My boy Turnip has been having trouble walking for the past few months. He would get these sick spells, a fever, gut trouble and then become lame. I tried rest and antibiotics. These would work but a few weeks later the symptoms would return. I had my wonderful vet out and he felt his front knees which were warm and inflamed. He thought there could possibly be a bacterial infection so we tried a longer, stronger round of antibiotics. Dr. Brazil warned that there may not be much we could do after this so I crossed my fingers. It didn’t seem to help much.
Everyday I would see Turnip shifting on his front feet from left to right, back and forth. Some days it would be clear that he was hurting even worse because he would hang out all day in the barn. I was really worried about him and part of what was so troubling is that he is only 8 years old and is perfectly healthy otherwise.
Finally I had Dr. Brazil out again and he came up with the idea that this looked a little like rheumatoid arthritis. He had never heard of a case in sheep but most sheep don’t get individual care or vet calls. He thought we could try a steroid and see how Turnip responds.
Within a few days it was clear that Turnip was feeling better. He would rush out of the barn in the morning with everyone else and I no longer saw him shifting off his front feet. Now every other morning he lets me feed him a syringe full of molasses water and a few little pills and even looks forward to his dosage.
I am so grateful that we found a solution to his problem. Turnip is one of my bolder, friendlier sheep and is just a love. Sometimes resting his head on my shoulder while I squat down to say hello. I am willing to take on the extra expense since that is what is required here, but it is an extra $15 a month. If anyone would like to sponsor Turnips medication please email carole@plumblossomfarm.com. As it is now I’m just glad he is feeling happy and healthy once again.