Dreaded barber pole - chances of survival?

Mrs1885

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We took in a little ram lamb a couple months back. He had scours when he was tiny and the farmer dewormed him, said he was fine after but he stayed small so he didn't want him.

We brought him home to quarantine, sent fecal to vet - clean. Finally put him with others - goats and sheep - no problem. Last week he started acting odd, but he was staying with the herd, eating great, seemed fine. Friday morning I got ready to run two dogs to the groomer's, conveniently located in the vet office, when hubby came out and said Rambo had scours. I had him grab a sample and took it with me.

Vet confirmed barber pole. He gave me Cidectin (?) and had me treat everyone. Because Rambo was the only one with scours he had us treat day one, day two, day 7 and day 14 then wants to retest.

Fri, Sat, Sun and Mon he still had scours but was still staying with the herd and eating great. Monday night he seemed a little weak and when I went out yesterday morning I thought he was dead. When we went out he moved so we wrapped him up and brought him inside. When he first came in he couldn't sit up. After cleaning him up the best we could, warpping him in a blanket and give him warm water, hay, and a bit of his feed he was able to sit up on his own.

Last night his stool seemed to be firming up some. Kind of like pudding instead of water. His appetite was still excellent. I started feeling a bit more optimistic. This morning though he's worse. Can't sit up, can barely pick up his head and his stool is watery again. His appetite has also started to decrease.

At this point I'm thinking chances of saving him are highly unlikely. Hubby refuses to give up and spends a big part of the day giving him water, Gatorade, pellets, hay. I love that he refuses to give up but I'm wondering if it's fair to Rambo. Is it just extending the inevitable? Is there any chance of saving him in this condition?
 

Mike CHS

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I hope I'm wrong but his chances aren't great. Nutridrench is something we have used on animals that were originally anemic but we have only had a couple go down like this one. Vitamin B12 and 9 injections are good but they are only available from the vet. The complex B vitamins are available at our Tractor Supply and can't hurt. You can even give Pepto Bismol for the runs if they continue.

Good Luck
 

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So sorry to hear your ram lamb is having such a hard time. I hope he pulls through... Good luck!
 

Mrs1885

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I hope I'm wrong but his chances aren't great. Nutridrench is something we have used on animals that were originally anemic but we have only had a couple go down like this one. Vitamin B12 and 9 injections are good but they are only available from the vet. The complex B vitamins are available at our Tractor Supply and can't hurt. You can even give Pepto Bismol for the runs if they continue.

Good Luck

Thank you. I honestly didn't think we could save him at this point. He just seems too far gone. Hubby still isn't quitting and says as long as Rambo fights he will fight with him. Losses are so much harder on him than on me. I've kind of accepted that death is part of life and sometimes it's the young ones that don't really get a chance. I'm just glad he had a few happy months here and learned to trust humans.
 

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Vet should be giving iron as well. B-vitamins, and PRO-BIOTICS 2x day. High load and heavy deworming requires supportive care.
IMO this lamb sound extremely deficient nutrient wise. Does the lamb have coccidia as well?
 

Mrs1885

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Vet should be giving iron as well. B-vitamins, and PRO-BIOTICS 2x day. High load and heavy deworming requires supportive care.
IMO this lamb sound extremely deficient nutrient wise. Does the lamb have coccidia as well?

Coccidia was neg, just the barber pole. He didn't get anything except the dewormer, cidexin or something? I was reading on line about supplements and was going to call about it but Im worried he's too far gone. Do you think it's still worth trying?
 

Mike CHS

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SBC has much more experience but I don't give up on them as long as they are fighting. I will put them down if they are suffering but I have one problem child out in the field now that I was going to euthanize 3 months ago and she is doing fine.
 

Mike CHS

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SBC has much more experience but I don't give up on them as long as they are fighting. I will put them down if they are suffering but I have one problem child out in the field now that I was going to euthanize 3 months ago and she is doing fine.
 

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I'm with Mike on this, if they are fighting and against the odds still alive then we help them. The hard part here is this is a Lamb. If it were a goat kid I would be recommending a few things, however sheep cannot always have the same thing as goats.
That was a lot of deworming hitting the lamb. I would be getting at least the OTC B vitamins. Call your vet and get some iron and anything else needed for that supportive care. Probios are an absolute must.

@Mike CHS doesn't @farmerjan and @Mini Horses have sheep? @Baymule any recommendations?
 
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