Organisation

I always look forward to the lambing starting, all those cute little rascal lambs racing around the fields is the postcard picture that signals the beginning of spring.

When lambing goes well, with relatively few problems, and the weather works out it can be a rewarding and satisfying time of year.

It can also be the opposite and Michael feels it is important to be organised which suits his Germanic nature anyway!

A week or two before the ewes start lambing Michael has the sheep shed set up like a maternity ward with rows of individual pens for the expectant mothers to file into once baby has arrived.

He has a very neat and tidy box of medical supplies to cover almost every lambing related eventuality, and another box for post- lambing full of tail rings, disinfectant, marking sprays, tags and so on.

Lambing

In the weeks leading up to the lambing Michael keeps a regular check on the sheep shed. When lambing begins he is there almost all the time, his constant presence is a key factor to reducing lamb losses, ewe deaths and marauding ewes trying to steal newborn lambs.

Perhaps unlike other farmers, he does not check the ewes through the night. Around midnight he will turn off the lights and leave the shed, returning at about 6am. He has lambed like this for more than a decade and finds it works well for him.

He has a fairly straight forward, flexible system for each ewe lambing. Basically a lambing ewe is checked and if she is managing fine, she is not interfered with. If she needs a hand then she is helped. As each ewe births her lamb/s she is moved from the big communal pen to her own private accommodation where she and her lambs are monitored to ensure everything is going smoothly.

Recording system

When the lambs are born their navels are dipped in disinfectant and they are all given an oral dose of Scour Halt to help prevent scour.

We run a flock of pedigree Lleyns so the male lambs are not castrated immediately, but all the lambs get rings put on their tails for maggot or fly strike prevention.

They are tagged with a coloured disc to indicate their sire, our flock number and a Department approved electronic ID tag. This, along with other information, is recorded onto the handheld electronic tag reader from TGM Software.

Initially I thought I was going to be chained to the computer operating the sheep software for Michael, but to my delight he has taken to it like a duck to water.

He is finding it incredibly useful and easy to use as all the information is recorded in situ and then transferred to the computer each evening.

Farm safety

During busy periods farm safety is crucial and easily overlooked so I was delighted when our farm passed its recent Teagasc farm safety and risk assessment.

Our lambing is nearly over and this year it was relatively straightforward with no major incidents. With the lambs bouncing about the fields, spring has really sprung and it’s time to get the camera out for that perfect postcard picture!