Devon spring lambs thriving thanks to 'shepherdess' feeding machine

• Watch the lambs making the most of the feeding device at the West Buckland farm

Spring lambs are thriving on a north Devon farm thanks to an ingenious artificial feeding machine called a "shepherdess".

West Buckland's new arrivals are coming on leaps and bounds, despite being born in a group of five over Easter.

Farmers Simon and Adrianne Bulled came up with a clever device for feeding all the babies overnight and giving their mum, Badger, a break.

The shepherdess consists of a bucket full of milk, with plastic tubing and the fingers of rubber glove acting as artificial teats.

Adrianne said: "It just frees you up for a bit more work out and about on the farm and the lambs are all growing well off it.

“This is my favourite time of year, I love it, it’s very busy but it’s good fun. They seem to be coming on really well, they’ve doubled in weight since they were born. 

The multiple birth wasn't the only surprise, as unusually, four of Badger's five offspring were black.

This is has been a spring the farm will never forget and farmers' daughter Georgia said it had been a "very exciting" time.

"It was pretty shocking when all five of them were first born," her sister Taylor added.

Sadly, one of the lambs - the smallest - did not survive, but its siblings are thriving on round-the-clock feeding, thanks to Simon and Adrianne's invention.