Scan, plan for lambs

In years when seasons are tight, he scans his pregnant ewes to identify which are carrying singles or twins and uses this to feed accordingly.

This cuts waste and maximises productivity.

Geoff Duddy, Sheep Solutions, Leeton, says most producers are aware of the need to adopt best management practices particularly in the last trimester of pregnancy.

"A pre-lamb plan is critical - that last couple of weeks prior to lambing is a huge energy drain on the ewes," he said.

The first step, which comes well before lambing, is to identify which ewes are carrying twins and singles, so ewes can be managed accordingly.

"The real benefit is that in a bad year, when feed's a bit tight, you can always separate twin bearing ewes and preferentially feed them," he said.

By feeding the twinning ewes separately, feed is not wasted on single bearing ewes.

Mr Duddy said all sheep enterprises would gain from scanning, whether their focus was on prime lambs or wool.

"For wool-based systems a lot of the secondary follicle development and placental development, which nourishes the lamb, is all happening around that time of scanning from three months to birth," he said.

Feeding the twinning ewes separately also allows producers to improve lamb survival, growth rates, fleece weight and weaner survival, which therefore improves selection pressure during classing.

Vaccines were another vital consideration of a pre-lamb plan, Mr Duddy said.

He said it should be a "run of the mill" management practice.

"Most producers would look at using a booster vaccine for ewes prior to lambing but my feeling is not everybody does it," he said.

"It's just good management practice so I'd certainly encourage it."

Using arthritis as an example, Mr Duddy said figures proved vaccines could quickly pay for themselves.

"You only have to save one lamb for it to pay for itself," he said.

"With an issue like arthritis it's important to note that there are several causal factors, so first and foremost the producer needs to seek the diagnosis of the cause whether there's a history of cripples in the flock.

"If they can get a diagnosis that points to a cause that has a vaccine available, then it's important for both ewe and lamb health to use it."

Mr Shannon, who runs the livestock enterprise "Marilba", said he split his ewes pre-lambing and put them back in to bigger mobs post-lambing, to stock them at a smaller rate so that twins were at a lower density.

"It's as much about knowing what we've got and what to expect; it's just another management tool," he said.

"But some years we will do without it - we didn't scan last year because we had a lot of feed."

Mr Shannon - who also runs a livestock contracting business in the Yass area - said vaccination and body condition in ewes were also priorities.

"For our operation it's important to ensure all of our stock are in optimal health at the start of spring; we don't have any room for errors," he said.

"It needs to be done right and done well to give us the flexibility to run the other business, whereas if we had major problems at home I wouldn't be able to balance both."