Agony and Ecstasy

One little ewe lamb suffocated by her own mother. Matt saw her get up and the lamb was underneath. Lambs can take a lot - cold, hunger, getting knocked around, but they can't take a 200 pound ewe lying on top of them for very long. Beautiful healthy black ewe twins born this morning. As I was making coffee Matt came to the door with a big black ewe lamb in his arms. He said he found it by the chicken coop. Yes, sometimes lambs get dried off by mom and decide to travel. He said he didn't see a mother anywhere. I knew better, but just in case I quickly mixed up some powdered colostrum and gave her a few mouthfuls. I could always give her more if I could find the mother. I gulped down some Joe, threw on my barn clothes - they are SO very dirty but the laundry pipes are frozen - grabbed my bucket and ventured out. I tiptoed to the back of the barn while Matt was putting out hay. Sure enough, there was Mom, standing by a nice black ewe twin. I brought her other baby to her and they acted like they knew each other. PHEW!! Mom has one udder but we will deal with it. I had not choice but to let one jug with two moms and four lambs out into the kindergarten. They are all looking good. Got the new mom in with the twins and sat with them a few minutes, doing cords and praying mom would let me nurse her out. Matt was in no mood, saying things like, "No more lambs!! There will be NO swinging dicks in this barn come July!" I said shhhooosssh, not around the babies, but he didn't listen. He continued, "This is YOUR business, not mine! You need to get kids in here to help you get the rams out!!" Yada, yada, yada. I don't like such tension in the barn with newborns as it is not condusive to happy milking, but sometimes I have to let him carry on. He retreated back inside to the hot bath I managed to run for him after making his coffee, and shortly after I saw him run out to go to work. Thankfully Mom let me nurse a half cup of colostrum out of her one sagging nipple. I made sure both lambs got some and went to get her some alfafa to get that milk going. Went around and got the other bottle babies fed, which you just can't rush. I also fed the teeny tiny Bluefaced Leicester twin, and the other tiny ewe twin I'm worried about, along with Princes Harry and William, Laticia and the poor little confused ewe twin from last night. Inside to mix more milk and drink more coffee. Going back out to bottle feed some more. It takes a good ten minutes to bottle feed newborns so six lambs I am feeding = one hour and that's not with chores. They are too young to hang a bucket of milk with nipples. Minus 20 F. outside this morning, 28 in the barn. Cold for newborns and I'm out of sweaters. Trying to keep their bellies full. Took the sweater off the dead baby to give to one of the twins. I'll think of something. Lots of hay in the jug to nestle in. I hate to leave them but gotta run. Weather.com doesn't match what my thermometer says, but I know my little valley is colder. Thankfully remembered to turn on my truck. I bet there will be newborns when I get home from work today. This day can't go fast enough.