Feeding Pregnant and Lactating Ewes: A Stage-by-Stage Guide

Feed pregnant ewes moderately in the first three months, then raise energy and protein steadily in the last six weeks, when most of the lamb's growth happens. After lambing, feed for milk: requirements climb fast and peak about three to four weeks in. Group ewes by stage and body condition so each group gets the ration it needs.

Most problems at lambing — weak lambs, ewes with little milk, pregnancy toxaemia — start weeks earlier at the feed trough. The good news is that a ewe's needs follow a predictable calendar you can plan around.

Why the stage matters more than the ration recipe

A ewe's pregnancy lasts about 147 days (roughly 142 to 152). Her needs are not flat across that period:

• Early pregnancy (months 1–3): the embryo is small and her needs are close to maintenance. The goal is stable feeding, without sudden changes or hunger that can disturb implantation.
• Late pregnancy (last 6 weeks): about two-thirds of the lamb's birth weight is put on here. At the same time the growing uterus takes space from the rumen, so she can eat less volume just when she needs more energy.
• Early lactation (first 6–8 weeks after lambing): milk demand is the highest of the whole year. A ewe nursing twins needs clearly more than one with a single lamb.
• Late lactation and weaning: needs fall. Concentrates can be reduced before weaning to help dry-off.

The practical lesson: a ration that is fine in month two can starve a ewe carrying twins in month five. Feed the stage, not the calendar.

Body condition: the number to watch

Body condition score (BCS) is a hand assessment of fat and muscle over the backbone and loin, usually on a scale of 1 (very thin) to 5 (very fat). It is more reliable than eye judgement, especially under a thick fleece.

Targets vary by breed and system, so discuss them with your vet or nutrition adviser. What matters is to score regularly and act early. Avoid letting ewes get very fat in late pregnancy: over-fat ewes also face a higher risk of lambing difficulty and metabolic problems.

Late pregnancy: the six weeks that decide the lamb crop

This is where most of the return on feeding sits. Practical points:

1. Raise energy gradually. Increase concentrate in small steps over two to three weeks so the rumen can adapt. Sudden large grain meals risk acidosis.
2. Improve forage quality, not just quantity. Because rumen space is limited, choose the best hay you have (for example good alfalfa or clover hay) for this group.
3. Separate twin-bearing ewes if you know them. Scanning, or your own records of previous twinning, lets you feed them more than single-bearing ewes.
4. Keep minerals and clean water available at all times. Ask your vet whether your area has known deficiencies before lambing.
5. Give enough trough space so shy or young ewes are not pushed away. Ewe lambs pregnant for the first time are still growing and are often the ones that lose out.

Pregnancy toxaemia: know the early signs

When energy intake cannot keep up with demand — typically ewes with twins or triplets in the last weeks — the body breaks down fat too fast. Watch for a ewe standing apart, not coming to feed, dullness, trembling, apparent blindness or grinding teeth. This is an emergency: call the vet immediately. Prevention is the real cure: steady energy supply, correct body condition, and avoiding stress or feed interruptions in late pregnancy.

After lambing: feeding for milk

Milk is the lamb's only feed in its first weeks, and the ewe's milk depends on what she eats now and the reserves she built during pregnancy.

• Increase feed over the first days after lambing, not in one jump. Good forage stays the base of the ration.
• Protein matters more now. A lactating ewe needs a better-quality ration than a dry ewe; quality hay plus a balanced concentrate is the usual approach.
• Twins mean more feed. If you group ewes by litter size, give the twin group the richer ration.
• Water demand rises sharply during lactation, especially in hot climates. A ewe without enough water will not milk well whatever you feed her.
• Watch the lambs as your indicator. Lambs that cry often, look hollow or gain little weight usually signal a ewe with low milk or a mastitis problem; check her udder and call the vet if it is hard, hot or the milk looks abnormal.

As lambs start eating solid feed, give them creep feed in an area the ewes cannot reach. Then reduce the ewes' concentrate a little before weaning to help the udder dry off.

How to run it in practice

Feeding by stage only works if you always know which ewe is at which stage. A simple routine:

• Record matings (or ram-in and ram-out dates) so expected lambing dates are known. With a 147-day average, you can count back the start of late pregnancy for each ewe.
• Create groups by stage: early pregnancy, late pregnancy, lactating with singles, lactating with twins, dry.
• Score body condition at key points (mating, mid-pregnancy, about 6 weeks before lambing, weaning) and note it with the weight if you weigh.
• Track feed given to each group so you see what each stage really costs.

In Throf, each ewe moves through production stages — mating, early and late pregnancy, close to birth, birth, weaning and drying-off — so you can filter the late-pregnancy group in seconds. Meals are recorded per group and deducted from feed stock, and reminders help you avoid missing the move from one ration to the next. For the full picture of when ewes are due, see our guide to the sheep, goat and camel gestation period, and prepare the barn with the lambing season checklist.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Feeding the whole flock the same ration all year.
• Waiting until lambing to "catch up" a thin ewe — it is too late by then.
• Sudden feed changes in late pregnancy.
• Forgetting water and shade, which limit intake in the heat more than feed does.

Good ewe feeding is not about expensive feed. It is about putting the better feed in front of the right ewes at the right weeks.