Okay at this point I have to admit that we too have more questions then answers about Sage and her newborn twins.  So I have decided to lay out the days events as they happened so that if any one has any ideas they can let us know.  

Monday
    around noon the storm moved in
    around 5pm we found Sage in the outside shed with twins they were hunched over and barely moving 
    Sage had a bag but it had not dropped
    We took Sage and the twins to the barn to warm them
    Couldn't get the babies to quit shivering took all of them to the house
    Tried to get milk from Sage with no luck
    Called a Shepherd friend who said to give Sage some LA200 (antibiotic) Said if it was an infection it would make her bag drop
    Fed and watered Sage
    The babies got warm and tried to drink Sage's water 
    Gave each baby a part of a bottle but neither really wanted it

Tuesday
    Sage still didn't have milk and the babies were thin and weak    
    Called Vet was told to give her the first oxytocin shot then another in 12 hours
    Also gave babies half dose of Colostrum paste as it was all we had so we split it between the two of them
    Gave a dose of powdered colostrum
    By this point Sage has only drank 1/2 a small bucket of water
    Mom got her to eat grain by mixing in alfalfa pellets
    Both Babies were still weak
    Waited about 2 hours and called the vet again
    Babies were laying around and wouldn't raise their heads
    We got the older Vet on the phone and he instructed us to tube them each with 1/2 cup warm water with 1/2 tbsp honey desolved in it it had something to do with the hypothermia and them digesting food
    Two hours later Cheyenne, the  littler one started to show signs of improvement but we lost Ponca
    By 9pm Cheyenne was up and hungry and took a few sips from a bottle She played on Mom a bit and seemed stonger
    By 11 pm Cheyenne took half a bottle curled up and went to bed

Wednesday
    By 6am Cheyenne took half a bottle
    We moved Sage back out with the sheep to see if she would eat or drink regular
    Another Shepherd that read the blog called and said we should worm her as if she has worms it can lead to her having trouble with the milk dropping. 
    Sage ate fine but still hasn't taken in much water
    Because Sage still hasn't drank anything she was drenched with water with Vitamins and minerals in it.
    As of right now Cheyenne is bouncing around the kitchen like she is happy and healthy
    
    

    Today I had some things I really wanted to share with everyone... First I got mail ... Well, there was this artist and she was trying to make a bit of money so I bought this to support her...

And I wanted to show you the new bags Mom will be making for the shop ... Sheep mostly but the bottem one is my favorite.  There are other animals on it that is just one square ...

    So that was the Blog I was going to write ... The true blog however isn't so happy ... We lost Ponca today and Cheyenne is still with us but not eating right.  Sage isn't drinking enough and her milk still hasn't come in.  The Vet has told us we are doing everything right that we can think of but with the conditions of their birth and Sage's issues it just might not be enough to save them all.  The Vet says that due to the Hypothermia and them trying to drink water from the bucket intended for Sage that they may have made their condition worse.  We can't take the water away from Sage but there is no way to keep the babies from trying to drink ... Anyway, It is a mess in our eyes that we have failed to sort out.  And we love our Vet but sometimes he tells us thing that we don't want to hear.  We are praying and keeping watch through the night again tonight but we really are at a lose as to how this will turn out ... RIP Little Ponca ... We Love you ...

    So far it has been smooth sailing through the early births.  Today, however, that changed.  It seems that on our farm we can't prepare for bad weather anymore without at least adding in a birth to the routine.  The problem is that we waited to go check everything until two hours after our scheduled time.  You see we had to go get feed and that meant a trip to town.  When we got home the ground was wet and that made trouble for us in getting it to the barn.  We knew the Trips and Quads were warm and safe and they are getting stronger everyday.  So we worked on Storm Prep knowing that everything would be fine at the barnyard and that we could take care of things when the work was done.  Little did we know that Sage had her own Ideas.  When we finally went to do chores and make our rounds we found this. 

    Our "Concerns" turned on in a flash ... When babies start to walk hunched over it is the first sign of hypothermia.  Hypothermia is the number one killer of newborn lambs followed by a close second of starvation.  (Starvation is normally brought on by the fact that the lambs are to cold to nurse so the two go hand in hand) In older lambs Starvation is the number one killer but it can be brought on by hypothermia. 
    Anyway, as the top picture shows the lambs were showing signs of hypothermia.  So, we jumped right in.  We moved Twix in with Snickers and moved Sage into the pen Twix was in.  The only problem we had was that the wind was whipping through the pens and we couldn't get the twins warm.  The rain and wind of the storm had already begun.  We had them under a heat lamp and Mom and I were drying like crazy.  The two sweaters we had left to make lamb warmers some how got wet in all the hussle.  So we tried everything to get them warm. 

    Finally I decided it was time to end it. I looked at Mom and said we needed to get them all to the pen in the house. Mom snatched up the babies and Dad and I took Sage and we made our way inside.  Once inside you would think everything would be fine.  In a way it did great.  The lambs warmed up but we found yet another problem.  We are praying that by morning this problem will have taken care of it's self.  You see Sage's Milk hasn't dropped yet. We are praying that with the lambs nursing on her it will help it drop.  Just in case we are standing by with frozen collostrum.  We did give them part of a bottle to settle their tummies for the night.  
    After that Dad and I headed back to the barn to finish chores but instead we found Snickers trying to steal Twix's Babies.  Snickers didn't even want me bottle feeding Franklin.  She not only bit me but head butted me into a charlie horse.  At that point Dad helped me take Twix and the Trips back to her pen before I got really hurt. 
    As of right now, Momma and babies are resting well.  They are all warm and dry and safe.  Now for the low down on the babies ... We have one girl and one boy.  Mom is in love with the girl's markings.  She has a white body and black legs.  Her face is a bit of black and white and almost a grey.  I have to admit that I am just glad they are doing okay.  The male is a bit weaker but when Sage's milk comes in eveything will be fine.  
    Now, these two are pure bred Old English Southdown Babydolls, so that mean I need two Indian tribe names.  I am thinking Cheyenne will be our little girl and Ponca will be our little boy. 

    Well, I have to say that today wasn't a great one.  First, I am tired.  I guess is it "show lag"  You know like Jet Lag but from a show.  (Okay, there is no such thing but it sounded good)  Anyway, I did go to a rodeo today but I didn't do to great.  I let my calf run through my loop in the calf roping, one my first steer my heeler missed the feet and on my second steer he just set up and I couldn't get his feet caught .... Oh well,  Tomorrow will be a better day ... I will spend it getting ready for the snow.  For now I am headed to bed.

    So we have taken the poll for the last day and the new little rams are now named Schroeder and Franklin.  The littlest one in the Brown is Franklin and the Biggest in the Blue dots is Schroeder.  And our big Girl is Sally of course!!

As for the Quads ... here is a picture or two to keep everyone smiling...

Okay so I have to tell you I really can't stand this song but Mom laughed and loved it ...

So it is snowing and we are under a winter storm watch so here is some cuteness to get our hearts warmed and don't forget to cast  your vote for the next two names.  I named the first 4 as they were the first lambs ever born on this farm and I named the only girl born so far.  Now it is your turn.  The two rams born to Twix are wating .... LOL

So what could be cuter then the Quads?? They are all still gaining and doing well.  They are really starting to play and jump around ... I love them all ... We weigh them eveyday and they seem to like it.  Okay, they are at least really used to it. 

We tried to get some better ones so here is what we have ...

The littlest one in the Brown is a boy and still needs a name.  There are two with Blue Dots one is a girl that I named Sally and the other is a boy that is still needing a name as well.  That is where all of you come in.  Remember since Snickers was the first to have her babies we have decided that the peanuts characters are this years naming convection.  So What shall we call these two brothers of Sally.  Remember we already had Charlie Brown, Linus, Snoopy and Woodstock.  Here is a bit of Video when the barn had all settled down and was quiet ....