Sick Katahdin lamb...

[thethinkingweasel]

We got seven Katahdin lambs this spring, born a little later and therefore a little smaller than usual. They've been doing fine until this week. Six of them are frisky, alert, and eager to eat (grass and feed). One is a loner ... he is the smallest, tags along behind the others, and a few times has gotten out of the pasture and gone back up toward the barn by himself. The last couple of days, his chin has swollen and he is looking like he feels miserable -- moving slowly, lying down a lot, drinking lots of water. We kept him in the stall by himself today with grain and hay, and he is not eating much at all. He hasn't grown as much as the others either. Any ideas?

I will try to get a picture of him tomorrow.

 

[Mike CHS]

A picture would help but it sounds like it might be Bottle Jaw. The only way to tell for sure is by a fecal but Bottle Jaw can see a lamb go from healthy looking to dead if you don't do something about it (assuming that's what it is). You can do a Famacha check since that is one of the few things we have found Famacha to be accurate at.

 

[thethinkingweasel]

Here are some pictures. You can see a little swelling under his chin, though it seems to have gone down. He's still seeming quite lethargic. We did give him a de-wormer.

 

[Mike CHS]

That very well could be bottle jaw he looks like he has been under the weather for awhile but hopefully you caught it in time. What wormer did you give him?

 

[thethinkingweasel]

Cydectin. It does say that it's for barber pole worms, which we read is a main cause of bottle jaw.

 

[Mike CHS]

Good for you. A lot of people don't bother reading about the range for a wormer.