With lambing season around the corner, it is important to look at links between an ewe and its lamb, says Roger Haugen, a North Dakota State University extension sheep specialist.
Bonding occurs early in sheep.
Ever wonder how a newborn lamb finds the teats with a little help from its mother? It’s a matter of smell.
Sheep have three skin pouches, or scent glands. One is located in the eye’s tear duct, and another is the mammary pouch, located in the groin.
Both give out a waxy, yellow secretion similar to that of the eye. The scent next to the teats helps the newborn lamb find food.
Another gland is located between the two digits of the hoof.
It gives out a waxy, colorless secretion. Its function is believed to be to provide a tracking system for the flock.
