BREEDERS from four states took home rams from the annual Derrynock Poll Dorset sale at East Trentham last week.
It was Western Australian’s CJ Squiers & Son, Shirlee Downs, Quairading, that paid the top-price of $13,000 for lot 50 – a ram with standout performance values, despite not being so pretty to look at.
Lot 50 had been the victim of dog attack as a lamb, but the Beattie family saw his potential and nursed him through.
The attack may have left him with some scar tissue on his face, but the ram had LAMBPLAN index values of 221 for Carcase+ and 112.5 for Trade$.
The Squiers also purchased another stud ram, lot 44, at $3200.
A full clearance of 25 rams were sold in the stud sire section, averaging $4256, while 99 of 105 flock rams sold to a top of $3600, av $1174.
A further 24 of 36 Meat Maternal rams sold to $1600 and av $758, and 16 Poll Dorset ewes sold to $525, av $350.
Five Poll Dorset ewe and lamb packages topped at $400, av $400.
South Australian’s the Davies family, through SAL Naracoorte, purchased the second highest priced ram at $12,500.
The Davies secured lot 39, the second ram to be offered for the day, that was in the top one per cent of terminal sires for post weaning weight and trade$ ASBV indexes, top 3pc for weaning weight and top 5pc for eye muscle depth.
Fellow SA breeders the Galpin family, Mount Gambier, took the next ram offered, lot 40, at $9000.
Also paying $9000 for a ram was Narrogin, WA, breeders Steve Eales, Elspeth stud, and Wally Mills, Lakeside Park.
- Full story in the Stock & Land October 17 edition