Our Top Tips for Lambing Season

Lambing season is almost on us again – but when does it really, truly start or end? From selecting your best lads to do their duty in the Autumn (the most awkward date night ever), to making sure that the girls are fighting fit for the challenge of motherhood, it’s a road well trodden for all sheep farmers.

We at Caine’s might not be there for the beginning of the journey, but we’ve spent the last 100 years learning some of the tricks of the trade from the best sheep farmers in Wales and England. 

So here are our top tips for lambing! 

1. Preparation is key. Just remember the 5 P’s – ‘Prior Preparation Prevents Poor Performance’. (Yes, we know we forgot a bit, but this is a family friendly blog!) 

2. Stock up the biscuit tin for bite sized energy boosts. It’s amazing what a Hobnob can do for you in your hour of need! For ‘EMERGENCY BREAK THE GLASS’ moments, upgrade to a chocolate covered oat-based saviour. (Other brands are available - at your own risk!) 

3. Keep a flask of your favourite liquid gold at the ready for the long nights. We’re talking about a brew, obviously. 

4. A full medicine cabinet always comes in handy for the more difficult times – for farmers’ sniffles and animal emergencies. Just make sure you don’t use the wrong medicine cabinet when you’re looking for a Lemsip! 

5. Add your vet to your phone favourites. Being best buds with your vet always comes in handy, but even more-so when your flock has precious cargo on board. 

6. Stock up on whiteboard pens to keep track of what’s going on with your bundles of joy. A little note on a whiteboard can let everybody know colostrum intake, antibiotic use and other issues while you take your better half out for a steak and a beer for Valentine’s Day! 

7. While we’re talking about colostrum, you can never have too much of it about. Use ice cube trays to store extra colostrum in the fridge (up to a week) or freezer (up to a year). 

8. Look into stashing some prolapse harnesses – they’re not exactly the height of fashion for your girls but they do the job! Local farmer-run company Trust-U-Truss can help you out with the stylish accessories for the ewes. 

9. Most importantly don’t stress – it’s not good for you or the babies! 

10. In case the worst happens, and you can’t fix it with hobnobs, tea or the vets, we’re always at the end of the phone to help should you need our fast, efficient and friendly fallen stock services. 
 
We hope this list was helpful. If you already had all those top tips up your sleeves, we hope you had a chuckle instead! A bit of joy as you start the long slog of lambing.  

However, if you take one thing from the list, let it be the biscuits...
 
Good luck to you all for your 2022 lambing season!  
 
F. M. Caine & Sons