Mark Murphy, Karbullah Merinos, will offer rams on-line only this year with FarmGate Auctions on September 19.
An understanding of the importance of fat and muscle has seen a Queensland Merino flock boost lamb survival and minimize lamb losses.
Mark and Vicki Murphy, Goondiwindi, have undertaken a personal challenge to make the Merino a more productive, easier care, sustainable and enjoyable to manage sheep.
The couple marked 153 per cent lambs from ewes joined in 2021 and recorded just 7.3 per cent lamb loss in their Karbullah Poll Merino.
“A passion of mine is to achieve greater lamb survival,” Mr Murphy said.
Mr Murphy said if the national sheep flock sat close to an annual lamb loss of 7.3 per cent, there would be an additional minimum of more than 8 million live lambs born each year.
“We could decrease that by over two-thirds through improved management, genetics and nutrition,” he said.
“What came out of the Bred Well Fed Well program was the importance of getting the mob size down and make the birth site private for twin bearing ewes to get those lambs on the ground.”
Reducing lamb losses under tough conditions to 7.3 per cent lamb loss is no easy feat considering lamb losses under shedded conditions in Europe with 100 per cent surveillance, all lambs tube fed and given an antibiotics is 7-9 per cent.
“It’s about having an understanding of the importance of fat and muscle,” Mr Murphy said.
“You also need a ewe with good mothering ability and who will hang around the birth site to look after her lamb.”
Karbullah is also supplying semen from one of their 2020 drop sires for export to Mongolia to lift lamb survival rates in Merino flocks in the challenging environment.
“Criteria included doability and wool quality so the ram had to have above average breeding values for fat and muscle, skin and wool traits,” Mr Murphy said.
“He was used as a ram lamb in a syndicate joining over older ewes before being sold.”
The Murphys use best practice management, visual appraisal, Australian Sheep Breeding Values and the latest genetic and electronic technology.
The result is a plainer bodied, more robust animal producing earlier maturing progeny, giving commercial producers the ability to turn off a lamb with a shorn fleece of wool as surplus income.
The couple run 850 stud ewes in their dual purpose SRS (Soft Rolling Skins) Merino stud on 3144ha.
A total of 178 rams have been catalogued for the Karbullah online sale with FarmGate Auctions on Monday, September 19, at 12pm.
This year the sale will have bidding online and there will be rams on display on-property on sale day for buyers to view.
Last year, Karbullah cleared 100 per cent of 187 rams offered for an average of $2271 and a top price of $10,200.
Karbullah is the first SRS stud to use the mobile livestock visual assessment system, ClassiMate, for online selling.
Breeders get a detailed analysis of an animal’s genetic phenotype and can in turn analyse that individual, flock or breed developments over time.
“ClassiMate is a more comprehensive visual assessment of both wool and carcase traits under roll-out in the wool and shedding sheep breeds, goat and cattle industries,” Mr Murphy said.
“All of that information enables comprehensive reports to be generated on individual sires.
“This year we have put all our 2021 drop ewe and rams through the system to use it as a management tool and not just to assist clients at sale time.”
Mr Murphy said the productive, plain bodied Merino resulted in reduced drenching, the elimination of body strike and fleece rot and the cessation of mulesing at Karbullah.
The absence of mulesing has resulted in the flock being Responsible Wool Standard (RWS) accredited, drawing premiums for lines off the main ewes.
Adult ewes average 19 micron with fleece weights of 6kg and a 100 per cent comfort factor in the main lines.
The Murphys will interface their ram sale with FarmGate Auctions this year.
“We can’t fault the professional attitude and assistance from Kate Gooden at FarmGate Auctions,” Mr Murphy said.
“Buyers can peruse the photographs, videos, performance data and ClassiMate assessment of the rams online beforehand.”
For more information contact Karbullah on www.karbullahpollmerinos.com.au or FarmGate Auctions on www.farmgateauctions.com.au
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Caption: Mark Murphy, Karbullah Merinos, will offer rams on-line only this year with FarmGate Auctions on September 19.