Causes of High Lamb Mortality and Preventive Measures
At present, the market price of mutton is still relatively high, and market demand only increases without decreasing, which has also attracted many people to start raising sheep, but breeders have found that lamb mortality is relatively high. So what causes this? How should it be prevented? Let's learn about it together.
1. Insufficient lactation in ewes
If lambs cannot get enough colostrum in time after birth, it will affect the lambs' constitution and health, resulting in a large number of deaths. This is mainly related to insufficient lactation in ewes, and there are two main reasons for insufficient lactation in ewes: first, insufficient intake of nutrients and drinking water; second, the ewe suffers from mastitis, which affects normal lactation.
Preventive measures: After the ewe gives birth, check whether it has mastitis and whether the teats are unobstructed. Under normal circumstances, the ewe can be fed some soybean cake soup, and the amount of green, succulent feed such as grass and carrots should be appropriately increased. For mastitis, prevention should be the main approach. After birth, keep the sheep pen clean, regularly use a hot towel to apply heat and clean the udder, and use iodophor to disinfect the teat area. Once mastitis occurs, the lambs should be isolated in time, treated with medication, and suckled again after improvement. During this stage, the lambs can be fostered by another ewe.
2. Malnutrition in ewes
More than 80% of a lamb's birth weight is obtained during the middle and late stages of the ewe's gestation. If the nutrients taken in by the ewe during the middle and late stages of gestation cannot meet the needs of her own consumption and the lamb's growth and development, the constitution of the lambs produced will be relatively weak. Moreover, malnutrition will also affect the ewe's lactation ability after birth. If the number of lambs is too large, it can very easily lead to lamb death.
Preventive measures: When the ewe enters the middle and late stages of gestation, nutrient supply needs to be appropriately increased. First, increase the amount of concentrate feed, and the proportion of concentrate in the daily ration should be above 15%. For highly productive ewes, the proportion of concentrate feed in the daily ration should be above 20%. Second, pay attention to the supplementation of minerals, trace elements, and vitamins in the feed. Third, appropriately increase the ewe's exercise and sunlight time to promote digestion and nutrient accumulation.
3. Lamb soft paralysis
In recent years, lamb soft paralysis has become one of the frequently occurring diseases in the sheep industry. It mainly occurs in lambs within one month of age. The better the body condition of the lamb, the more likely it is to develop the disease. Affected lambs suddenly become ill, lie on the ground and cannot get up, are weak all over, cannot suckle, have indigestion, and have undigested milk clots in the stomach.
Preventive measures: When the ewe enters the middle and late stages of gestation, feeding management must be strengthened, and exercise and the amount of green, succulent feed should be appropriately increased, so that both the ewe and the lamb can have a good constitution. After the lamb is born, insulation measures should be done well. When the breast milk is thick, the nutritional level of the feed should be appropriately lowered, but the intake of green, succulent feed must be ensured. After the lamb shows symptoms of soft paralysis, 2 ml of compound vitamin B injection can be injected intramuscularly, and 5-10 tablets of pepsin can be given orally, twice a day. After 3-5 days of medication, the lamb will mostly improve.
The above is an introduction to the causes of high lamb mortality and preventive measures. We hope it can help you. If you want to learn more related knowledge, please follow us.