Victorian sheep studs are gearing up to open their gates to prospective and existing clients ahead of Sheep Week next month.
The event, which is in its second year, will be held from Monday, June 18, through to Wednesday, June 27.
There are so far almost 60 studs registered to participate in the field days, covering a multitude of breeds, with the event having expanded from five to nine days.
Nedelle Southdowns stud principal Ned Nagorcka, Hawkesdale, is participating in the event again this year, after being impressed by the array of visitors that came through last year.
“There was a big variety of visitors, all sorts of farmers, from lamb producers to stud stock people,” Mr Nagorcka said.
“It was a good opportunity for people to come and see what you’ve got, and explain to them your sheep.”
He said it helped to raise awareness of the stud.
“It enabled us to speak to people who’ve wondered what we’re about, enabling us to build our name,” he said.
“It’s a great opportunity to show people how you operate, and whether Southdowns could work into their operation.”
Ardene Australian Whites stud co-principal Bruce Hodgson said the event was a good opportunity to promote the breed.
“It was a really good event, we had a lot of positive feedback from the people who visited our stud,” Mr Hodgson said.
“We saw a lot of the people that we met at the field day at shows and other events during the rest of the year.”
Participating in the event again this year, he said they would have a similar lineup of lambs, rams and ewes, on display, to provide visitors a behind-the-scenes look into their operation.
“We’re looking forward to showing people around,” he said.
Koole Vale Merinos and White Suffolks stud principal Alan Harris said they were pleased with the rollout of visitors during Sheep Week last year.
The event followed what was a “massive” year for the stud, having conducted their first on-property ram sale in 2016, and selling more rams than ever before.
Mr Harris said Sheep Week helped preview rams that would be sold later in the year at his own sale and at multivendor sales.
“I had a lot of my own clients come along and check out rams that I would be selling later in the year,” Mr Harris said.
“We used it as a preview day for our ram sale, and the sales at Bendigo, Hamilton and Benalla.”
He said this year they would have their sale and show teams on display.