Performance of cade lambs fed Ewe-reka matches ewe-reared lambs

Ewe-reka has been a game changer for rearing pet lambs over the last 10 years, as it is made with ewe’s milk so lambs are almost guaranteed to be weaned at 6 weeks and finished along with single lambs reared on the ewe.

Cade lambs reared on Ewe-reka milk replacer at a Staffordshire farm are achieving the same performance as lambs reared by their mothers.
Will Roobottom runs two flocks of ewes at Cowley Hill Farm, Rugeley.

He has an ‘A’ flock of 300 pedigree Lleyns, which he describes as “good maternal ewes, easy lambing and hardy’’ and 200 Aberblacks and Suffolk crosses in a ‘B’ flock. The A flock lambs indoors in February and the B flock in March.

Key to getting the lambs off to a good start is meticulous colostrum management. Will uses a refractometer to measure colostrum quality, aiming for a Brix value of 22% or higher. Measuring helps Will to identify if colostrum is of sufficient quality to feed the lambs; if quality is poor or if there is insufficient quantity a powdered colostrum is used as a substitute feed. Cade lambs are bottle-fed and when there are more than 10 requiring a bottle, feeding switches to a Heatwave adlib system, with feeding equipment cleaned daily.

Will has used Ewe-Reka lamb milk replacer for four years, he reports that the performance of his cade lambs is no different to those reared on the ewe. The lambs reared on milk replacer are weaned at six weeks compared to 12 weeks, or 25kg, for ewe-reared lambs.
For accuracy, Will weighs the Ewe-reka powder used for each feed, when feeding adlib Will mixes at a 18% DM (180g/L) mixed up to 1 litre of mixed milk.

To ensure consistency, one person takes charge of lamb rearing to minimise any risk of changes to the mix. All lambs are provided with creep feed, fresh water and hay.

Will retains 55 ewe lambs for breeding and sells the remainder at pedigree sales. He aims to supply around 70 male lambs to a local butcher and sells the others to his local abattoir, with lambs finished at approximately 42-48kg; Aberblack crosses average a R3L grade and the Lleyns range from R-O to R3L.

With Ewe -reka as with all cade lambs, keeping adlib dry feed in front of them until the are ready for market is key. Lambs will kill out at 50% so are ready at 35kg LWT. Don’t that a chance on anything less – insist on Ewe-reka, now the UK’s number 1 ewe milk replacer.