an ewe with an extra nipple

I discovered today that one of my ewes has an extra nipple.  (long story, but she's the only one I didn't check for this kind of thing... I should have, I know, but I didn't, so here we are).

It's quite a way from the regular one, and about half the size.  That is to say, her normal nipples are about three times the size of my other sheep, so this third nipple is about regular nipple size.  

She's giving lots of lovely milk and even letting me have some.

Is this going to be a problem?  

Several of mine have them and most almost disappear when they bag up. One sheep's stays about 1/5 the size of her real nipples and have not caused any problems. They could get in the way if you are hand milking but are not a problem with machine milking (for me anyway)

I would say that as long as her lambs can find milk without your help there is no problem.

Odd fact of the day, humans grow extra breast tissue, even sometimes extra nipples, all along the "milk line".



These often develop when a mother becomes pregnant. If it's the same with sheep, your ewe might not have had that extra nipple until she got pregnant.

(How do I know about this? When I got pregnant with my son, a "lump" formed in my right armpit. February 14th, I went and got an ultrasound, to make sure it wasn't cancerous. It was *drumroll please* extra breast tissue. I told my husband I grew and armpit boob for him for Valentine's Day, LOL! I thankfully never developed a nipple in my armpit, and the lump went way down once I started nursing. But, there are women who develop breast tissue on one pregnancy and then a nipple on the next, and the thing even produces milk. I was told that those women who gain an extra nipple just don't milk it and it eventually ceases to produce.)

Fun quote from a women with a armpit nipple (http://www.scarymommy.com/third-boob/):

But, here’s where she got it wrong: My milk finally came in for my first born, and while I was nursing him, I asked my husband if he’d turn up the air conditioning because I felt like I was sweating profusely. It was then that I  looked down to see that no, I wasn’t sweating, but what I thought had been the tiniest of brown freckles was instead a nipple that was currently dripping milk down into a puddle on my shirt. Yep, sign me up for the circus people! Not only do I have a third boob,  but it lactates.  Lac. Tates.

I had to nurse with a towel in my armpit, and while most nursing moms got to walk around with just absorbent breast pads in their bras,  I got to do that and wear a huge band-aid on my armpit.  Just so you’re all aware here, my son was born in June. Tank top weather. It was fabulous.