death
Petunia, one of our pregnant ewes, died the other night.
She'd had 4 good-sized, fully-grown white lambs inside, none of which survived. Apparently they were too much for her. We think she was suffering from toxemia which, from what I understand, is where a ewe can no longer sustain her lamb(s) and turns to using her own body fat stores, which can lead to the release of toxic quantities of ketones into her bloodstream. In the end, she just didn't have the energy for all those lambs.
Could we have done something differently? Could we have prevented this? It's hard to say.
We were checking in on her every hour of her last day or so, even through the night. We didn't have any propylene glycol, which is supposed to help with the condition if you catch it early enough. Instead, we used what we had on hand: molasses and yoghurt mixed in water, which is used as an energy boost and to stimulate digestion. It appeared to be helping for awhile, but I suppose we'll be more aware of the early symptoms if we ever see it again.
Earlier that day, E had been out at the barn and then stayed outside alone for awhile, playing in puddles and such.
Awhile later, on my way to the barn, I found this, written in stones in the driveway.
(It's a little distorted now from being driven and walked over the top of, but was quite clear at the time.)
Apparently he knew what was coming.
death
Petunia, one of our pregnant ewes, died the other night.
She'd had 4 good-sized, fully-grown white lambs inside, none of which survived. Apparently they were too much for her. We think she was suffering from toxemia which, from what I understand, is where a ewe can no longer sustain her lamb(s) and turns to using her own body fat stores, which can lead to the release of toxic quantities of ketones into her bloodstream. In the end, she just didn't have the energy for all those lambs.
Could we have done something differently? Could we have prevented this? It's hard to say.
We were checking in on her every hour of her last day or so, even through the night. We didn't have any propylene glycol, which is supposed to help with the condition if you catch it early enough. Instead, we used what we had on hand: molasses and yoghurt mixed in water, which is used as an energy boost and to stimulate digestion. It appeared to be helping for awhile, but I suppose we'll be more aware of the early symptoms if we ever see it again.
Earlier that day, E had been out at the barn and then stayed outside alone for awhile, playing in puddles and such.
Awhile later, on my way to the barn, I found this, written in stones in the driveway.
(It's a little distorted now from being driven and walked over the top of, but was quite clear at the time.)
Apparently he knew what was coming.