Meatball

I call him Meatball. He was a single ram lamb born to a 7 year old crossbred "Mule" ewe. He was a big lamb. Not the biggest, but big enough for a mostly Katahdin ram lamb. 12 lbs. Like a lot of bigger lambs, he didn't hit the ground bouncing. The smaller ones (medium sized) are usually livelier.

9 days old

I had no reason to suspect that Meatball wouldn't thrive, but after a few days, I noticed that he wasn't doing so well. He looked pitiful. At first I didn't know what was wrong with him.  I checked his mom. She had plenty of milk. She was an attentive mother. I had observed him nursing. He wasn't sick. What could it possibly be?

5 weeks old

I finally realized he might be hungry. He had that hunched-up look. He didn't stretch when he got up. I started giving him a bottle. He drank vigorously. I started feeding him several times a day. It didn't make sense. He could get plenty of nourishment from his mother. She never tried to stop him from nursing. By all accounts, she was a very good mother. She had raised many good lambs in the past. In fact, I consider her one of the best milkers in the flock. Her only problem was her bumpy, crust-covered teats. I thought maybe he didn't want to suck on them.

Then I decided he must have been born with "big and dumb" syndrome. It's more common in bull calves, but I found a reference to it in sheep. Apparently these big boys are acidotic when they are born. Too dumb to nurse. Some sodium bicarb usually does the trick, but Meatball was already several days old and loving the bottle.

With his mom

I continued to feed Meatball a bottle several times per day. It didn't take long for him to perk up, especially when he saw me. Eventually I released him and his mom into the general population. I had kept them in a extra large jug for an extended period of time. I tried not to give him all the milk he wanted. I wanted him to nurse his mom. As time went on, he drank less from the bottles and more from his mom. The sheep were also spending more time outside grazing and less time in the barn. He often missed opportunities for feedings.

Meatball has grown into a handsome ram lamb. I have many pictures of him because not only is his flight zone smaller due to hand feeding, but he's quite photogenic. He's got a sweet face. Since he shed his baby coat, it can be hard to differentiate him from the other good looking buck lambs. Although sometimes his kind disposition separates him out. I admit he's one of my favorites. Too bad he's a boy. Maybe someone will buy him for breeding. Fingers crossed.