Country Vet Blossom’s bad birth plan
When the birthing process stops, there's only one way out.
The problem
Blossom was in her third pregnancy and had no problems with the first two.
But her attentive owners contacted a vet when her water bag emerged to check whether it was normal.
The appearance of the foetal membrane starts the clock for the second stage of labour, which is when you'll see active contractions.
The owner was advised not to intervene, to avoid stressing Blossom – which can slow labour – and keep an eye on her. If she showed no signs of progress in the following two hours, they should call back. Labour that doesn't progress usually means something isn't right, and the lambs can become distressed.
The investigation
The owners called back after six hours, as Blossom still hadn't produced any lambs.
Luckily, a tiny foot was present at the cervix, allowing the vet who attended to take its pulse. The lamb was alive, but its heart rate was slow and weak. There was also meconium in Blossom's amniotic fluids. Meconium is the first poo from the lamb and tells us it's likely to be in distress.
The vet found Blossom was suffering from a condition called ringwomb that can affect sheep and goats. The cervix doesn't dilate sufficiently, so any lambs inside the womb can't get out. The placenta will often detach, cutting off the blood supply and oxygen to the lamb or lambs. Unless they get help quickly, up to a third of all lambs die. If they're delivered (by caesarean), they're often weak and die shortly afterward.
If you miss seeing an affected ewe when she's in labour, after a few hours, the cervix may start to close. The dead lambs begin to decompose, causing an infection in the mother, which can kill her.
The treatment
Early treatment is crucial if there's any hope of birthing live lambs, and an emergency caesarean is the only option. Thankfully, sheep are fantastic candidates for caesarean sections. So long as there are no additional health issues, they usually make a full recovery.
The problem is the surgery must take place in the field, in this case, in the wet, at dusk. Blossom received intravenous antibiotics to help protect her from infection, a light sedative to encourage her to lie still, and we numbed her abdomen, so she didn't feel any pain. She was a bottle-reared pet, so she was happy to lie down with her owner holding her head.
To our delight, there were two beautiful girl lambs. One was more stressed and compromised than the other, with a weak, slow pulse. She initially couldn't breathe on her own, so we rubbed her vigorously with
towels, placed her in the recovery position, and tried to stimulate her breathing reflex. Eventually, after a very long 30 seconds, she took a gasp.
We placed the lambs by their mum's head. Blossom licked, nuzzled, and murmured to them while we stitched her abdomen.
The result
Blossom was helped to her feet so she could feed her lambs. We gave her a high energy drench full of sugar, electrolytes, calcium, and other goodies to help her recovery. She also received antibiotics and pain relief for a further week.
Since one lamb was particularly weak, we milked Blossom and gave the lamb a bottle to ensure she got a good first drink of colostrum. Her sister happily guzzled away direct from her mum.
Blossom and her lambs spent the night in a warm, dry spot. Her owners made regular visits overnight and throughout the next day to ensure both lambs were drinking. They gave the occasional bottle to the weaker one.
Blossom recovered well, and after a couple of days, both lambs were bouncing around the paddock.