How to treat a lamb that is limp and cannot stand up
Sheep are a very important type of livestock in China, and market demand for mutton, wool and so on is very large. The market for mutton is currently relatively stable, so the scale of breeding is also constantly expanding. However, problems often arise during breeding, especially with lambs, and limp lambs are one of them. Limp lambs can seriously affect the growth of the lambs, so how should we prevent and treat this? Let's take a look together below!
1. Strengthen management
When the ewe enters the late stage of pregnancy, increase the feeding amount and raise the nutritional level. Meet the nutritional needs of the ewe for giving birth and of the fetal lamb for development. At this time the fetal lamb is in a period of enlargement, the ewe's abdominal pressure rises, causing the capacity of the gastrointestinal tract to decrease. If the feeding amount is not increased, it is very easy to cause malnutrition in the ewe. Therefore we must pay attention to doing the feeding work well, especially for common nutrients such as protein and vitamins.
2. Encourage exercise
Exercise for the ewe during pregnancy is also very important. In the middle and late stages of pregnancy, pay attention to letting the ewe exercise more. Maintain about three hours of activity time every day to strengthen the ewe's constitution and promote the development of the fetal lamb. In winter when temperatures are low, pay attention to letting the ewe bask in the sun more when there is sunshine, to strengthen the ewe's resistance.
3. Disinfection and sterilization ⟧9⟧During the ewe's pregnancy, pay attention to doing the disinfection work for the birthing room and the environment around the ewe. Do it at least once a day, and do not use a single disinfectant for a long time, to prevent resistance from developing. When assisting with the birth, also pay attention to disinfecting the birthing personnel and tools, to prevent bacterial infection during the birthing process. It is also necessary to clean and disinfect the ewe's teats about 3 times, to prevent the lambs from being infected with pathogens through the colostrum.
During the ewe's pregnancy, take care to disinfect the birthing pen and the environment around the ewe. Do this at least once a day, and do not use a single disinfectant for a long time, to prevent resistance from developing. At lambing, also pay attention to disinfecting the person assisting with the birth and the tools used, to prevent bacterial infection during the delivery. The ewe's teats also need to be washed and disinfected about 3 times, to prevent the lambs from picking up germs from the colostrum.
4. Lamb management
After the ewe gives birth, pay attention to doing the management work for the lambs well. Especially temperature control: the temperature should be kept at around 28 degrees and must not be lower than 25 degrees, as too low a temperature can very easily affect the survival of the lambs. Then pay attention to controlling the density well, so that every lamb has sufficient space to grow. Finally, within three days of the lamb's birth, inject agents such as sodium selenite, and mix drugs such as oxytetracycline into the feed for preventive work.
5. Timely treatment
There is currently no method that can completely cure limp lambs. Whether it can be cured mainly depends on when it is discovered. If it can be discovered on the day the disease occurs, then there is a very high chance it can be cured. But if too much time passes, because of prolonged limpness, the lamb loses the neurological and tissue functions of the body and loses treatment value. For lambs discovered earlier, drugs such as cod liver oil and Shenmai can be given appropriately, with relatively good treatment results.
The above is a brief introduction to how to treat limp lambs. There is still no effective treatment for limp lambs, and the mortality rate can reach 50%, which also has a great impact on breeding benefits. Therefore prevention should be the main focus, so everyone must pay a lot of attention. That is all for today's introduction. This article is for reference only. Thank you everyone for reading and supporting.