Diseases of the peri-parturient ewe Flashcards
What are metabolic diseases around lambing time?
- Pregnancy toxaemia / twin lamb disease
- Hypocalcaemia
- Hypomagnesaemia
What problems are seen with ewes around lambing time?
- Mastitis
- Dystocia (over feeding)
- Maternal behaviour
What can increase lamb mortality during lambing time?
- Low birth weight
- Poor colostrum
- Poor milk production
- infection - watery mouth / joint ill
What BCS should ewes be pre-tupping? why?
- 3 - 3.5
- Increase BCS = increase number of eggs produced
What are problems of ewes if underfed during pregnancy?
- Small placenta = low lamb birth weights
*Decreased mammary development
What are the aims of feeding late pregnancy?
- To support fetal growth.
- To support mammary tissue development and colostrum production.
- To maintain ewe health- prevent pregnancy toxemia (ketosis).
- To ensure the birth of strong, healthy, lambs of proper birth weight
How should you sort feeding groups pre lambing?
- Separate singles, twins + triplets
- BCS
- Keep young ewes separate
How should you ration ewe pre lambing?
*Ad lib hay / silage
* Maximum 1kg per day + 0.5kg per feed
What are risks if lambs don’t get enough colostrum?
- Hypothermia
- Starvation
- increased risk of Infection
Why might you have thin ewes around lambing?
- Inadequate nutrition
- Ewe teeth (broken mouth)
- Age
- Concurrent diseases - worms, fluke, lameness
What problems can be seen with forage around lambing?
- Poor quality
- Wet, acidic, mouldy, low feed value
- Inadequate quantity
- Insufficient trough space
What problems can be seen with concentrates during lambing?
- Inadequate trough space
- Poor quality (protein)
- Too much (acidosis)
What problems are seen with fat ewes around lambing?
*More prone to -
* Dystocia (lambing difficulty)
* Pregnancy toxaemia
* Prolapse
* Large fetuses (dystocia)
* Oversized lambs = higher mortality
What is pregnancy toxaemia?
- Energy deficient
- Hypoglycaemia
- Hyperketonaemia
What risk factors can increase risk of pregnancy toxaemia?
– Late Pregnancy (last 6 weeks)
– Thin ewes (<BCS 2.0)
– Fat ewes (>BCS 4.0)
– Stress
– Broken mouth
– Concurrent disease ( fluke,
worms)
– Multiple foetuses
– Inadequate diet
– Change in diet
What are clinical signs of pregnancy toxaemia?
– Separate from group
– Inappetant
– Central blindness (Positive PLR negative menace)
– Tremors face and ears
– Hyperaesthesia
– Other neuro disturbances ( head pressing, star gazing, persistent drinking)
– Progress to recumbency
– Death
– 0-10 days
How is pregnancy toxaemia diagnosed?
- Clinical signs
- BOHB >1.1 mmol/l = abnormal / subclinical
- BOHB >3mmol/l = clinical signs
(beta-hydroxybuturate)
How can you treat pregnancy toxaemia?
- Separate + provide highly palatable feed
- Fresh food + water
- IV glucose - 50-100ml 40%dextrose
- Propylene glycol
- Calcium supplementation
- NSAID - meloxicam
**Flock tx = ad lib treacle / molasses **
How can you prevent pregnancy toxaemia?
- Adequate feeding
- Avoid sudden changes in diet
- monitor blood ketone body levels
- Don’t keep old, broken mouth ewes
- Manage diseases
What causes hypocalcaemia?
- Same pathogenesis as milk fever hypocalcaemia in cattle
– Increased demand of foetus and colostrum production for calcium
– ability to absorb calcium for gut and kidneys,
– mobilise calcium from bones
– Mediated by Parathyriod Hormone and 1,25 hydroxy vitamin D - Usually pre-lambing 6 weeks onwards (but not always can be early lactation)