Colostrum is actually the first type of milk an ewe produces after giving birth and it’s vital to the health and well-being of a lamb. Colostrum is also very important because it contains high levels of nutrients and it also protects against a variety of infectious agents. Lambs need colostrum because they do not carry antibodies at birth. And colostrum help them to develop antibodies and combat potential infections.
A lamb generally require around 10 percent of colostrum after birth (during the first 24 hours of life). You need to purchase colostrum replacer as soon as possible if the lamb has been rejected by it’s mother or abandoned. By the way, it’s a good idea to have colostrum replacer on hand at all times if you raise lambs.
Whether you are going to bottle feed a lamb colostrum replacer or milk replacer, you will need to prepare the bottle first. You can easily fed a lamb with an 8 ounce baby bottle with a rubber nipple. In case of feeding colostrum replacer, fill the bottle with 10 percent of the lamb’s weight in colostrum and feed this to the lamb within it’s first 24 hours. And during it’s first 24 hours, it will be better if you can feed the lamb every two hours.
You can use your own formula in case of bottle feeding the lamb with milk replacer. Don’t forget to sterilize the bottles and nipples on a regular basis.
Feeding schedule
First of all, you have to form a feeding schedule depending on the age and size of your lamb. And you should always follow the schedule for feeding your lamb. The lamb should receive colostrum for the first 24 hours of it’s life. And it will be better if you can feed the lamb every two hours during this first stage of life. After the first stage the lamb should be fed around 140 ml every four hours, then around 200 ml every 6 hours (this can vary depending on the size of lamb and breed). You can gradually begin increasing the amount of milk you feed your lamb, once 2 weeks passed (heat the milk replacer first).
You can feed your lamb once you have the milk measured and prepared. To bottle feed a lamb, hold it’s head up (allowing it to stand) and let it feed. The lambs should be feed standing up. While feeding, do not cuddle or hold the lamb, because this could result in a clot in it’s lung. Generally the lamb will suckle instinctively. But in case if the lamb is not suckling, pressing the bottle’s nipple against it’s lips should encourage it to feed.
You should offer the lamb fresh water, grass and hay after the first week along with bottle feeding. You should let the lamb eat and drink as it desires. And if the lamb is strong enough, then you can let it out to graze with the rest of the flock. Doing this will help the lamb to begin socializing with other sheep in the flock.
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