Weighing sheep to boost lamb output
Some may say precision farming doesn’t have a role to play in sheep production, but that’s not true, sheep consultant Catherine Nakielny told farmers at the recent RASE precision sheep event near Penrith .
“Weighing really matters. It’s the driver for profitability far more than conformation. Lambs gaining 500g a day will be the most profitable and an average of 350g a day for twins should be aimed for. It’s more efficient for a lamb to grow quickly in terms of how it converts energy into growth,” said Ms Nakielny.
And it was important to be aware of ewe liveweight too; data collected from 3,500 ewes with lambs had shown that ewes carrying less condition and weighing lighter produced the poorest lambs.
“Ewes should be managed to ensure they are carrying enough bodyweight. Where ewes are carrying less condition there’s often a correlation at scanning time between weight and the scan results.”
Sheep producers don’t need to weigh every ewe every year, but it is important to put at least part of the flock over the scales, she said.
“Ewe bodyweight cannot be assessed just by visual appraisal – and where there are errors of judgement it can lead to ewes being underdosed, which is a waste of money and ineffective.”
Farmers were also urged to monitor the rate at which lambs were growing so that any “checks” could quickly be acted upon.
“The Tru-Test electronic weighing system provides sheep producers with an opportunity to monitor how individual lambs are performing by comparing previously collected weight data with current weighings. It’s so important to make weighing work for you and provide you with information you can act upon and that will ultimately impact on your flock’s performance and profitability,” she added.