A sheep and beef farmer from Co. Donegal is feeling very 'four-tunate' this lambing season after one of his mule ewes gave birth to healthy quadruplets.

Jonathan Chambers, whose sheep enterprise lambs 40 ewes annually, told Agriland that he was well prepared for the arrival of the quadruplets as the mother was scanned in advance.

Chambers was on standby to assist with the birth and noted that the lambs were particularly strong.

"I had to take the four out of her," he said.

The farmer outlined that the lambs "were up standing in no time" after birth and they have been "flying" ever since.

Taking after their sire, Chambers noted that all four are Texel lambs.

Following such a demanding birth, the ewe took a few days to "start eating right again", but is now coping well.

The sheep farmer holds the mule ewe in high esteem, as he lightheartedly described her as "pedigree".

"If there is such thing as a pedigree mule, she is one of them," he laughed.

Two of the lambs are being fed through a bottle to ensure that all four receive enough milk, while the other two remain on the ewe.

Lambing season

Chambers, who runs a mixed sheep and beef enterprise, said that this year's lambing season has been relatively smooth so far, despite the challenging weather conditions recently.

"Lambing season hasn't been too bad actually; the weather is more of an issue," he said.

For Chambers, the finish line for this year's lambing season is within reaching distance, with only six more ewes left to lamb.

He told Agriland that this is not even the first time his farm has welcomed quadruplets, as a different ewe had done the same two years ago.

In addition to the quadruplets, Chambers' busy lambing season continued this morning with a healthy set of triplets from another ewe.