increase font size
Better quality feed, reduced stocking rates and shelter will all help enhance triplet lamb survival.
High quality feed, reduced stocking rates and shelter will all help enhance triplet lamb survival and ultimately benefit the bottom line.
While rumen size does not differ between twin and triplet-bearing ewes, if one group is to be given preferential feed, it should be ewes with triplets.
Supplementary feeding may be required where feed is short, but this should be a high energy feed such as peas, grain or sheep nuts and the ewes introduced to these feeds slowly. Average or poor-quality hay or silage are not recommended as they provide too much bulk.
Farm trials have shown that there is no advantage to feeding high-protein supplements to ewes on high quality pasture. Typically, it is energy that is the limiting factor, not protein.
pregnancy increases the risk of sleepy sickness and is likely to result in smaller, less vigorous lambs and poor mothering behaviour. Colostrum and milk intake will be reduced and lambs will be lighter at weaning.
Avoid set-stocking triplet-bearing ewes too early. This could result in available feed being consumed too early and this will impact on lactation.
If feed is limited, then consider supplementary feeding singles and giving the best pasture to the ewes with triplets.
Set-stock triplet-bearing ewes at no more than 10 ewes/ha to minimise disturbance and avoid paddocks with steep topography.
At birth, the temperature of a triplet lamb is lower than that of a twin lamb and they lose heat faster due to their smaller size. Shelter will help reduce thermal heat loss and improve survival.
In highly fecund flocks, it is estimated that 25% of lambs are at risk from pre-birth to 12 weeks of age.
Storms can heighten the risk of mismothering and exposure, and hand rearing may be an option.
Key Points
- Provide high quality feed in the lead up to lambing.
- Supplement triplet-bearing ewes with high energy feed when pasture is short.
- Avoid set stocking too early.
- Set stock at less than 10 ewes/ha.
- Provide shelter – triplet lambs are more vulnerable in cold weather.
- Feed is the most critical factor going into lambing and ideally, in the four to six weeks before lambing, triplet scanned ewes should be offered good quality pasture of at least 1,200kg DM/ha (approximately 4cm high) with an ME of at least 11MJ/kgDM.
Solid biosecurity practices, regular monitoring and timely vaccination are the three key pillars of effective Bovine Viral Diarrhoea (BVD) control on New Zealand farms. Zoetis veterinary technical advisor, Karley DeFrees, explains BVD is a costly but preventative disease that impacts a significant number of dairy farms in New Zealand. Implementation of a BVD control plan can help protect your herd from this avoidable disease.
Although preventable, lamb loss from clostridial diseases during the first year of life on New Zealand hill country farms continues to be an issue. A field trial, where lambs were vaccinated at docking and weaning, demonstrated that vaccination was highly effective, lowering clostridial deaths by 23%. Zoetis veterinarian Dr Victoria Chapman unpacks the importance of robust animal health programmes, vaccination timing and the potential harmful consequences for stock when vaccination isn't given.
Bovine Viral Diarrhoea (BVD) is estimated to cost New Zealand's dairy and beef industries more than $150 million every year, yet many of the tools needed to control it are already well understood. After more than 25 years in veterinary practice, Andrew Weir, animal health technical specialist at LIC, has seen firsthand the impact BVD can have on herd performance. We asked him about the role of persistently infected (PI) animals and the practical steps farmers can take to reduce their risk.
The transition period is the make-or-break window for your entire season. If this period is poorly managed, you don't just see a few downer cows, you see a downward spiral that affects the cow's health, production and reproduction long into the season.
OPINION: It's no surprise that "world-class biosecurity" continues to dominate as the top priority for agribusiness leaders, holding the number one spot for the 16th consecutive year in KPMG's latest agribusiness report.
Signing up to a benchmarking tool is not about competition, but about improving collectively, says Ximena Puig and Alvaro Luzardo who are 50-50 sharemilkers at a 164-hectare (effective) dairy farm in Eketāhuna in the Lower North Island.
A leading British farming politician says he's impressed with the positive attitude of New Zealand farmers that he met during his recent trip here.
OPINION: With 10,500 dairy farms, New Zealand continues to punch above its weight around the world.
The Southern Dairy Hub (SDH), which runs a demonstration farm for South Island farmers, has a new general manager.
Esther Guy-Meakin has been announced as the new chief executive of the New Zealand Meat Board (NZMB).
According to a progress report on the Aotearoa Horticulture Action Plan (AHAP), New Zealand's horticulture sector is making real progress on the big issues facing growers.
A fair question has been raised about how member-funded organisations should conduct themselves when taking a public position on any…
OPINION: It really is getting harder to lampoon government bureaucrats when they do such a good job of it themselves.…
