The future of breeding makes guess work a thing of the past

Story sponsored by Pooginook Merino and Poll stud.

You've probably heard the old adage: "If you don't know where you're going, you'll be surprised where you end up".

There are few industries to which this statement is more applicable to than breeding sheep. For millennia, there has been guess work involved in the selection process.

When it comes to performance after all, about 70 per cent is down to management, making it very difficult at times to discern between the ewes and rams that actually are genetically superior animals and those that have just had a better run of it.

However, technology in the field of genomics has come along in leaps and bounds over the past decade, making this problem - for some progressive studs - a thing of the past.

Few have truly embraced these innovations as wholeheartedly as Pooginook Merino and Poll stud has. The stud has invested three quarters of a million dollars over the past 5 years in DNA genomics to enhance its breeding program results.

Pooginook will hold its annual on property ram sale on September 22 and stud manager John Sutherland says it will be a great opportunity for anybody looking to improve their genetics.

The stud will offer 240 rams on the day, all of which are commercially proven and come with a full set of ASBVs.

Mr Sutherland says key decisions are based on a combination of ASBVs and visual classing to improve the accuracy of the selection process.

The equipment and software technologies they use on property, he says, allows them to measure traits far more accurately than previous generations ever could've imagined possible.

They run 6,000 stud ewes and produce thousands of high performance, commercially proven, dual-purpose rams every single year.

"Using our scale, extensive data and know how... We can maximise the potential to deliver more lambs earlier while maintaining elite wool production," Mr Sutherland explained.

"By producing over 3,000 rams annually, it gives us huge selection pressure to increase the speed of genetic gain and achieve our breeding objectives faster," he continued.

"Our genetics are continually being reviewed and bench-marked across all enterprises and climates to ensure we're aligning with our breeding objectives," Mr Sutherland explained.

"With over 50 years of selecting for elite wool production and ewe efficiency, our rams are proven to handle multiple climates, ranging from 200mm of rainfall in southern QLD to 800mm in southern VIC and across to WA."

The stud has parentage and a full data set on its stud ewes and progeny for the last five years.

When combined, they are able to identify their best performing stud ewes, Mr Sutherland says, and they are able to produce consistently strong results.

In fact, during their latest lamb marking, they achieved an overall 124 percent of lambs marked to ewes joined, including a twinning rate of 53 percent.

Pooginook has four main breeding objectives which combine ewe efficiency, elite wool, fast growth and plain breeches.

Annually, their breeders cut 9kg of 19micon of white and deep crimping wool and have shorn twice a year for the past 20 years.

They also have a weaning rate of 111 per cent on average for the past 10 years, with the 2020 season looking to achieve close to 124 per cent on ewes joined.

Pooginook's goal is to breed robust, fly strike resistant animals that require no modification to the breech. This year, they stopped mulesing altogether for the first time on the Poll stud lambs.

Mr Sutherland believes ethical raising of their animals is going to be fundamental to the success of producers moving forward. Regardless of what you think of the politics, he says, you have to respond to the market trends.

Many companies are already opting exclusively for Mules free wool and there is a growing movement around ethical sourcing of high quality meat too. If you want to make that dollar, he says, you'll have to do it with a non modified breech and fewer lambs lost.

The Pooginook Ram Sale will be held on property at Pooginook Station, Four Corners Road, Jerilderie, NSW, on September 22. It will also be interfaced with Auctions Plus.

An open day will be held on September 4. All Auction rams will be available for inspection, by appointment on that day.

Due to Covid-19 attendee numbers will be restricted. Please RSVP on the website to guarantee a spot on the Open Day and Auction Day.

There will also be over 1000 flock rams available, all of which can be viewed by appointment from 14 September.

For more information, contact Mr Sutherland on (02) 6954 6145 or email: pooginook@paraway.com.au Alternatively, visit their website: www.pooginook.com.au

Story sponsored by Pooginook Merino and Poll stud.