"It is well to remember that the entire population of the universe, with one trifling exception, is composed of others." A.Holmes

Thursday, February 26, 2015

Just Call Me The 'Midwife'

 Look at this sweet little newborn lamb leaning into her mama  under the lamp in their stall. If I hadn't played midwife this morning she would most likely not be alive, and her mama would be in sore distress.
I went out this morning to discover TWO ewes licking one newborn lamb clean of afterbirth. Before I could get close enough to check things out the lamb wobbled  from one ewe ( female sheep) to the other, trying to nurse. Both ewes seemed confused , but when Tovah, the sheep in the picture, turned around to lick the lamb some more, things became very clear to me. Tovah had two tiny lamb's feet sticking out of her rear parts  . The other sheep ( Gudrid) had after-birth coming out of hers. Clearly the lamb being so carefully cleaned and tended by both ewes belonged to Gudrid who is a first time mama. Poor Tovah, probably thinking after so much labor and straining must have felt she had certainly already given birth and why was Gudrid helping out with her lamb ?

Now I had a problem. I was by myself, no near-by neighbors to help , and that lamb HAD to be pulled out of Tovah. Desperate times called for this desperate shepherdess to act quickly. How do you restrain an unwilling ewe and at the same time pull out a lamb from her nether parts by yourself ? The only way I could. I grabbed her by the horns and held on with my left hand, pushed her up against the stall wall, leaned against her to hold her there and reached inside her with my right hand to feel out the situation. Aha, the lamb's head and shoulders were pretty big and the lamb was in the right position for a normal birth but too big to come out without assistance. I slipped the lamb's head back a bit inside, then pulled the legs out further, maneuvered the head back out and with my right hand holding tightly to the legs I pulled some more. After gently maneuvering further I got a better grip on the lamb's head & legs and pulled hard. You have no idea how hard it can be pulling a lamb out of a tight spot inside it's mama, sometimes it seems the womb is trying to suck the baby back in, and this was one of those times. But I pulled even harder ( it is always a wonder to me the head doesn't pop off when I have to pull so hard ) and with a loud BWAAAAAAAAAA from the mama her little lamb slid out making a big sucking sound as I plopped her on the straw. A healthy ewe lamb with head still intact !

The minute Tovah turned and saw the lamb all confusion was gone. She went right to work cleaning her lamb. I checked Tovah , Gudrid, and their lambs a little while ago and am happy to say both mamas and their lambs are fine & dandy. Just call me the midwife !

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21 comments:

Unknown said...

WOW Kathy, you sure had quite a dramatic few moments there! So glad to hear all babies and mama's are fine. Apparently you've had to do this sort of thing before...so glad you found them in time.
Teresa
sugar, spice and whatever's nice

Karen said...

Thank God for midwives! I'm so glad you were there and knew what to do!! I saw a calf being born once. It is an awesome sight how they stand so quickly.

FlowerLady Lorraine said...

What a wonderful story Kathy. God led you to be there at the right time and gave you the strength and calmness to do what needed doing. How exciting!

I am glad they all are doing fine. I'm sitting here with a smile plastered on my face and joy in my heart for God and His wonderful creation, man/woman and animal.

Have a nice Friday and a great weekend ~ FlowerLady

El Desván de la Gata Perezosa said...

Buenos días, que imagen más tierna la del cabrito, saludos desde españa

A.K.W. said...

I remember those days with our goats not so much with our sheep though. But now we don't have to worry about that since we only have male ducks, all neutered and spayed cats and 2 dogs.


Amy

Buttons Thoughts said...

Oh I love happening endings. Great job, I am glad you were there in time. Hug B

Anonymous said...

I'm so thankful everyone is doing well. I love these photos.

Debbie said...

Kathy, that sped my heart up just a little. I know your experience has prepared you to do these things, but I can't imagine. This city girl was put here for a reason! :)
Congratulations on two healthy sets of sheep. I would love to see those little ones AFTER the births.
I saw lilies had popped up in the gardens yesterday just before we got 4 inches of snow and more ahead for this weekend. But you can still feel the Spring coming. Even saw some robins.

Lady Jane said...

Glad the lambs and mama's are doing well, but how's the midwife doing? Are you a bit sore today. It must be a wonderful experience helping a new life to emerge.

Connie said...

Kathy to the rescue! So glad to hear it all turned out well. Such sweet pictures! :)

Sandra said...

So glad to hear all is well! You just never know what lambing time will bring!

Antiques And Teacups said...

What a joy! They are so cute! Well done, you!
Ruth

Anonymous said...

Wow! Kathy! Hats off to you and your skill in helping that lamb's birth. So glad everything worked out so well and everyone is doing fine. Speaking of midwives...do you watch Call the Midwife?

Deanna said...

Very exciting! You are a great midwife.

When our puppies were born, it was really exciting to be a part of this. There were 14 puppies altogether. One didn't make it. We made lots of memories.

d

Deborah Montgomery said...

Oh my, I can't even imagine, not being a farm girl. wow, Kathy, what a great story, I'm so glad it all worked out. Seems you were going to need the wisdom of Solomon before the one ewe turned around and you knew whose lamb was whose! This is a happy story, thanks for sharing!
Congratulations!

LL Farm said...

How exciting! Had you done this before or did instinct just kick in?
Lori

Nib's End said...

Sounds like a chapter straight out of "All Creatures Great and Small".

12Paws said...

Great job. You're a heroine! Thanks be to God.

Debbie-Dabble Blog and A Debbie-Dabble Christmas said...

Thanks so much for taking the time to stop by and leave such kind words about my 57 shades of gray!!

Hugs,
Debbie

Deb said...

That is amazing, Kathy. So happy all turned out fine.

Bee Lady said...

Okay OWWWW! I popped over because I saw something about bees and got sidetracked. Sometimes I think I want to get animals, be more self-reliant and all.... If I were 20 years younger....I think.....but when I read this....I think I'll stick with the bees!
It's sunny out today but we've had very frigid temperatures. I was just wondering if my bees made it through the winter. I can only hope right now.

Cindy Bee