38 



THE SHEPHERD'S MAHUAL. 



quarter of a pint of milk should be given at once. The milk should 

 be freshly drawn from the cow, and warmed up to 100 degrees 

 before it is fed. A convenient method of feeding milk to a lamb 

 is to use a small tin can with a long spout, such as is used for oil. 

 An air-hole is punched in the cover or cork and a piece of sponge 

 covered with a cloth is tied upon the end of the spout. The flow 

 is thus made easy and equal, and the lamb sucks in a natural man- 

 ner. The accompanying illustration, (fig. 14), shows the method. 

 A very short time is sufficient to familiarize the lamb with this 

 kind of foster mother. To encourage the flow of milk in the ewe 



Fig. 14. FEEDING LAMBS. 



and the corresponding growth of the lambs, the food of the ewes 

 should be of the best character. Clover hay, bran, and crushed 

 oats, with some pea-meal, are the most preferable foods, produc- 

 ing a rich milk in abundance. The ewes must not be allowed to 

 fall off in condition, or the lambs will fail. During mild weather, 

 sugar beets may be given in moderate quantity with advantage, 

 but mangels or Swede turnips, (ruta-bagas), should be avoided as 

 too watery and deficient in nutriment, and productive of scours in 

 the lamb. In cold weather roots are apt to reduce the tempera- 

 ture of the animal too suddenly if given in any but small quanti- 

 ties, and consequently decrease the flow of milk. Pea straw is a 

 favorite and nutritious food for sheep, but it will be found profit- 



