of fresh water and offer the bottle as much as possible try not to change things up to much because it will give them the scours if switched to quickly. I raised a colt on goats milk I milked a dairy goat everyday and bought supplemental milk and she would drink the milk from the bucket and if the babies are eating you can add the milk to the feed for a little extra nutrition hang in there its like their newborns they need mama.