Do you need to shear or trim Babydolls before lambing?

The added benefit to a year of cuddling is it creates a stress-free journey to the lambing experience, so lambing prep really starts from your very first days with your ewe. Daily cuddles and all-over belly and body rubs and scratches help to desensitise when we need to trim or shear the ewes at lambing time.

This is a question which depends on how fluffy is your babydoll or pet sheep. Because Babydolls legs are so short and their tummy low to the ground and they have fleece under the belly and legs it can be a mine field to simply find the teat!

Most of my girls will happily stand so that i can trim the fleece over their hind leg and belly, which helps prevent the lamb getting a mouthful of potentially dirty fleece but also makes it so much eeasier to find in those first six crucial hours.

Star below is a guide of how to trim.

This is Queen B stood up to show the fluffy belly trim and the route to the milk bar exposed!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=whD_KgQBD8o

If in doubt trim after the lambing and it's a good time to check the bag and teat plugs - head to the colostrum blog for more info on feeding the lamb in the first 24 hours.