Metabolic diseases in sheep — including hypocalcaemia, hypomagnesaemia and twin lamb disease — cause significant suffering and death. Prevention through nutrition management is highly effective.
Metabolic disease in sheep causes acute suffering and often death within hours of clinical signs becoming apparent. Unlike many livestock welfare problems that develop gradually, metabolic emergencies require immediate response. Prevention through pre-lambing nutrition assessment, body condition scoring and targeted supplementation eliminates most cases. The cost-benefit calculation strongly favours prevention — a single ewe loss to pregnancy toxaemia represents significant financial and welfare loss compared to the cost of prevention.