Guest Author - Pegg Thomas

If you have an injured, orphan, or weak lamb that has trouble keeping warm you can make a quick, inexpensive coat out of a old sleeve. Wool sweaters make the best coats and shopping at Good Will or Salvation Army ahead of lambing season will help. But if you don’t want to cut up your best wool sweaters, an old sweatshirt or insulated underwear top works just fine. Flannels and other woven fabrics are not as good because they lack stretch and would be harder to fit to the lamb. They will also unravel with wear once they are cut. The knit garments will not unravel and do not need to be hemmed.

First cut the sleeve off at the shoulder. If the sleeve is fitted, there will be a curve to follow along the seam that attaches the sleeve to the body. This is good as it will leave a longer top to cover over the lamb’s rump. But if your sweater/shirt has a straight seam, that’s okay too.

Next, cut off the cuff, this will be the neck edge of your coat. The seam along the sleeve will become the bottom of the coat.

Measure back 3”- 4” from where you cut off the cuff. Measure out 1.5”- 2” from each side of the bottom seam. Now cut slits for the legs about 2” long, parallel to the bottom seam.

Your coat is done! Slip it over the lamb’s head and slide his front legs through the slits. If the lamb has thick legs, tear the slits open a bit farther. If the lamb is a ram and the sleeve is too long underneath, cut excess fabric away from the sheath to avoid wetting.

Check the coat every few days to make sure leg openings aren’t getting too tight. Knit fabric will stretch, but as the lamb grows you can tear the openings larger if the coat is still needed for warmth. Lambs grow fast at this age!

The coat should not bother the ewe if the lamb is still with her. They identify their lambs by smell more than sight. However, if she seems bothered by the coat, remove it and rub it all over her to collect her smell before putting it back on the lamb. I’ve never had a ewe worry about a coat yet.