Skip to content

Treating hypothermia in newborn lambs

To treat hypothermia successfully in lambs it’s important to take the correct steps, which vary depending on the lamb’s age and temperature. A digital thermometer is inexpensive and can be used to help guide decision-making. 

 

Our hypothermia decision tool asks a series of questions which will give you a quick answer as to which treatment is best. It works on a mobile, so save the link to your phone for use in the field or shed.

Launch the hypothermia tool

For very cold, older lambs, the best treatment may be an intra-peritoneal (IP) injection. Giving an IP injection can be daunting, but is a simple method to prevent deaths. In the video below, we demonstrate giving the injection into the abdomen of a lamb. The video also contains instructions on making up the correct glucose solution.

IMG_8521 (1)

If you need advice with this or any other topic, phone our advice line on 0300 323 0161, email advice@fas.scot or explore this website in more detail.

Sign up to the FAS newsletter

Receive updates on news, events and publications from Scotland’s Farm Advisory Service