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Know How / Lambing

Compare different systems such as indoor and outdoor lambing and get advice on ewe management, including nutrition, body condition scoring and winter housing. See how to avoid problems such as ewe vaginal prolapse and abortion, how to increase lamb survival rate and prevent lambing diseases.

Advice and tips

LAMBING

Advice on treatment for vaginal prolapse in ewes

Fitting a harness and administering anti-inflammatories is the best way to treat a very mild case of vaginal prolapse in a ewe. Compared with spoons or sutures, this treatment is…

LAMBING

How to minimise bacteria build-up in the lambing shed

A clean, dry floor in the lambing shed is a simple, essential step for a successful lambing season – and is best achieved when it is not left until the…

LAMBING

Why early weaning should be the exception, not the rule

Weaning lambs early may be a useful tool to manage poor ewe body condition, but it should be seen as an exception – not an annual event. It risks setbacks…

LAMBING

How recording lamb losses led to better flock performance

Inspiring farmers to record lamb survival rates and benchmark performance was the aim of the game when Synergy Farm Health first launched its lamb survival survey. Now in its eleventh…

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Case studies

LIVESTOCK DISEASES

Orf disease: Two ways sheep farmers are tackling the virus

Orf is the more common name for contagious pustular dermatitis, and is considered endemic in the UK, and prevalent on most sheep farms. A recent study by the Royal Veterinary…

HOUSING AND HANDLING

What's in your Livestock Shed? visits £115k lambing shed

Investing in a lambing shed might seem extravagant for a sheep farmer renting all their ground, but Annie Carr of The Brays in Herefordshire has costed the expense down to…

SHEEP

Highs and lows of lambing season for award-winning farmer

Annie Carr is counting the cost of a dog attack on her ewe lambs just days before their due date. Out of 50 ewe lambs tupped, 10 had dead lambs…

SHEEP

Lack of colostrum increases lamb losses tenfold, study shows

Lamb mortalities on a Welsh sheep farm were 10 times more likely when the animals had not received adequate colostrum in the crucial first 24 hours of life, a study…

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Community

COMMUNITY

Farmers Weekly lambing gallery: Best snaps of 2024

For many, the busy 2024 lambing season is well under way – and hundreds of farmers have taken the time to send their photos to the Farmers Weekly lambing gallery. …

YOUNG FARMERS

Video: A day's lambing with FW's Young Farmer of the Year

Lambing 2019 has been a relatively straightforward affair for Farmers Weekly's reigning Young Farmer of the Year, Jacob Anthony – a welcome relief after tough and bitterly cold season last year. The…

11 things you don’t miss when lambing season is over

With most people now finishing up lambing for the year, and with the ewes and lambs turned out, there are some things sheep farmers and lambing assistants will not miss. 1.…

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Insights

LAMBING

Poor colostrum handling risks lamb survival, research shows

Poor standards of hygiene when handling supplementary colostrum are leaving many lambs susceptible to disease and death. Scottish research has shown that instead of giving them a better start, farmers…

LIVESTOCK

4 sheep recording methods compared: which one is best?

Carmarthenshire sheep farmer and Aberystwyth University graduate Huw Williams completed a HCC scholarship in 2015 looking at how extensive systems in New Zealand and Australia were recording parentage. Talking about…

SHEEP

Research shows value of monitoring ewe body condition

New research has shown just how valuable it is to record and monitor body condition in commercial ewe flocks and keep it consistent year-round.   Independent sheep consultant Lesley Stubbings…

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News

NEWS

Sea eagle snatching live lamb captured on film

A shocking incident on Pabbay, a small island off Scotland’s west coast, has provided clear evidence of sea eagles preying on livestock. On Friday 28 March, shepherd Raymond Campbell captured…

SHEEP

Principal cause of mastitis in ewes identified

Two bacterial pathogens have been identified as the principal causes of mastitis in commercial sheep flocks involved in a Farming Connect-funded Welsh study. Fourteen different strains of bacteria were found…

LAMBING

Subsidised abortion screening scheme reopens

A subsidised abortion diagnosis service designed to help farmers diagnose causes of early lamb loss has reopened for the 2025 lambing season. Sheep farmers can take advantage of the MSD…

SHEEP

Steps to improve labour efficiency laid out by sheep adviser

Sheep farmers have been challenged to limit their annual labour input to two hours a ewe by advisers who have noted huge variation in farm labour efficiency. This would mean…

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Test and reviews

FEED AND NUTRITION

Video: Buyers guide to ad-lib lamb feeders

As lambing approaches and labour is harder to find than ever before, it could be time to invest in an artificial lamb feeder to lighten the workload. With a variety…

LIVESTOCK

Buyers guide to lamb adopters

Lambing time is fast approaching, and anything that makes life a bit easier is welcome on sheep farms. Emily Padfield looks at five different lamb adopters. It’s usually about now…

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Video

SHEEP

How farmer lambs 1,000 ewes inside without oral antibiotics

Diligence around lambing shed hygiene and ewe body condition scoring have allowed a Wiltshire flock to get through four lambings without a single dose of oral antibiotics. Martin Tobutt and…

LAMBING

Video: How to successfully wet-adopt a lamb

Smell is the most important factor in the successful adoption of a lamb. This makes wet adoption, where the ewe’s birth fluid is rubbed on the lamb to be adopted,…

YOUNG FARMERS

Video: A day's lambing with FW's Young Farmer of the Year

Lambing 2019 has been a relatively straightforward affair for Farmers Weekly's reigning Young Farmer of the Year, Jacob Anthony – a welcome relief after tough and bitterly cold season last year. The…

FEED AND NUTRITION

Video: Buyers guide to ad-lib lamb feeders

As lambing approaches and labour is harder to find than ever before, it could be time to invest in an artificial lamb feeder to lighten the workload. With a variety…

See all