Over 50% of lamb mortality that occurs in the first 48 hours of life can be attributed to infectious disease and starvation. Every lamb that is saved represents extra profit for the farmer.
Teagasc estimate’s that approximately half of the lambs that are lost in the first 48 hours of life can be saved by paying attention to a few key areas such as nutrition, hygiene and flock health all of which will be covered in the upcoming episode of the ‘Let’s Talk Sheep’ webinars which takes place tonight at 8:00pm.
You can register for the series of webinars which take place once a month by visiting: www.teagasc.ie/letstalksheep.
Lambing time is an extremely busy period on a sheep farmer and research has shown that 25% of a sheep farmer’s annual workload happens during lambing. If proper planning and preparation measures are put in place, it can assist in making key tasks easier, increase the likelihood that they will be carried out correctly and reduce mortality on your sheep farm.
Tonight’s ‘Let’s Talk Sheep’ webinar at 8:00pm will address what you can do to ensure minimal losses on your sheep farm this lambing season.
Nutrition
Teagasc Sheep specialists will outline key aspects of late pregnancy nutrition and feeding management to avoid conditions such as milk fever, twin lamb disease and prolapse in pregnant ewes. They will also cover the nutritional aspects of late pregnancy nutrition that have an impact on colostrum quantity and quality.
Hygiene
Newborn lambs are born with little immunity. The cleanliness of the birth environment together with the speed at which they receive adequate good quality colostrum will be covered. Teagasc will also be providing information as to how to intervene when lambs fail to suck or are suffering from hypothermia.
Flock health
Survey work carried out at Teagasc Athenry has shown that 38% of lamb mortality was due to infections. The Teagasc sheep specialists will discuss what the important diseases to watch out for are, how these diseases manifest themselves and how to prevent and where possible, control them.
This series of webinars for sheep farmers will be hosted monthly by Teagasc and is a must for any sheep farmer or anyone involved in the sheep industry. Register now and be notified once a month of the upcoming webinar which will provide you with timely, relevant and practical advice to allow you make better management decisions on your sheep farm.
And be prepared to get involved in the discussion – there will be an opportunity for you to pose your questions to each week’s presenters.
You can register for the series of webinars which take place once a month by visiting: www.teagasc.ie/letstalksheep.