WAIORONGOMAI ROMNEYS
Breeding what the New Zealand Farmer wants for 135 Years
The breeding philosophy at Waio is simple.
"We only breed from the best to produce the best"
Sires
The sire rams that we use are the ones we believe are the best in their year group. We usually keep three or four 2 tooths each year selected from a possible 500-600 rams.
They are selected on a combination of visual appearance and the factual data available on each ram. Great care is taken over the selection and we have the luxury of hundreds to choose from. We dont want to sell our top ram. We use ram lambs if possible and their progeny is closely monitored to see if the ram is worth using again as a 2 tooth. Sires from other breeders are also purchased and used if we find one that we believe will suit us. If it doesnt perform it is culled regardless of what it cost usthe long term cost is far greater.
Ewes and Lambs
We are continuously improving our ewe flock and hence the rams for sale. Via a rigorous culling system, only the top breeding ewes are kept. On average only the top 40% of the recorded 2 tooths make it into the stud flock. Of the stud flock around 58% are mixed age ewes and 42% 2 tooths. With a high proportion of 2 tooths in the entire flock, rapid genetic gains are made.
Prior to mating, every recorded ewe is looked at individually with her pedigree and performance data ( both Studfax and S.I.L.) viewed on a computer screen via a laptop in the woolshed. This is a very time consuming job but ensures only structurally sound, high performing ewes are kept and mated to a suitable ram. This process also rules out any chance of inbreeding occurring.
All lambs are tagged at birth which gives us the most accurate information of the dam and hence the sire of those lambs. It is this accuracy that we can rely on to be fully confident of what ewe replacements we keep and what rams we sell.
All the stud lambs are weighed at weaning, around early December. The ram lambs are weighed again late April to give a 200 day weight, and their fleeces are weighed when shorn late July. All of this information is collated and analyzed by both Studfax and the S.I.L. genetic engine. It is not until after shearing that any culls are taken out, By retaining all animals and their measurement data we get a more accurate picture of the flocks genetic value.
Culling at weaning time would improve our figures but it is accuracy that improves a flocknot the perception of accuracy.
There are typically 500-600 ram lambs and they are all run as one mob with no preferential treatment for anything. This mob is only divided up just prior to ram selling time. By keeping them all in one mob, as much pressure is put on the rams as possible.
The Facts
· Breeding what the New Zealand farmer wants has always been paramount at Waiorongomai. From the ugly wool blind sheep of the 1950s to the open face, meaty, lamb producer of today we aim to breed today to meet tomorrows markets.
· I remember my Grandfather Jack saying that they wouldnt be happy in the 1950s until they could grow wool on the hoof of a ewe. They didnt achieve that but they grew it everywhere else. Thankfully those wool blind sheep have long since been bred out of the system.
· We still maintain a very high quality fleece in our ewes and while concentrating more on fertility and weaning weights the wool has certainly not been neglected.
· The weaning weights of our lambs ( all lambs weighed) for the last 8 years has been in the mid thirties (kgs).
· The average weaning weights of rams put up for sale is in the high thirties.
· The 200 day weights of the rams for the last 8 years has been between 5561 kgs.
· These weights have been consistent for a number of years and some may say why arent they improving?. The improvement is in the fact that there are more of them.
· The fertility of the flock has steadily improved with the mixed age ewes consistently scanning around 180% and docking 150%.
· With the increased fertility we are obviously getting a higher proportion of triplets. By tagging at birth we can see exactly who breeds triplets and who rears them. With this information are be able to identify which bloodlines/pedigrees have the ability to do both. Accuracy is the key to this question and answers will eventuate.
· The ram hogget's that are available for sale only received three, maybe four drenches in their lifetime. The reason for this low drenching occurrence is so the worm burden will be high and natural selection will take place. With the rams only run in one mob it is the best natural assessment we have.
· None of the stud ewes at Waio are drenched. If they cant thrive with no drenching then they are culled from the stud flock.
"We wont sell a ram unless we would be happy to use him in our own commercial flock."
We hope you have found the above both informative and useful. Please us for further information.
