Ram Sales & Field Days
YOUR INVITED TO THE LAMBPRO POLL DORSET RAM SALE
30 POLL DORSET RAMS
MT STURGEON WOOLSHED
DUNKELD VIC
THURSDAY 25 SEPTEMBER 2015
SALE COMMENCES 12pm
On offer is one of the highest indexed groups of Poll Dorset rams to be offered in Australia this season. All rams will be penned from 9.30am on sale day. Inspections by appointment prior to the sale in Holbrook. In addition Auctionsplus will be available for interstate buyers.
LAMBPRO purchased over half of the Hillcroft Farms Poll Dorset stud in 2014. This included the domestic styles of sheep from the flock, with the remaining ewes and commercial client list remaining in Western Australia. This investment cements our position as carcase leaders in the Poll Dorset breed. Consistency is king, and time and time again in our progeny testing we look for sires that breed consistent, high muscling lambs with enough fat for the domestic market.
Our breeding program is targeted at highly muscled sheep, with moderate fat and exceptional eating quality. It is no coincidence that a number of the rams rank in the top rams nationally for marbling. We await further DNA results on all rams, as their pedigree’s suggest many more of them would rank in the top 50 rams nationally.
The fact nearly all the rams have been used in our breeding program is testament to the line- up. The temptation was to keep a dozen of the best sires, but we decided to keep with the Hillcroft Farms policy of selling the best, and using ram lambs moving forward.
Physical sale interfaced live with Auctionsplus. All buyers will need to be registered prior. Catalogue will be available on the website or by contacting Tom Bull on 0438 680 585 or [email protected] Selling Agent: Ross Milne – ELDERS Hamilton 0408 057 558. We hope to see you at Dunkeld on the 25th September 2015.
RAM SALE RESULTS 2012
MATERNAL PRIME LAMB RAMS TOP AT $5000 AS BUYERS CHASE
CARCASS AND FERTILITY
NOVEMBER 8, 2012
Buyers seeking carcass and fertility paid to a top of $5000 at southern Australias biggest single vendor prime lamb ram auction at Holbrook last week.
The LAMBPRO PRIMELINE maternal ram selection day was hosted on-property on Thursday (November 8) by the Bull family, drawing more than 60 registered buyers.
Commercial producers from three states chasing maternal composite rams with muscle and positive fat paid an overall average of $1632. A total of 359 rams were offered with 356. LAMBPRO principal Tom Bull said 90 per cent of the June-drop sucker ram lambs were twins. We are happy to break records with our sheep the draft averaged 57kg at under five months of age, Mr Bull said.
Repeat Victorian clients Daryl, Peta and Adam Richardson, Kalamatta Contracting, Woorndoo, paid the top price of $5000 for a ram combining growth, carcass, fertility and phenotype. AuctionsPlus southern zone manager Peter Rollason, of Melbourne, took the Richardsons bid over the phone. The sale was very solid considering the way the lamb industry is at the moment it was a great result, Mr Rollason said. Elders stud stock auctioneer Ross Milne confirmed the sale was one of the nations biggest single vendor prime lamb ram sale for 2012.
It was a very strong sale with buyers showing confidence in the lamb industry and the LAMBPRO program this was justified by the clearance, Mr Milne said. Tom Bull said the sale was underpinned by repeat clients, and bolstered by several new clients. We were blown away by the support&this is the highest demand year for rams we have ever had, he said.
Among the repeat volume buyers was Kevin and Pat Mitchell, Devenish, Vic, buying five rams to a top of $2000 to produce lambs for the trade. The rams were well presented today and even, Mr Mitchell said.
New clients Mark and Sam Hall, of Yass, picked up three rams to a top of $2000 to go over a 1000 composite ewe flock. We want to breed our own self-replacing ewes and turn the lambs off as suckers, Mark said.
Group manager Glenn White, Dunkeld Pastoral Company, Dunkeld, Vic, selected 21 rams to a top of $3600 and average of $2333 to join to a 10,000 Primeline maternal ewe flock. Mr White said Dunkeld Pastoral had sold LAMBPRO sired progeny over-the-hooks last week to yield 47.5 per cent at a carcass weight of 20.7kg.
PROFILING RAM LAMBS – GENOMIC MARKERS
The use of genomic markers in sire selection will be used for the first time in the LAMBPRO 2013 drop of Poll Dorset lambs. Previously stud sires have been tested as part of the Sheep CRC genomics program. This will see a sample of ram lambs blood tested at lamb marking, using blood to generate genomic breeding values.
LAMBPRO selects sires at a young age on an annual basis. Due to the time taken to get results we need to test lambs early. This assists when we get our growth and carcase data to make better sire decisions for our young sire team. The aim is to find 10 young sires for 2014 mating to test in the stud flock and also to put into our progeny test program.
I don’t think gene markers are going to change the world in meat sheep as has been touted by many breeders, it’s just a bit more information than we currently have on hard to measure traits such as meat quality. By having this data early will fine tune selections. The data won’t change the cost of production for our clients, or even increase the price received, it will just ensure the entire flock is heading in a favourable direction for hard to measure traits such as eating quality.
We have some sheep that have desirable traits for eating quality and yield. We want to expand these in our flock, and minimise those who are undesirable for eating quality. As we push for muscle (shape) in our lambs, tenderness and marbling need to be maintained.
NZ’S TOP RANKED RAMS IN AUSTRALIA
The result of the March 2013 Sheep Improvement Limited (SIL) has seen the two latest ram imports to Australia, ranked 1 and 2 in New Zealand for Dual Purpose Maternal Index. In addition both rams are ranked in the top 15 rams for fertility.
Twin Farm 071699 and Twin Farm 070807 were imported by LAMBPRO in December 2012, have now been used widely in the 2013 drop of lambs.
We deliberately select older proven rams for our program. Accuracy is paramount and these sires have over 600 progeny each in a number of flocks. Fertility takes a while to get accuracy and young sires without many daughter records are a risk.
Twin Farm 071699 has spent most of the last two years as the top ranked ram in NZ for fertility. This has continued to increase as more daughters have weaned lambs.
The rams now have carcase data in LAMBPLAN which puts them both in the top 10% for muscle and both top 20% for growth. This is a great combination for the Australian production system.
Using these top sires fits with our program of using the leading rams from SIL and the Alliance Central Progeny Test Program.
We maintain the belief that the NZ rams are an infusion into our program, and LAMBPRO will continue to infuse genetics that offer a productivity lift.
FIELD DAYS
MELBOURNE CONFERENCE 2013
TOPIC: CARCASE WITHOUT COST
The 2013 Client Conference, ‘Carcase without Cost” was held in Melbourne in late June 2013. It was a tremendous success and the feedback was extremely positive. To those who attended it gave a refreshing look at the market for our lamb, how to produce it cheaper, what are the opportunities for growth and what are the threats. Clients who could not attend were offered a CD of the conference.
SHEEPVENTION
WE HAVE MOVED! THIS YEAR WE ARE AT SITE 444a
We are on Main Drive opposite the Sheep Pavilion and along from the Sheep Technology tent. We are positioned around the corner from the Shakespeare Street entry gate. We will have PRIMELINE Maternals and LAMBPRO Poll Dorsets on display.
TRADE LAMB FIELD DAY
Holbrook Tuesday 17th September 10.30am, ‘Kinross’ Wagga Road Holbrook NSW
Hamilton Thursday 19th September 10.30am, Hamilton Showgrounds, 10.30am Horner Street, Hamilton VIC