Handling Pregnant Sheep: What to Expect When They're Expecting

Sheep are pregnant for about 5 months, and if you're not prepared, it can be hard to know what to do.
If you're not prepared, you might not know how to handle your sheep when they're pregnant. This could lead to problems like difficult births, the ewe rejecting a lamb, or losing lambs.
Here's what to expect when your sheep are expecting lambs! If you are adding homestead sheep to your small farm or homestead, it's important to know how to take care of your pregnant ewes.
In this video, we'll teach you what you need to know about handling pregnant sheep. You'll learn how to tell if they're pregnant, what nutritional needs they have, and how to take care of them during pregnancy.
Find out how to feed your ewes the good stuff, but not too so much so don't end up with difficult births.
Here's the recommended video for identifying and treating sheep pregnancy toxemia and ketosis: • Identifying and Treati...

[@mr.o5501]

So happy I found you!! Not a lot of homesteading sheep content out there!

[@waykeeperfarmandnerdery]

Yay thank you for the comments and being here for the sheep homesteading journey ;)

[@EccentricNature]

Interesting about the pee, very cool the scent is different.

[@waykeeperfarmandnerdery]

I know - it's so interesting to think about how rams can detect a difference like that!

[@hanskifamilyfarms802]

Lots of great advice!

[@waykeeperfarmandnerdery]

Glad it was helpful! Thanks for watching :)

[@nadinezarowny6216]

Can you please share the grain feeding rations and what you increase it to during all stages of pregnancy and then how much per sheep during lactation? And how much when not pregnant. New to sheep farming and really had to find info. Thank you

[@waykeeperfarmandnerdery]

I highly recommend joining this sheep farming Facebook group: facebook.com/groups/283875238439778
You'll find answers to these questions, and most importantly get feedback from different people because each person does things a little differently.
For example, when I got started I was told to feed corn - but that didn't end up working for us, so we switched to another grain mix that was locally available and specifically for dairy animals (likely mixed for cows).
In terms of how much we give, we keep it steady year-round and then increase during lactation. I don't weigh how much we give, but I will try to record it to share.🌿🌿🌿

[@jeansroses7249]

Hi-help! My ewe, who was confirmed to have twins in her, dropped one of the lambs about a couple hours ago. She cleaned up the lamb, but she won't let him nurse. Is that cuz she wants to wait until the other one drops? How long can he wait to be able to feed?

[@TheOldMayfieldPlace]

Do you separate your pregnant ewes from the rest of the flock or do you keep them all together?

[@waykeeperfarmandnerdery]

Last year we kept everyone together and didn't have any issues. This year we are separating because we have 1 ewe we didn't want to breed... I'll report back if we were successful or not on that front since there were a few fence break-outs! 😜😂