I would suspect white muscle disease, vitamin E/selenium deficiency. It won't hurt to treat, recover very well from the injectable vitamin E/selenium supplementation.
Hi 👋 yes this was the vets opinion / until He did the post mortem and saw the kidney and he said that looks like Lead poisoning. So we discussed that we could inject all the lambs for selenium deficiency - however we agreed to wait until we get the test results. He thought that gathering the lambs while they are Some of them a bit vulnerable would add extra stress which may not be beneficial at all, and so his advice was wait for the results and then act. So that’s what we have done. And shut the stock out of the field in question
@@DaleFarm Selenium plays a major role in removing toxins from the body. Especially heavy metals. If they are deficient, kidney damage is very possible.
I had quite a few several years ago, which was white muscle disease, but only for the one year for some reason. Kept jabbing them with Vitecel which is selenium and vitamin E. Most of them got over it, but not quite all. I've not had the problem since but i think Vitecel is no longer available. Why is it that things which work well end up either out of production or banned? Good luck with your sheep. You're right about problems with sheep, but that's always been the case and always will be. Certainly not your fault but very frustrating and worrying. Not heard of lead poisoning since they banned lead in paint, which animals used to lick of doors etc.
I immediately thought of white muscle disease as well. I've seen it a few times but not in a very long time. But the kidney thing throws a wrench into that theory. To my knowledge, white muscle disease doesn't affect kidneys. It's a degenerative muscle disease, and when I've seen it, it was always the back legs that were affected--never front legs. But perhaps that's just a coincidence. Joanna, if you're seeing this, did your vet rule out white muscle disease? In any case, I'm so sorry this is happening. Unfortunately, things like this are a part of farming. It's awful. To prevent white muscle disease, many sheep farmers dose their lambs with selenium a day or two after they are born. But that's not at all realistic for your setup. I have selenium added to my feed so ewes (and lambs in gestation) are getting selenium. It's also added to my creep feed. It's also possible more than one thing is happening here. Perhaps the lambs that went down on their back legs have white muscle while the "jittery" lambs have something else (lead poisoning?)? I don't think they can rule that out. Again, I am so sorry, Joanna.
@@craigpacker7171 I've only had the problem once, so i don't know an awful lot about it, but good lambs were going off their legs, mainly back legs, very quickly, and i lost a couple before i knew what the cause was. I asked the vet, who didn't really have a definitive answer. I also asked an old neighbour who usually has some wisdom to pass on. He thought it might be white muscle disease, and to jab them with selenium. I thought it was worth a go and it worked in that, by injecting every other day for up to 2 weeks, they pretty much all recovered. Just remembered i once lost a couple of young suckler calves and the vet did say that it was white muscle disease affecting the heart. Viticel injection at birth was the preventative action and it worked.
@@Jimyjones333 you talk crap. If there wasn’t a market for lambs we as farmers wouldn’t produce them. I wish they were produced for profit i for 1 would be a rich man. But i can assure you we don’t make much per lamb, we have no idea when we produce our stock as to what price we may or may not get until the hammer falls so to speak.
Hi Joanna. Thank you for sharing this update. I hope you find the answers soon to resolve the issues with the lambs. Kind thoughts and good vibes from down south. 🌞
I am so saddened by the news of the lambs. But you are making sure that you are all being proactive to best support your sheep. I pray there are no more deaths and your sheep recover from this. I am so proud of you showing the ups and the downs of farming. It is hard to show the dreary parts of farming and you do not sugar coat it. Thank you for sharing. Please continue to be strong. 💪 🙏🏽❤️
Hi, sorry to hear of your plight. I have offered my veterinary thoughts in the past and hope you see this amid the sea of varyingly helpful comments you have received. I agree with your vet that lead poisoning should definitely be on the list of differential diagnoses along with selenium and copper deficiencies. The best chance of diagnosing these is from a sample of liver tissue. In the case of delayed swayback you would need spinal.cord tissue to be sampled. I would urge you to send any further cases to your local APHA lab where they will work to establish a diagnosis, and will usually get funding to delve much deeper than a single kidney test for lead. Many conditions cannot be diagnosed by eye and need these tests. Please also be aware of the future consequences of lead. If your lambs have received a low dose they will likely need further testing later in the season to confirm they are safe to enter the food chain, this can be done via a blood test after 16 weeks post exposure. Amid the crisis still be aware that not every ill lamb will be caused by this condition and most lameness cases in lambs this age will likely be caused by scald. I hope the results bring a conclusive diagnosis but at this stage I would still be getting tissue or whole.lambs to a government lab. You still want to know selenium and copper status whether or not there is a lead issue but early signs are that you are winning. Explore the option of thiamine (Vit B1) as a therapy to reduce lead accumulation if it hasn't been discussed already. Best wishes 🤞🏻
I love your Gutsy approach after such an emotional shock & turmoil & your forensic pursuit of the truth and the Lead Poisoning potential is Conscientious Farming with the Welfare/Duty of Care of the Lambs Top Class - Here's hoping this gets sorted positively - So Tragic seeing Dead Lambs Best Wishes Joanna & Nick David xx
Any ingestion of lead particles should be visible in lamb droppings, as it would not break down completely in the digestive system and thereby pass through the bowel. Of course, a very small percentage would get into the bloodstream to cause lead poisoning over time. I do hope that the mystery sickness can be resolved very soon, Joanna. 🙏🙏🤞
Do you have Sheep Laurel (Lambkill) growing in that field? A cure for an affected lamb, is to make a strong, black tea; let cool, and give the lamb a tablespoon or more. (Put about 4 teabags in the pot and boil down till strong.) They will be healthy in about an hour. It sounds crazy but it works. I was tending to my friends' flock, while he was in the hospital. I found a lamb that was staggering around like your lambs. I called the farmer, and he told me about the old Scottish tea cure. When I got out to the barn with the tea, rigamortis was setting in; so I poured about half a cup of tea down its throat. An hour later I checked on it (figuring it to be dead), and was surprised to see the lamb running around, playing with its mother! Sheep Laurel has pink flowers, and grows on the same ground as blueberries.
Very sad indeed - We had a fox come into the garden a couple of years ago with the same symptoms - Back legs dragging and disorientated - called the RSPCA and they said that it was meningitis, and a strain was doing the rounds - As Meningitis spreads so easily, could this have been the problem??
It is really common as the lambs start to wean off ewe to get white muscle.. definitely looks like selenium and I would give thiamine as well. Get your soil/grass tested as you grow/cut your own hay test your soil/grass.
Very sad but interesting video! Keep going things will get better!! There’s a lot of farmers in the same boat losing lambs due to bad weather! We can see u are both doing more then ur best and unfortunately that’s all u can do is ur best ❤❤ keep ur chin up things will get better
It is clear that in agriculture and livestock, pests and diseases are a great challenge... sometimes very difficult to face!! You always do the most!! An example Joanna!!💪👌🏼🙌
Joanne, I'm so sorry to hear about this current problem.what you have to realise is that it is not your fault you look after your stock very well and should be proud of what Nick and yourself have achieved . Hope results come back during the week. Take care xx
Hi Joanna we had lambs going off there left and getting still and we had a bad batch of iodine in the middle of lambing we did loose a few to but thanks for sharing your Video and all the best from Berriew by Welshpool Powys
I'm sorry you're facing this. Thanks so much for sharing, & kudos for your diligent efforts to rectify the situation. People often tell me they want to get away from the city & live on a farm. I always try to tell them about the heartaches I experienced growing up on one. No one ever says so, but I suspect they think my family just did it wrong & that it won't happen to them. Even the best farmers have things go awry.
Is that field accessible to to public? Ie; a walking pathetic? Maybe a child or someone is feeding the lambs something. If it is can you electric fence off so much of the field that they cannot interact?
I'm sure you considered thiamine or selenium deficiencies. Because it's localized to one field, I have to wonder if it's possible the field was treated? Pesticides? Fertilizer? Have you put any seed down? I know that seed is often pre-treated, could it be that there's something in the seed treatment that the lambs, based on their body size, might get a large enough dose, even if they spit it out in distaste, so that they're affected in a way that the ewes, with much greater mass can just shrug off? Is the field that is suspect.... is that the same field that absolute tosser let his dog into the field? The guy who was quite menacing and threatening? Any chance there is a deliberate action and malice aforethought? I'm not done with the video, so I won't hit "comment" yet, but I'm thinking right now just for ideas or options. Have you treated the lambs on that side of the field? Could it be something as simple as a different brand of tail bands, where one is infused with a substance that became concentrated in a bad batch? Are there border plants (on the border of the field) that might have been treated, and whatever was used was more toxic than expected? Are they in closer to the vicinity of another type of animal or crops where the runoff from the crops might contain some unusual ingredient? I would be so distraught! I had one baby that was still born this year (lamb, out of 13 born, one wasn't alive).... and even that caused me distress. I couldn't help wondering if it was my fault for going to my day job and not being here when she started to lamb. Lead poisoning? Wow, how does that happen? you've had lambs in that field before haven't you? Now I've seen the whole video, I'll leave my earlier thoughts even though you've already ruled many of those things out. This year was the first year I had all my lambs born within a month of one another instead of spread out over three months, I got the chance to observe lamb behavior a lot more than prior years. You're totally right, they will eat anything they see.... I've seen them nibbling dirt, twigs, sticks, etc. I've never heard of a "Lead Rake" but I guess it's a thing. Hopefully you've solved the mystery, and can avoid future losses. Thank you for sharing!
Hi Joanne, pretty sure this is a vitamin E / selenium deficiency which can be remedied with an injection. Keep your chin up, both of you, you’re a fantastic job in what can only be described as a very trying spring. Neil
Did you get any new tups, blood tests probably be inconclusive but are good to be done , you too hard on yourself there are so many variables in livestock, every year so different what ever you do these things will happen and happen to us all, and very frustrating when you try very hard, you will sort it and move on to the next problem!!!
Well that’s an interesting one! Typical sheep, they have just found a new way to die!🙄🤦♂. If it Is lead poisoning you’ll just have to keep lambs away and use it for grazing for sheep🤷♂. Proper bummer after finally get some nice weather and finishing lambing😩
Well done, you have been amazing through a very traumatic situation. As you said it is most distressing because you care, don't give up the world needs people who care..............🙏🙏🙏
Well that's a shame but like everyone says that's not your fault can I hate to say this but my first thought for the people with the dogs if something by chance happen to one of their dogs they may have blamed you and being the cynic that I am hurt the poor lamies I hope I'm wrong 😎😉🤠🐝
Given the conditions of the weather doing a long time, I'm sorry that it also have effected your sheep as well. It is no way a personal fault of any of you.
Triplets are you still feeding those ewes? If yes then it has to be vitamins and drop off for singles/twins as singles haven't been given extra feed right? Twins if you stopped feeding the ewes after lambing again... vitamins just off soil/grass
Hi Joanna what a hard video to watch, i can't imagine how you were feeling. You and Nick work so hard looking after all your stock, the stress you are under must be eminence. Hope you at least get some sort of definite answer soon, after the shocking weather we have been having then this you both must be exhausted. Thank you for sharing it could not have been easy take care and be safe 👍 😊.
You are going to give them injections yet you don't know what the problem is. The main problem is you need to change your vet as they have no dam clue.
if you want to check for exposed lead in the soil you could hire a handheld XRF (X-Ray Fluoresense) machine. These are used to check soils for metal contaminants and to check for lead paint etc. Not sure what it would cost, probably a couple hundred £ for a day or so.
Sorry this has happened to you. Poor lambs and their mums. Have any of the affected ones improved? Definitely looked like some kind of toxicity. I hope you get answers soon!
Very upsetting video. Im not a farmer but just wondered because of the very heavy rain weve had would it be possible that the grass in that field could contain a higher proportion of lead than grass in the other fields?. Higher than lambs can tolerate ?. Just a thought . Hope you get it sorted im sure you will.
Terrible news, and praying for an answer. Something differential in the intake (or injections) between the lambs and the adults. Although, different results between fields is strong evidence of something in the soil.
With so much out of your control, Please don’t blame yourself. I understand your frustration of not knowing what’s happening… Lead poisoning? And only with a few Lambs? 🐑… That’s very odd🤔… Stay Strong and I hope you get an answer soon! ✌️
Horrendous thing to happen. Fair play for showing as I could see it helping others facing difficult circumstances. Hope you are through the worst of it.🤞
Heartbreaking to hear and I am certain of your commitment and love for the flock. This too shall pass and you will find a better way ahead. Cheers to you and Nick. You are both loved by so many. Peace.
Try not to be too hard on yourself because you can't control things that sometimes happen in nature What exactly are lead rakes?? I have never heard about this before.
Hi Joanna,could it b the burnt oil on the fencing stakes if the licked them,it could cause poison it can b very toxic if any animals lick it,I feel for ye after all the hard weather ye had and then all the work ye had with lambing, do not blame yourself ye are very hard workers and give it all to the farm,take care of each other.
can you cover the area of suspected lead with4-5" of clean fill and grade it so after re seeding the rain will run off gradually . Your doing everything you can, I wish you both get some good answers , good luck
Oh Joanna so sad to see this issue. Sounds like a poison ☠️ need a sample from the field to find if there’s a high probability they all have large amounts of poisonous bacteria or chemicals. Isolate the area all the lambs with illness.Also can you remember if your dad had any similarities with this illness. Must get to the bottom of this for future. Fingers crossed 🤞🏼
No fault of yours for what it’s worth! Your lambs look amazing and are a credit to you both…..really hope you get to the bottom of it. we take any loss personally but you should try not to, you go over and above most. Hope you get good luck from here.
I don't want to be unkind, but...definitely not impressed by your vet. I wanted to see more urgency from you! I'd have done a necropsy immediately. No, they're certainly not fun, nor should they be! But they can tell you answers! This is affecting your flock. This is your livihood, no?? I'd insist on toxicolgy ( poisons/ toxix exposures) screens, infectious disease screening, as well as vit deficits. All blood work. Once you had 2 lambs down, it might be worthwhile to sacrifice 1 to get to the cause ( necropsy) immediately to save your flock! I'd isolate them immediately. What if it's infectous? I'm so frustrated w your seemingly ineptness, frankly. Yes, I know it's scary and frustrating. Cry later. Read now. Ask now. Get a second opinion. Call your university animal science department. I'm sorry but I seem to know more about what to do just by watching a few other channels! A lamb eating a piece of lead is ridiculous. That would not affect your flock, like that. I'd test some soil samples ASAP however. Especially near where that horrid person w the attacking dog could get to. Open your eyes and, frankly, think like a criminal in that regard. Test the feed to see if there's any toxicity there that the ewes could be passing on. Do you need to check the moms' milk, blood for toxicity, too? I sincerely hope all for the best. I do wish you well. You're going to have to learn quicker, faster & better. Good luck.
I’m confused with your comment in places , the very first dead lamb we did an autopsy with the vet and then 2 subsequent lambs died we did the autopsy ourselves … how is this not acting fast enough? and I do trust my vet is knowledgeable and professional in his approach - I have taken his advice and unfortunately the tests have an 8 day turnaround, I know this isn’t unusual because I know another farmer who had similar problems and experiences but with calves
@DaleFarm thank you for your time & response. I'm really trying to help! Your response to the initial illness in your video did not have any sense of urgency. I certainly don't expect flapping arms, etc. But it seemed as tho your vet left you w no answers, and w very little direction as to any follow-up. Which seemed odd. I think I would've tried giving selenium and thiamine right away. Easy fix for either white muscle disease and/or polio. Both of which appeared to be potential causes. Apparently, I missed the initial autopsy - while I heard that there was a necropsy much later on; which seemed to be far too late. It was not clear re timeliness, obviously. I do realize that you are living this w whole stressy experience, and I'm not. I'm also more experienced in life, being older than you, I'm a Mom, & also I do have a medical background w people, but not farm animals. I have had to sew up my dogs head myself while 7 months pregnant and my late husband away on his military duties for weeks on end. So, I do have great empathy for you! I just wanted to light a fire under you in the video! I am definitely more assertive than you, I think. It just was very frustrating to see you and your lambs continue to decline w no apparent actions. Your answers change my opinion. I continue to wish you all the very best. Good luck.
@@theposhmaniac5169 The statement "you know more by watching other channels" is classic ignorance. You need to re-watch the video, if it was polio or white muscle disease, why would it just affect lambs in one pasture? You're not a vet, nor a shepherd, maybe keep your inexperienced armchair comments to yourself. The last thing Jo needs is posts like yours.
@vwvw4 YOU reveal yourself to be a very close-minded individual. I'm trying to learn by others' experiences. I don't just watch videos! I mentioned that because I see a common element with very different approaches. I can discern which people actually know a bit more about their particular focus & are serious as opposed to "fluff". I read scientific papers and journals because I'm interested. I look at symptoms as presented. I repeat, as presented! You don't seem to do this. You do realize that these 2 diseases do NOT appear in an entire herd? They are a sign of am individual deficit. Some individual animals, while initially OK; develop it w the normal increased exercise as they grow. Also, their nursing, which may help, may not be able to keep up as they suddenly experience symptoms & they weaken quickly. Others, in the same , just fine. It's unknown why. I also live in a selenium deficit area. The diseases are not unknown to me locally. The science behind many things are fascinating to me. Don't discount learning from a variety of sources. You're doing a disservice to yourself when you do. I'm trying to help her. I wish her well and hope for the best. And maybe others. Best wishes.
Is it joint ill ?? I've heard others having that problem ??reach out to some old timers ?? They mite know . I am so sorry Joanna and Nick .You have done well and all you can do . I've seen two different farms where the calves where fine and then found sick , they took did all they could . It's all part of farming and has been a ruff year take care .
Such sad news Joanna. Is the field in question anywhere near the spot where you caught the gentleman with the dog attacking your lambs? Suspicious me would not doubt someone like him tossing a few handfuls of something poisonous into your field out of spite. Horrible people are capable of doing horrible things.
My friend a former Suffolk breeder (pedigree) 'Dya know F while I has sheep I had neither grass, money or time to myself ' Flogged the lot, With a prised AA herd (pedigree) now, Happy Out 🤔 👍
Oh Dear! What a frustrating turn of events! I’m so sorry this has happened. Same fields as always and no previous issues!? Until now. How strange! Is there a history of lead mining in your area? A more thorough investigation/medication effort might be in order. I do hope and pray all the best for you and your flock. ✌🏻❤️🇺🇸🙏🏻🇬🇧
I see many shipping pallets on the property. Do you check the marks? The key for the preservatives used on them is on RUclips. There are several videos that explain this problem very well. I am sorry for the loss of the lambs but thank you for sharing the realities of farming with everyone. My prayers are with you.
This is a very upsetting situation about your beautiful little lambs I hope by now you did get the results and keep strong you Joanne and Nic and I know is very hard in this time on your farm and I wish you all the best 🤞🤞🤞🤞🤞🤞🤞🤞🤞🤞
apart from terrible weathger at lambing ,i like many others have lost more lambs than usual after they were born ok ,I lost 11 lambs in one group with lamb dysentery which the pre lambing vaccine should have covered
I would suspect white muscle disease, vitamin E/selenium deficiency. It won't hurt to treat, recover very well from the injectable vitamin E/selenium supplementation.
This was my first thought too.
Her vet would have considered this.
@vwvw4 we don't know that. Nothing has been ruled out or treated for yet in this video.
Hi 👋 yes this was the vets opinion / until
He did the post mortem and saw the kidney and he said that looks like
Lead poisoning. So we discussed that we could inject all the lambs for selenium deficiency - however we agreed to wait until we get the test results. He thought that gathering the lambs while they are
Some of them a bit vulnerable would add extra stress which may not be beneficial at all, and so his advice was wait for the results and then act. So that’s what we have done. And shut the stock out of the field in question
@@DaleFarm Selenium plays a major role in removing toxins from the body. Especially heavy metals. If they are deficient, kidney damage is very possible.
This is no fault of yours Joanna,I am sure the vet will figure it out. The challenges of farming.❤️
Thank you Leona xx
What a dreadful experience for you! Thanks for sharing the realities with us, the bad with the good.
Thank you for your understanding
It's becoming one hell of a challenging year.Hope your luck changes for the 2nd half.
Thank you so much! ☺️ yeah would be nice to have a better run
I had quite a few several years ago, which was white muscle disease, but only for the one year for some reason. Kept jabbing them with Vitecel which is selenium and vitamin E. Most of them got over it, but not quite all. I've not had the problem since but i think Vitecel is no longer available. Why is it that things which work well end up either out of production or banned? Good luck with your sheep. You're right about problems with sheep, but that's always been the case and always will be. Certainly not your fault but very frustrating and worrying. Not heard of lead poisoning since they banned lead in paint, which animals used to lick of doors etc.
I immediately thought of white muscle disease as well. I've seen it a few times but not in a very long time. But the kidney thing throws a wrench into that theory. To my knowledge, white muscle disease doesn't affect kidneys. It's a degenerative muscle disease, and when I've seen it, it was always the back legs that were affected--never front legs. But perhaps that's just a coincidence.
Joanna, if you're seeing this, did your vet rule out white muscle disease? In any case, I'm so sorry this is happening. Unfortunately, things like this are a part of farming. It's awful. To prevent white muscle disease, many sheep farmers dose their lambs with selenium a day or two after they are born. But that's not at all realistic for your setup. I have selenium added to my feed so ewes (and lambs in gestation) are getting selenium. It's also added to my creep feed.
It's also possible more than one thing is happening here. Perhaps the lambs that went down on their back legs have white muscle while the "jittery" lambs have something else (lead poisoning?)? I don't think they can rule that out.
Again, I am so sorry, Joanna.
@@craigpacker7171 I've only had the problem once, so i don't know an awful lot about it, but good lambs were going off their legs, mainly back legs, very quickly, and i lost a couple before i knew what the cause was. I asked the vet, who didn't really have a definitive answer. I also asked an old neighbour who usually has some wisdom to pass on. He thought it might be white muscle disease, and to jab them with selenium. I thought it was worth a go and it worked in that, by injecting every other day for up to 2 weeks, they pretty much all recovered.
Just remembered i once lost a couple of young suckler calves and the vet did say that it was white muscle disease affecting the heart. Viticel injection at birth was the preventative action and it worked.
looks like sway-back - copper shortage - lost a load of lambs to it over a few days many years ago
Don’t knock yourselves. Your diligence is saving lambs lives. You are both top class farmers.
BS
It’s a shame the care is for profit and not for the lamb… go vegan
@@Jimyjones333 you talk crap. If there wasn’t a market for lambs we as farmers wouldn’t produce them. I wish they were produced for profit i for 1 would be a rich man. But i can assure you we don’t make much per lamb, we have no idea when we produce our stock as to what price we may or may not get until the hammer falls so to speak.
Hi Joanna. Thank you for sharing this update. I hope you find the answers soon to resolve the issues with the lambs. Kind thoughts and good vibes from down south. 🌞
I am so saddened by the news of the lambs. But you are making sure that you are all being proactive to best support your sheep. I pray there are no more deaths and your sheep recover from this. I am so proud of you showing the ups and the downs of farming. It is hard to show the dreary parts of farming and you do not sugar coat it. Thank you for sharing. Please continue to be strong. 💪 🙏🏽❤️
Hi, sorry to hear of your plight. I have offered my veterinary thoughts in the past and hope you see this amid the sea of varyingly helpful comments you have received. I agree with your vet that lead poisoning should definitely be on the list of differential diagnoses along with selenium and copper deficiencies. The best chance of diagnosing these is from a sample of liver tissue. In the case of delayed swayback you would need spinal.cord tissue to be sampled. I would urge you to send any further cases to your local APHA lab where they will work to establish a diagnosis, and will usually get funding to delve much deeper than a single kidney test for lead. Many conditions cannot be diagnosed by eye and need these tests. Please also be aware of the future consequences of lead. If your lambs have received a low dose they will likely need further testing later in the season to confirm they are safe to enter the food chain, this can be done via a blood test after 16 weeks post exposure.
Amid the crisis still be aware that not every ill lamb will be caused by this condition and most lameness cases in lambs this age will likely be caused by scald. I hope the results bring a conclusive diagnosis but at this stage I would still be getting tissue or whole.lambs to a government lab. You still want to know selenium and copper status whether or not there is a lead issue but early signs are that you are winning. Explore the option of thiamine (Vit B1) as a therapy to reduce lead accumulation if it hasn't been discussed already. Best wishes 🤞🏻
I love your Gutsy approach after such an emotional shock & turmoil & your forensic pursuit of the truth and the Lead Poisoning potential is Conscientious Farming with the Welfare/Duty of Care of the Lambs Top Class - Here's hoping this gets sorted positively - So Tragic seeing Dead Lambs Best Wishes Joanna & Nick David xx
Any ingestion of lead particles should be visible in lamb droppings, as it would not break down completely in the digestive system and thereby pass through the bowel. Of course, a very small percentage would get into the bloodstream to cause lead poisoning over time.
I do hope that the mystery sickness can be resolved very soon, Joanna. 🙏🙏🤞
Do you have Sheep Laurel (Lambkill) growing in that field? A cure for an affected lamb, is to make a strong, black tea; let cool, and give the lamb a tablespoon or more. (Put about 4 teabags in the pot and boil down till strong.) They will be healthy in about an hour. It sounds crazy but it works. I was tending to my friends' flock, while he was in the hospital. I found a lamb that was staggering around like your lambs. I called the farmer, and he told me about the old Scottish tea cure. When I got out to the barn with the tea, rigamortis was setting in; so I poured about half a cup of tea down its throat. An hour later I checked on it (figuring it to be dead), and was surprised to see the lamb running around, playing with its mother! Sheep Laurel has pink flowers, and grows on the same ground as blueberries.
Jo don't upset yourself you are both great at what u do xx
Polio, Sandi Brock Sheepishly Me had the same problem with one of her lambs. She used Thiamine, and if I recall, Selenium?
Good Luck 👍
Selenium, thiamine. Yep
Very sad indeed - We had a fox come into the garden a couple of years ago with the same symptoms - Back legs dragging and disorientated - called the RSPCA and they said that it was meningitis, and a strain was doing the rounds - As Meningitis spreads so easily, could this have been the problem??
It is really common as the lambs start to wean off ewe to get white muscle.. definitely looks like selenium and I would give thiamine as well. Get your soil/grass tested as you grow/cut your own hay test your soil/grass.
Its only happening in one field of sheep if it was a deficiency it would affect all
Very sad but interesting video! Keep going things will get better!! There’s a lot of farmers in the same boat losing lambs due to bad weather! We can see u are both doing more then ur best and unfortunately that’s all u can do is ur best ❤❤ keep ur chin up things will get better
Don't blame yourself Jo it's nature and this shit world at the moment farmer p has lost new born cattle
Is someone poisoning them or did it come in the food
It is clear that in agriculture and livestock, pests and diseases are a great challenge... sometimes very difficult to face!! You always do the most!! An example Joanna!!💪👌🏼🙌
Tough Jo
I know livestock dead stock but still hits you!
Stay strong guys
Thank you for your support.
Look into white muscle disease. I had this problem with lambs 2 years ago. They all came good. Keep the head up!
Is ther ane old tratcor battrys or eletrick fence battrys around headgs i hear lans lickn em and poisn em
Joanne, I'm so sorry to hear about this current problem.what you have to realise is that it is not your fault you look after your stock very well and should be proud of what Nick and yourself have achieved . Hope results come back during the week. Take care xx
Hope you get to the bottom of this. Very puzzling. All the best 🇬🇧.
Thank you for the support x
What's not to say all this rain has drawn up mineral from the ground or been wash into the field
Yeah exactly !!
Hi Joanna we had lambs going off there left and getting still and we had a bad batch of iodine in the middle of lambing we did loose a few to but thanks for sharing your Video and all the best from Berriew by Welshpool Powys
I'm sorry you're facing this. Thanks so much for sharing, & kudos for your diligent efforts to rectify the situation. People often tell me they want to get away from the city & live on a farm. I always try to tell them about the heartaches I experienced growing up on one. No one ever says so, but I suspect they think my family just did it wrong & that it won't happen to them. Even the best farmers have things go awry.
Is that field accessible to to public? Ie; a walking pathetic? Maybe a child or someone is feeding the lambs something. If it is can you electric fence off so much of the field that they cannot interact?
Hey Tough times dont last but tough people do. U will get this sorted dont reproach yourself.
Thank you that’s a really kind comment
I’m so sorry, hope you get some definitive answers.
I'm sure you considered thiamine or selenium deficiencies. Because it's localized to one field, I have to wonder if it's possible the field was treated? Pesticides? Fertilizer? Have you put any seed down? I know that seed is often pre-treated, could it be that there's something in the seed treatment that the lambs, based on their body size, might get a large enough dose, even if they spit it out in distaste, so that they're affected in a way that the ewes, with much greater mass can just shrug off? Is the field that is suspect.... is that the same field that absolute tosser let his dog into the field? The guy who was quite menacing and threatening? Any chance there is a deliberate action and malice aforethought? I'm not done with the video, so I won't hit "comment" yet, but I'm thinking right now just for ideas or options. Have you treated the lambs on that side of the field? Could it be something as simple as a different brand of tail bands, where one is infused with a substance that became concentrated in a bad batch? Are there border plants (on the border of the field) that might have been treated, and whatever was used was more toxic than expected? Are they in closer to the vicinity of another type of animal or crops where the runoff from the crops might contain some unusual ingredient? I would be so distraught! I had one baby that was still born this year (lamb, out of 13 born, one wasn't alive).... and even that caused me distress. I couldn't help wondering if it was my fault for going to my day job and not being here when she started to lamb.
Lead poisoning? Wow, how does that happen? you've had lambs in that field before haven't you?
Now I've seen the whole video, I'll leave my earlier thoughts even though you've already ruled many of those things out. This year was the first year I had all my lambs born within a month of one another instead of spread out over three months, I got the chance to observe lamb behavior a lot more than prior years. You're totally right, they will eat anything they see.... I've seen them nibbling dirt, twigs, sticks, etc.
I've never heard of a "Lead Rake" but I guess it's a thing.
Hopefully you've solved the mystery, and can avoid future losses. Thank you for sharing!
Wishing you all the best in this diffycult time. ❤
Hi Joanne, pretty sure this is a vitamin E / selenium deficiency which can be remedied with an injection. Keep your chin up, both of you, you’re a fantastic job in what can only be described as a very trying spring. Neil
Yes antibiotics and vit e
Selenium deficiency id say, white muscle or Ill thrift we called it in NZ
My heart goes out to you, you work so hard on the farm with the sheep. I hope you get the results and it can shed some light on a solution for you.
Did you get any new tups, blood tests probably be inconclusive but are good to be done , you too hard on yourself there are so many variables in livestock, every year so different what ever you do these things will happen and happen to us all, and very frustrating when you try very hard, you will sort it and move on to the next problem!!!
Thank you, no the Tups aren’t new this time. I sure am curious to
Find out !
Well that’s an interesting one! Typical sheep, they have just found a new way to die!🙄🤦♂. If it Is lead poisoning you’ll just have to keep lambs away and use it for grazing for sheep🤷♂. Proper bummer after finally get some nice weather and finishing lambing😩
Yeah I am done with it! No more farming for me !
@@DaleFarm na your not, you just need to keep getting over the bumps in the road it gives you. You’d be bored without it 🤔😆🤦♂️x
Well done, you have been amazing through a very traumatic situation. As you said it is most distressing because you care, don't give up the world needs people who care..............🙏🙏🙏
Thiamine deficiency or white muscle disease? possibly
Well that's a shame but like everyone says that's not your fault can I hate to say this but my first thought for the people with the dogs if something by chance happen to one of their dogs they may have blamed you and being the cynic that I am hurt the poor lamies I hope I'm wrong 😎😉🤠🐝
Given the conditions of the weather doing a long time, I'm sorry that it also have effected your sheep as well. It is no way a personal fault of any of you.
Yeh the vets basically said that the rubbish weather has caused more problems x
Triplets are you still feeding those ewes? If yes then it has to be vitamins and drop off for singles/twins as singles haven't been given extra feed right? Twins if you stopped feeding the ewes after lambing again... vitamins just off soil/grass
Hi Joanna what a hard video to watch, i can't imagine how you were feeling. You and Nick work so hard looking after all your stock, the stress you are under must be eminence. Hope you at least get some sort of definite answer soon, after the shocking weather we have been having then this you both must be exhausted. Thank you for sharing it could not have been easy take care and be safe 👍 😊.
Arr bloody hell didn't need that happening hopefully your get the result and be able to deal with it 🤞
Take care 👍
Thank you! Yeah definitely didn’t need that! But hey that’s farming
Thank you for sharing. It can't be easy to show what's happening and your emotions. Keep up the good work and diligence.
You are going to give them injections yet you don't know what the problem is.
The main problem is you need to change your vet as they have no dam clue.
Wonder how would they get lead poisoning 😢😢
if you want to check for exposed lead in the soil you could hire a handheld XRF (X-Ray Fluoresense) machine. These are used to check soils for metal contaminants and to check for lead paint etc. Not sure what it would cost, probably a couple hundred £ for a day or so.
Sorry this has happened to you. Poor lambs and their mums.
Have any of the affected ones improved?
Definitely looked like some kind of toxicity. I hope you get answers soon!
Very upsetting video. Im not a farmer but just wondered because of the very heavy rain weve had would it be possible that the grass in that field could contain a higher proportion of lead than grass in the other fields?.
Higher than lambs can tolerate ?.
Just a thought .
Hope you get it sorted im sure you will.
Farming is a challenging life, you will come out on top after this tough time 🤗🤗
It sure is Brian xx
Sorry to hear about your lambs hopefully things get better soon for you.
Thank you Declan x
Terrible news, and praying for an answer. Something differential in the intake (or injections) between the lambs and the adults. Although, different results between fields is strong evidence of something in the soil.
Hi Dale farmer l am very sorry 🙏 to hear about your class lamps and your sheep 🐑 to your a lovely farmer girl ❤❤❤❤❤
Have you considered the people that owned the dog that chased your pregnant sheep? Could be they are poisoning your lambs.
Sad to say this was my thought too. Is there a public footpath next to that field ?
Sorry to hear this and hope you find the reason soon, also well done for working out that it only affected the lambs in that field.
Thank you Ian x
With so much out of your control, Please don’t blame yourself. I understand your frustration of not knowing what’s happening… Lead poisoning? And only with a few Lambs? 🐑… That’s very odd🤔… Stay Strong and I hope you get an answer soon! ✌️
I'm so sorry. The public need to understand the financials of providing food. There needs to be more support.
Thank you x
The poisoning is worrying news folks, I hope you find the cause soon.
Thank you xx
Was that the field where the dogs attacked, could have been caused by excessive stress
Have a look at there mouths first check lips swelling
Have you any broken tractor batteries used lieing about as they have lead in them if split stock can lick them
Why, it is so, you always start weeping, while this life is full of up and downs?
This is heartbreaking l hope it comes ok are those lambs born from the bought in ewrs good luck
Thiamine Joanna it’s been in the states same thing multiple daily doses check with your Vet ASAP followed by solinium
Horrendous thing to happen. Fair play for showing as I could see it helping others facing difficult circumstances. Hope you are through the worst of it.🤞
Heartbreaking to hear and I am certain of your commitment and love for the flock. This too shall pass and you will find a better way ahead. Cheers to you and Nick. You are both loved by so many. Peace.
So sorry for you I hope if someone did this they get caught and held accountable to the full extent of the law!
What about polio, deficiency in Selenium And Niacin?
Try not to be too hard on yourself because you can't control things that sometimes happen in nature
What exactly are lead rakes?? I have never heard about this before.
May be one of the angry unleashed dog owner revenge
Hi Joanna,could it b the burnt oil on the fencing stakes if the licked them,it could cause poison it can b very toxic if any animals lick it,I feel for ye after all the hard weather ye had and then all the work ye had with lambing, do not blame yourself ye are very hard workers and give it all to the farm,take care of each other.
We lost 4 lambs just last month. Still born. One was mummified. Never happened before
It’s strange , a bad year lots of farmers having problems
Possibly the disease caught from cats .
What was the result? Did you get it figured out?
can you cover the area of suspected lead with4-5" of clean fill and grade it so after re seeding the rain will run off gradually . Your doing everything you can, I wish you both get some good answers , good luck
Oh Joanna so sad to see this issue. Sounds like a poison ☠️ need a sample from the field to find if there’s a high probability they all have large amounts of poisonous bacteria or chemicals. Isolate the area all the lambs with illness.Also can you remember if your dad had any similarities with this illness. Must get to the bottom of this for future. Fingers crossed 🤞🏼
No fault of yours for what it’s worth! Your lambs look amazing and are a credit to you both…..really hope you get to the bottom of it. we take any loss personally but you should try not to, you go over and above most. Hope you get good luck from here.
I don't want to be unkind, but...definitely not impressed by your vet. I wanted to see more urgency from you! I'd have done a necropsy immediately. No, they're certainly not fun, nor should they be! But they can tell you answers! This is affecting your flock. This is your livihood, no?? I'd insist on toxicolgy ( poisons/ toxix exposures) screens, infectious disease screening, as well as vit deficits. All blood work. Once you had 2 lambs down, it might be worthwhile to sacrifice 1 to get to the cause ( necropsy) immediately to save your flock! I'd isolate them immediately. What if it's infectous? I'm so frustrated w your seemingly ineptness, frankly. Yes, I know it's scary and frustrating. Cry later. Read now. Ask now. Get a second opinion. Call your university animal science department. I'm sorry but I seem to know more about what to do just by watching a few other channels! A lamb eating a piece of lead is ridiculous. That would not affect your flock, like that. I'd test some soil samples ASAP however. Especially near where that horrid person w the attacking dog could get to. Open your eyes and, frankly, think like a criminal in that regard. Test the feed to see if there's any toxicity there that the ewes could be passing on. Do you need to check the moms' milk, blood for toxicity, too? I sincerely hope all for the best. I do wish you well. You're going to have to learn quicker, faster & better. Good luck.
I’m confused with your comment in places , the very first dead lamb we did an autopsy with the vet and then 2 subsequent lambs died we did the autopsy ourselves … how is this not acting fast enough? and I do trust my vet is knowledgeable and professional in his approach - I have taken his advice and unfortunately the tests have an 8 day turnaround, I know this isn’t unusual because I know another farmer who had similar problems and experiences but with calves
@DaleFarm thank you for your time & response. I'm really trying to help! Your response to the initial illness in your video did not have any sense of urgency. I certainly don't expect flapping arms, etc. But it seemed as tho your vet left you w no answers, and w very little direction as to any follow-up. Which seemed odd. I think I would've tried giving selenium and thiamine right away. Easy fix for either white muscle disease and/or polio. Both of which appeared to be potential causes. Apparently, I missed the initial autopsy - while I heard that there was a necropsy much later on; which seemed to be far too late. It was not clear re timeliness, obviously. I do realize that you are living this w whole stressy experience, and I'm not. I'm also more experienced in life, being older than you, I'm a Mom, & also I do have a medical background w people, but not farm animals. I have had to sew up my dogs head myself while 7 months pregnant and my late husband away on his military duties for weeks on end. So, I do have great empathy for you! I just wanted to light a fire under you in the video! I am definitely more assertive than you, I think. It just was very frustrating to see you and your lambs continue to decline w no apparent actions. Your answers change my opinion. I continue to wish you all the very best. Good luck.
@@theposhmaniac5169 The statement "you know more by watching other channels" is classic ignorance. You need to re-watch the video, if it was polio or white muscle disease, why would it just affect lambs in one pasture? You're not a vet, nor a shepherd, maybe keep your inexperienced armchair comments to yourself. The last thing Jo needs is posts like yours.
@vwvw4 YOU reveal yourself to be a very close-minded individual. I'm trying to learn by others' experiences. I don't just watch videos! I mentioned that because I see a common element with very different approaches. I can discern which people actually know a bit more about their particular focus & are serious as opposed to "fluff". I read scientific papers and journals because I'm interested. I look at symptoms as presented. I repeat, as presented! You don't seem to do this. You do realize that these 2 diseases do NOT appear in an entire herd? They are a sign of am individual deficit. Some individual animals, while initially OK; develop it w the normal increased exercise as they grow. Also, their nursing, which may help, may not be able to keep up as they suddenly experience symptoms & they weaken quickly. Others, in the same , just fine. It's unknown why. I also live in a selenium deficit area. The diseases are not unknown to me locally. The science behind many things are fascinating to me. Don't discount learning from a variety of sources. You're doing a disservice to yourself when you do. I'm trying to help her. I wish her well and hope for the best. And maybe others. Best wishes.
Where on earth would yhe lead come from
hey joanna don't loose hopes it's not your fault for the deaths of lambs
Thank you xx
Is it joint ill ?? I've heard others having that problem ??reach out to some old timers ?? They mite know .
I am so sorry Joanna and Nick .You have done well and all you can do .
I've seen two different farms where the calves where fine and then found sick , they took did all they could .
It's all part of farming and has been a ruff year take care .
Have you texel in the breed
5:14 Is Dead Lamb, a boy or girl⁉️
Don’t be blaming yourself,,
I hope blood test will find out what caused the issue
😢😢😢😢
Such sad news Joanna. Is the field in question anywhere near the spot where you caught the gentleman with the dog attacking your lambs? Suspicious me would not doubt someone like him tossing a few handfuls of something poisonous into your field out of spite. Horrible people are capable of doing horrible things.
Get samples of the soil tested
Poor lambs. Go vegan
Enterotoxemia(Overeating Disease)..focus on Prevention next time..since no good treatment is available 🤷♂️
Could it be sheep polio?
swayback,possibly
My friend a former Suffolk breeder (pedigree)
'Dya know F while I has sheep I had neither grass, money or time to myself '
Flogged the lot,
With a prised AA herd (pedigree) now,
Happy Out 🤔 👍
Stagnation at lung!
u are doing a good job
Oh Dear! What a frustrating turn of events! I’m so sorry this has happened. Same fields as always and no previous issues!? Until now. How strange! Is there a history of lead mining in your area? A more thorough investigation/medication effort might be in order. I do hope and pray all the best for you and your flock. ✌🏻❤️🇺🇸🙏🏻🇬🇧
I'm praying for your lambs. 🙏 Jesus is the good shepherd, Gospel of John, chapter 10 and you are the good shepherdess.❤
I see many shipping pallets on the property. Do you check the marks? The key for the preservatives used on them is on RUclips. There are several videos that explain this problem very well. I am sorry for the loss of the lambs but thank you for sharing the realities of farming with everyone. My prayers are with you.
This is a very upsetting situation about your beautiful little lambs I hope by now you did get the results and keep strong you Joanne and Nic and I know is very hard in this time on your farm and I wish you all the best 🤞🤞🤞🤞🤞🤞🤞🤞🤞🤞
apart from terrible weathger at lambing ,i like many others have lost more lambs than usual after they were born ok ,I lost 11 lambs in one group with lamb dysentery which the pre lambing vaccine should have covered
B1 and selenium deficiency looks like that. Crack on! You’ll figure this out