ADHERING to a strict selection criteria and keeping up to date with technology and industry research has allowed Shane Murphy to both continue his family tradition of running Merino sheep and to meet diverse market demands.
Mr Murphy and his wife Andy run about 7500 Merino ewes at “Goondoobluie”, Mungindi, 6000 of which are joined to Merino rams.
Usually, 1500 of their ewes would be joined to Poll Dorset rams however, during the drought Mr Murphy said they ceased their cross breeding program. With good seasonal rain over winter, they’re expected to restart their cross bred production this coming year.
Wool production has always been a key part of the Murphys’ enterprise, however, with an evolving sheep market, Mr Murphy said they’ve been concentrating on breeding a dual-purpose flock.
Recently, the Murphys have moved from doing one shearing a year to two in order to cut production costs, meet specific market demands and better balance their income. This is the first year the Murphys are trialling more frequent shearings, shearing their sheep every eight months.
Mr Murphy said currently, a shorter staple is more desirable for the current market so they’re trying to aim for an average length of between 65 to 75mm- more achievable when there’s less wool on the sheep.
They’re also aiming to run a low cost shearing operation which focuses on bailing whole fleeces as opposed to needing a wool classer.
“As a result, that means we’re getting about 10 bales of fleece to one of all the other cuts such as skirtings,” Mr Murphy said.
In a normal season, the Murphys would fatten their Merino sheep and sell them to the prime market when they reach about 50 kilograms. During drier times, which has been the case for the last two seasons, they have sold their weaners through the store market to restockers.
Mr Murphy said last year their lambs averaged $85 per head across the board.
The Murphys can start joining their sheep in February through to a normal March/April joining, depending on the season. Lambs are on the ground by July/August and at the latest, early September.
Mr Murphy said they try to avoid lambing any later than September so they can mark their lambs and have them healed by the time flies set in.
When selecting for his ewe flock, Mr Murphy looks for animals that are physically big and strong enough to handle the often tough climate conditions, as well as able to carry a decent fleece.
“We like a good plain bodied sheep with good wool,” he said.
“Bare head and legs aren’t frowned upon.”
