Can I upgrade or is it too late?

bknthesdle · #1 03/14/12, 03:17 PM

I am wondering if I can switch my bottle lambs over to self feeding? They are almost 5 weeks old. Or will they overeat and die?

Looking4ewes · #2 03/14/12, 04:15 PM

Yes!!! Get them on a bucket feeder and put a frozen water battle in the bucket to keep milk cold. Keeps milk fresher and lambs won't overeat. Offer hay/creep feed to promote eating solid foods. Enjoy your life again! ;-) I have 5 on the bottle now, and I will put them on the bucket by day 10.

Wendy

**Ross** · #3 03/14/12, 04:25 PM

Should work as described above!

kirsten · #4 03/15/12, 08:44 PM

I wouldn't. And what do you mean by self feeding? Putting the days ration in the bucket or putting the right amount per lamb per feeding in the bucket at a time? Lambs do over eat and die. A dairy guy I know who free choice feeds weans them at 25 days because they do start dying. To go from a restricted to non-restricted ration is like a kid in a candy store, cold or not. 5 week old lambs are very weanable too. If you lessen the amount you are feeding them and only put out what they are going to consume at that feeding, it would work. Instead of cutting out bottles like I usually do, I was going to this year start cutting the ration instead of the number of feedings and see how that worked.

houndlover · #5 03/15/12, 08:48 PM

This is how I always raise my bottle kids/lambs. I feed them by hand for the first month, and then switch them to a bucket. I only put as much in the bucket as I expect them to consume at one feeding, but by 5 weeks, I'm only feeding them 2X a day. I don't give it to them cold, but I don't heat it - room temp.