AFTER investing in a lamb feedlot on his Byaduk North property, Tony Fleetwood says the benefits have extended right across his business from pastures all the way to market.
“It’s a whole farm system,” he says.
The 2500-capacity feedlot, which is run with a Keenan mixer, allows for more efficient use of the ewe flock and pastures, he says.
“If it’s dry, I can put the ewes in the feedlot,” he said.
“What I am trying to do is get as many lambs per hectare as I can. We aim to wean our lambs at 12 weeks and have as many as possible over 35 kilograms. By taking those out of the farming system - the ewes have a greater area to graze.”
Not only does this option give the pastures at the Western district farm time to regenerate, but the ewes benefit too, he said.
“The ewes need to be in a condition score three or above at joining, so I need to make sure there is plenty of feed available.”
Mr Fleetwood runs a self-replacing ewe flock. Using Coopworth-base ewes, he joins the younger portion to a maternal composite sire and retains the ewe progeny. These weaner ewes are then grown out to 50kg before joining at seven months.
Any older ewes are joined to terminal Poll Dorset rams for prime lamb production.
After weaning, the lambs are placed into the feedlot at an entry level of 35kg liveweight.
“We try to have them on feed for no longer than 50 days with an exit weight of 48-50kg (no curfew),” he said.
“That is well within our capabilities. We’ve achieved that with our system.”
All the lambs are marketed towards the supermarket trade at 21-22kg.
Mr Fleetwood has been selling his lambs through this market for three years and says there are plenty of advantages.
“You really gain a better understanding of your operation and livestock,” he said.
“You have to supply to their needs and specifications, which can change. There’s a lot of weighing and measuring and costing going on.”
All fodder for the feedlot is purchased, which can be a mix of grain and hay.
Although he has previously used lick feeders or pellets to finish stock, Mr Fleetwood prefers a feedlot enterprise.
He says there are minimal fatalities.
“You do have to feed morning and night, but we can do that quickly and we’ve invested in the capital to do that,” he said.
One of the most important things to watch out for was acidosis.
“When the lambs are weaned, they need to be switched very slowly to high starch diet, otherwise you can get problems. But with my mixer, you can easily allow for this transition.”
Although he preferred the supermarket trade, he said another benefit of the feedlot operation was the option to take advantage of different markets.