Setting up your Ewe2 Feeder for surplus lambs

Getting the correct surplus lamb rearing set up to suit your lambing system and provide your lambs with the best start is important for efficiency, productivity and lamb health. If you’ve purchased a Ewe2 feeder to help benefit your lamb rearing system, we’ve got some tips for getting the most out of your feeder and surplus lambs.

1. Lamb Requirements

 Group size

Keep lambs in groups no bigger than 25 in a warm, draught free and dry shed.

 Pen size

Lambs up to 12kg live weight require 0.5->0.6m² per lamb and lambs between 13-30kg live weight require 0.8 ->0.9m² per lamb. Based on that, a pen made up of 5 X 3 3ft hurdles would be suggested for 25 lambs weighing up to 13kg each. A pen made up of 5 X 5 3ft hurdles would be suggested for 25 lambs over 13kgs.

Feed and bedding

Lambs should be provided with fresh water and straw, not hay, from birth to aid rumen development. Good quality creep can be introduced from one week old. Bedding should be clean and dry at all times.

 Feeding temperature

 It is recommended that new-born lambs are started on milk at 30oC. Once they have been trained on the teats and are drinking well, the temperature can be reduced to 18 – 20oC. Reducing the milk temperature will help to reduce the risk of over-consumption.  If feeding cold, ensure the milk is mixed cold, and not mixed warm and left to cool. Allowing milk to cool in the feeder may encourage the lambs to drink more quickly whilst the milk is warm and increase the risk of gorging.

2. The Ewe2 Feeder

The Ewe2 feeder can supply up to 20 lambs with warm, pre-mixed ad lib milk.

Feeder requirements

• One teat per 10 lambs
• A power supply for the heating element
• Make sure the feeder is on a dry and level surface, with all plugs and sockets covered 

 Cleaning the feeder

• Warm milk is an ideal breeding ground for bacteria. Daily cleaning of the feeder and tubing is essential.
• Inner bucket should be thoroughly cleaned daily before refilling
• For best practice: Rinse with lukewarm water, Scrub & wash with hot water & a detergent, then rinse with clean water, then refill.

Top tips

Put in an easily accessible place, not far from your milk mixing area, for ease of re-filling, adjusting temperature and cleaning

Keep milk tube length as short as possible to prevent milk cooling and to reduce travelling time to teat.

Secure pallet to hurdle and secure teat plates to pallet at 35-40cm (the pallet - or similar - helps to prevent lambs reaching behind teats and chewing tubes)

Ensure easy access to back of the teat plate so teats can be changed quickly and simply if needed

Download the feeder instructions here.

Assembly of the Volac Ewe2 Feeder