Baylham House Rare Breeds Farm's ewe bonded with orphan lamb

A ewe called Balwen from Baylham House Rare Breeds Farm cried out for two days after losing her baby. 

Balwen had a stillborn on April 4 and could not mourn her loss. 

Farm manager Kate Ockleton said: "It’s never easy to see an animal clearly distressed and not eating.  

"It can take days for ewes to get over the loss of a lamb, and she had called out for two days after her lamb she lost at birth. 

"It was also difficult for our visitors to see, as they too could see she was upset at the loss.  

"We assured them she would eventually settle, but she needed time." 

Fortunately, Balwen is now a mum for another orphan lamb, Caesar, whose mother died during the delivery on April 7. 

Happy family Balwen and Caesar, Baylham House Rare Breeds Farm (Image: Baylham House Rare Breeds Farm)

The farm’s team said the ewe needed only a day to start treating the orphan lamb like her own child. 

The manager added the Baylham’s team is "relieved" that the animals were able to form such a special bond after tragedy. 

"We were saddened to lose Caesar’s mother too.  

"She had an emergency C-section which she initially recovered from incredibly well.  

"Unfortunately, when she started to pass her afterbirth, the contractions caused an internal tear in her stitching, which our local vet did an amazing job stitching back up.

"However, they tore before he could finish stitching her up, so the kindest thing was to put her to sleep as the damage was too extensive. 

Baylham House Rare Breeds Farm (Image: Baylham House Rare Breeds Farm)

"Caesar and his new mummy are doing so well. She adores him and he does her. We are ecstatic for them both." 

Caesar will remain at the farm with his new mother until weaning at around three to four months of age.