Rearing the Lamb. 83 



WEANING THE LAMBS. 



The idea prevalent among flockmasters that 

 lambs should wean themselves is in many ways 

 not a good one. When a lamb has had its moth- 

 er's milk from four and one-half to five months 

 it is best to wean it. The breeding ewe is continu- 

 ously laboring for her young from the time of con- 

 ception, and if the lamb is not weaned from her 

 before breeding time comes again she does not 

 have a chance to rest at all. This rest, however, 

 is very necessary for preserving her vitality and 

 health. It has also been found that it is much bet- 

 ter for the lamb to be weaned at the age of about 

 five months. The lambs can then be turned on a 

 fresh pasture by themselves where they do not 

 draw any more parasites from the excrements of 

 their dams. 



The best way to proceed is to take the lambs 

 away from the ewes, turn them on some fresh 

 pasture, and not allow them to get back to their 

 mothers again. Some flockmen allow the lambs 

 to go back to their mothers after two or three days 

 in order to remove the milk that has accumulated 

 in the udder during the lamb's absence from its 

 mother. This practice, however, is a poor one. 

 Milk collected in the udder by a worrying ewe 

 after her lamb has been taken from her is abnor- 

 mal and has often done damage to the lamb. 



