EWE and lamb survival during the harsh winter months can often throw a challenge to sheep producers.
Mother nature can’t be avoided, but implementing prevention techniques to help the production’s profit drivers survive can make a difference.
Bruce Watt, Central Tablelands Local Lands Services (LLS) veterinarian, said making sure you have your ewes in good condition with a fat score between 2.5 and three is a priority to make sure they lamb, milk and mother up well.
“In really adverse conditions it is just bloody hard,” Mr Watt said.
“Wind and driving rain kills lambs, particularly the lambs that have only been on the ground for a few days.
“Losses are certainly occurring, but people are not wanting to publicise it.”
It can be a juggling act when it comes to optimal ewe condition – being too thin in the colder weather means they won’t milk enough and won’t stay with their lamb, Mr Watt said.
“What the lamb needs is a mum that has got a good milk supply and the ability to have the lamb quickly so the lamb can jump up and get a belly full of milk,” he said.
“If she is more worried about getting a meal for herself then the little lamb can become underdone.”
NSW Department of Primary Industries technical specialist, Phil Graham, Yass, said the biggest challenge a lamb faces is wind speed, so any shelter that slows the wind speed dramatically improves chances of survival.
“It’s the wind chill factor and moisture that knocks them around. Cold but still nights aren’t a problem, so shelter is critical,” he said.
He said given how wet the countryside is now, with more rain expected, graziers need to make sure that their ewes don’t get too heavy, especially the August lambers.
“The biggest issue ahead is going to be foot abscesses, which will increase the heavier the ewe is,” he said.
“With how wet conditions are, we don’t want to see ewes any more than a fat score of three at lambing.”
He said it also comes back to some of our management practices.
“If you drench or vaccinate your ewes pre-lambing, make sure get it done through dry yards,” Mr Graham said. “Running heavily pregnant ewes through muddy yards is just going to increase your problems with feet, so look at doing these tasks earlier than you normally would.
“If you get a dry spell and the yards dry out, take the chance to do it earlier than you normally would.
“It is more important to get them through – it is just not worth the wait.”
