Nickers

There is a sound that ewes make called a nicker.

They only make this sound when they have their lambs by their side.
If you walk quietly out to the barn in the middle of the night, the only sounds you will hear are the babies bleating small questions to their mothers, and the ewes responding gently with their soft sweet voices.  It is a very personal sound, and one of the mysterious ways that Mother Nature has of keeping moms and babies united amongst the whole flock.
 
Horses nicker all the time when they see you approaching with a flake of hay or treats. It is a friendly welcome. The word is perhaps an alternate of the word neigh or whinny according to the Merriam Webster Dictionary. Sheep seem to save this special form of communication for just this time of year.  Once the babies are weaned, the ewes put this language away until the  next season.

A sure way to know that a ewe is about to lamb is to hear her start speaking to her babies even before they are born.  The ritual of birth seems to start in different ways for different ewes.  Some will stop eating a day before they lamb. Most of mine wouldn't miss a meal, so this is not always the most accurate sign.  Some will go off by themselves and try to find some quiet place to prepare.  Others will make nests, digging into the bedding or soil. They circle around and around until the spot feels right.  All of these are pretty good signs that a ewe is about to give birth.  If she is already nickering to the baby before it is born, chances are birth is imminent. It is also a pretty good omen that she will be a devoted mother.  
I almost always leave a ewe alone to give birth.  She is the expert and even the first-timers have strong instincts that are best left to themselves.  There is plenty to do for her while we wait.  A bucket of water is always welcome after all of that exhausting labor.  We need to build a small temporary pen for her to bond with her babies in.  The iodine and scissors are ready to trim the umbilical cord and to dry it with the strong pungent solution.  If it is below zero a heat lamp is set in place.  Way back when I began there was a sale on big fluffy terry towels including monograms, so we have our stash of deep blue Fly Away Farm towels handy.  The moms tongue does a great job of cleaning and drying but sometimes it doesn’t hurt to pitch in, especially when there are twins.  A flake of hay is ready to reward her once I know her first priority is her offspring and not her food.  If all goes well and the nickering has begun, the new family is off to a good start.