brookcove
Posted : 1/27/2008 8:59:56 PM
Modern sheep are cold weather animals and the wool is the ultimate insulator for mama and lambs alike. Underneath, however, these mamas are nekkid pretty much. Many breeds are not but these are clean underneath. My shearer loves me. 
This means the lambs find where to go very easily.
Also, there's a gland back there which scents the udder strongly - and then scents the lambs' heads as they nurse. A baby lamb smells for this area moments after birth. The whole family can then identify each other instantly within an hour or so after birth, no matter what happens. If you have lotion with lanolin in it, that's the smell the ewe is looking for on their heads (she also later smells their rear ends for the smell of her milk after it is, uh, processed).
I actually have to handle them right after birth, to clip umbilical cords short, treat them with iodine, write down male or female and check for congential problems, and give them a couple of shots. Then again at about three days they get tails docked and non-breeding males are castrated. And then again at about two weeks old they get tags put in their ears, tatoos, and another round of shots.
Since lambs can RUN just the day after being born, this means my dogs have to help corner the ewe and her lambs, and then help me catch each lamb, each time. They never get used to being caught, and in fact get harder to catch as they get wise!
I have a crook with a small hook for hooking lambs but it's still a trick to hook the lamb and get down the staff to lay hands on the wee beast before she gets away, or wiggles out of the crook. The advantage is all on her side because I can't actually hold the crook on her neck like you'd think, and putting pressure on the crook is a sure way to make her panic and bust out of it. I can only use it to guide the lamb and distract her.