SEMEN orders were coming in even before East Strathglen Poll’s supreme Merino exhibit had left the judging ring at the 2010 Australian Sheep and Wool Show in Bendigo at the weekend.
The stud’s August shorn ram was judged grand champion medium wool, poll Merino ram and grand champion Merino ram of the show on its way to the supreme exhibit accolade in a ride that was doubly sweetened by an East Strathglen horned ewe taking out the grand champion medium ewe and Ewe of Show sashes.
With a 15 centimetre long 20.2 micron fleece after 11 months growth, Poll Merino judge Dennis Haddrick said the ram had long-stapled pure medium wool that was a delight to open up. The fleece had a standard deviation of 3, with a co-efficient of variation of 14.9, comfort factor of 99.7 and spinning micron of 18.5.
“He’s a stand-out sheep – they don’t come a lot better than that ram there,” Mr Haddrick said.
Fine-Medium judge Kip Gray said the East Strathglen horned ewe won a split vote among the judges, but was structurally very correct and well-covered with very bright, lustrous wool. The ewe’s 21.7 micron fleece, a SD of 3.3, CV of 15.2, comfort factor of 99 and spinning micron of 20.2.
East Strathglen principal Rohan Sprigg said semen orders were running at 500-600 straws for the ram before the Bendigo show and more buying interest was received just after judging, including from some of the judges and into New Zealand.
“It (the win) won’t hurt his profile – usually a ribbon always helps,” Mr Sprigg said.
Semen sales generated from earlier Bendigo exposure meant the stud now sold more semen in the eastern states than it did in Western Australia, Mr Sprigg said. He believed the eastern states buyers were looking for the extra frame in the East Strathglen sheep combined with the wool quality.
Mr Sprigg said it was the stud’s fourth visit to Bendigo. The stud won a supreme Merino sash with a ewe in 2007, but had never won the ram and ewe supreme titles in the same year.
“It is quite a big achievement, especially with the quality and the number of sheep in the shed,” he said.
His wife Caroline said: “We’re all pretty with what has happened today.”
Mr Sprigg said the ram had been supreme champion and the ewe grand champion at Wagin Woolarama in March this year. The ewe was also supreme at the Williams Gateway Expo in April.
