There’s a first time for everything.

[Ayla_noemi]

Great shear job!!! You should continue to milk her and make some cheese, as well as freeze some in case you have a bum lamb. She's beautiful!

Just curious...why did you take her lamb from her so early? She may get mastitis if you don't continue to milk her and keep her stripped out...got any extra lambs you can graft onto her?

So this is my first attempt at grafting these two. This is how they were behaving immediately before I tried Vick’s which is all I had on hand. What do you all think about their interactions? Also this is the only available enclosed area I have at the moment and momma can be heard on the other side of the wall. Is this ok or should I vacate an enclosed area further away?

I think I’ll try the grafting just to have some experience should I really need to do it in the future. It if takes good and it it doesn’t I’ll just give baby back to momma and continue milking. Thank you all for the advice. I’ll let you all know how it goes. How long should I try the grafting before I know if it’s a success or not?

So here are a few snap shots of a video I took where baby was responding to her own mother’s cries but kept approaching Onyx. Onyx would shoo her away or give her a light head but before I put Vick’s on them as instructed. Nothing mean seems more like a “get out of here kid” kind of gesture. Baby would run away but always come back.

 

[Dani4Hedgies]

come on little one latch on you can do it...

 

[Dani4Hedgies]

yea Baby and Onyx you go girl

 

[Ayla_noemi]

I'm betting Onyx will start to look less depressed once she's fully bonded with this lamb...sheep are kind of sensitive when flock members are taken away and I'm betting it's doubly so when their lambs are removed from them too soon. She looked a little hang dog on those pics when she was being sheared and her udder was too extended.

I'm very eager to see this turn out successfully. I'm so very glad you tried this out.

So this morning they seemed to be ok Onyx’s udder was looking good. I sat back and tried to watch but my presence was obviously irritating Onyx. She stomps when she does not approve. I sat for about 5-10 minutes and when the baby tried to nurse Onyx would move away.they were doing this circle dance where Onyx tried to smell the baby’s rump and the baby tried to reach the udder. After a while I held Onyx and the baby slowly approached and drained her udder. Onyx tried to run away almost the whole time. It didn’t look promising to me. I wanted to know what the group thought.

 

[sumi]

@Ayla_noemi how are they doing now?

 

[Ayla_noemi]

Hi,

Do I was under the impression that they had not bonded to the point where Onyx would let her feed on her own. I would feed Onyx every morning and evening and return at night to assist in letting baby feed because I have yet to see it in action no matter how stealthy I try to be. Onyx only needs to be held by the halter and she will let baby feed until baby starts head butting her udder then it becomes a rodeo. Now I haven’t been to impressed with the size of Onyx’s udder but I though that was because her milk was drying out. Yesterday I took this picture though. Baby has been looking progressively plumper in the mid section. Can anyone tell me what is going on? Are they actually stealth feeding and my assisted feedings are not necessary? Is the one a day feed doing baby harm? Is it lack of exercise that’s got baby plump? Could it be bloat?! Please tell me it’s not bloat! I have baking soda but have no experience with bloat. I don’t want to loose my baby over an experiment. I don’t think she can reach the lamb feed unless she’s standing for it which I have not seen. Could she be eating the hay I put in for bedding? I still have them in the pen because I was not convinced that they had bonded. Any advice is greatly appreciated.

 

[Ayla_noemi]

How is she doing/looking now?[/QUOTE ]
So I when I went to take pictures just now baby was chasing Onyx down for a feed. Onyx kept running but I think that’s because of me. Baby did seem to ket some quick sips in though. I took some pictures of Onyx’s udder and baby from above. What are your thoughts?

Every time I held Onyx before baby would empty her udder but she seems to be ok without it.

 

[Ayla_noemi]

I don’t know if she’s been eating mommas food I guess she could be if she’s standing on her hind legs to reach. Onyx’s udder looks about right to me not distended or empty. They are looked up indoors in what was originally my turkey juvinile coop they have no acces to anything but what I put in there and the bantams that sneak in. What could it be? Even if she was only one eating mommas food and not nursing she still wouldn’t be that big right?