ASSISTANCE IN LAMBING. 21 



NECESSARY PRECAUTIONS IN THE LAMBING FOLD. 



Should any ewe die, abort, or strain, after lambing-, it should at 

 once be removed to a safe distance, and the woodwork and pen it 

 occupied must be thoroughly disinfected with carbolic acid or 

 other disinfectant, and all the litter, &c., burnt. It is also wise to 

 have in the lambing- fold a tub of live lime, with an empty tub 

 and shovel alongside. All cleansings, &c., should at once be 

 placed in the tub and a shovelful of fresh lime thrown over it. 

 By this simple process the lambing fold is kept quite free from 

 unpleasant smells, and the possibility of contagion from unhealthy 

 matter is greatly minimised. These may appear, to some, un- 

 necessary measures to adopt, but those who have noted the 

 disastrous results brought about by carelessness, or want of 

 knowledge, on the part of shepherds, will readily see the 

 desirability of carrying out these suggestions. 



Much of the so-called bad or good luck is usually traceable to 

 the treatment the ewes have received during the pregnant period ; 

 and a high rate of mortality amongst ewes and lambs is often the 

 result of an excessive supply of turnips, or of the ewes being 

 depastured on cold wet soil, or perhaps folded on heavy turnip 

 lands with water up to their bellies. 



ASSISTANCE IN LAMBING. 



As a general rule it is better not to interfere too soon. The 

 experienced shepherd will know when to assist nature. In all 

 cases where help is given, the shepherd should freely use 

 carbolized oil on his hands and arms before operating, and in 

 bad cases, and when a ewe has been assisted with decomposing 

 lambs, the carbolic oil should be poured into the vagina by raising 

 the hind legs of the ewe and allowing it to flow in. The shepherd 

 should always be very careful, in all such cases, and when disease 

 is rampant, to wash his hands, &c., with carbolic soap after each 

 operation, and freely use disinfectants about his clothes, in fact he 

 should never go from a bad case to assist a healthy ewe, without 

 taking every possible precaution to prevent contagion. All the 

 surroundings such as litter, and food, of any case where disease 



