Lambing is the most welfare-critical period in sheep production, with neonatal mortality rates reflecting both management quality and the welfare of ewes and lambs during the first critical hours after birth.
Lambing welfare encompasses both ewe and lamb experience during one of the most physiologically demanding periods in sheep production. Ewes undergoing difficult labor without adequate assistance suffer prolonged pain. Lambs born cold and unable to reach colostrum within the critical window face starvation and immune failure. The maternal bond between ewe and lamb is established through smell in the first hours after birth — management practices that separate ewes and lambs immediately after birth, or that prevent quiet maternal behavior, disrupt bonding with lasting consequences for lamb survival. Welfare-positive lambing systems provide individual lambing areas for ewes near term, shelter and warmth for outdoor lambing, and skilled stockperson monitoring to provide assistance when needed.