Buyers chasing dual purpose Merinos with plenty of carcase and fertility, lined the lane ways at the Ryan families annual Richmond Merino sale at Quandialla on Tuesday.
The soft rollers meet spirited bidding as long time clients battled it out with new participants at the sale, with all 110 rams selling to a top of $10,000 to average a handsome $2277, which was up $336 on last years sale.
Stud principal Trevor Ryan said he was happy with the confidence shown from repeat buyers and those buying for the first time was pleasing.
:We are trying to move the sheep forward gradually and consistently in all areas and we are seeing results in our growth every year, which feeds back to the sheep we produce for our clients and their results," he said.
Mr Ryan said they were trying to get their Australian Sheep Breeding Values moving in a positive direction, while still maintaining high fleece quality and structural soundness.
" I am accutely aware that we need to keep carcase and wool traits ion the improve as kilograms per head is what the industry wants, but we always need to keep quality at front of mind at the end of the day, " he said.
The top ram was snapped up by Troy Rose, "Rotherwood", Cassilis, who had pruchased at the sale three years prior and loved the carcase traits the rams offered, with high quality fleece weight.
The ram was an 18,.1 micron poll twin, son of the 170013, with a yearling weaning weight of 9.5, clean fleece weight figure of 21.3, matched with a 99.8 comfort factor and a dual purpose index of +176.
Mr Rose said he was chasing rams with plenty of carcase that had nice bright wool's and good all round dual purpose sires, including the second ram he bought for $5000.
"We buy the top end rams to breed a few top quality dual purpose flock rams for our in flock use, which this year had seen them mark 158 per cent lambs at marking," he said.
His travelling partner Damon Soster and son Lachlan, "Dalkeith", Cassilis, runs 5000 ewes and targets a very similar ram to Mr Rose, to breed highly fertile females, with plenty of carcase and great wools.
Mr Soster bought five rams, averaging $2600 and has plans to grow their flock to 8000 ewes over the next few years.
George Haylock, Old Springfield, Cooma, has used the Richmond sheep since the dispersal of Severn Park several years ago, of which the Richmond stud is based.
Mr Haylock wanted good big quality sheep, with early fertility rates, good growth, big frames and a great balance of Index figures on the wool side and took home 10 averaging $2800..
"The Richmond sheep with their plainer bodies suit our operation of 4600, 18 to 20 micron Merino ewes that produce lambs that allow us to chase the meat job, with their earlier growth rates," he said.
Mr Haylock said they recently sold lambs at direct to Southern Meats at Goulburn that were just 12 months of age, dressing 29.7kg and yielding 46%.
The volume buyers got in on the action early with Grant Kitto, "Iandra", Tallimba, securing 18 rams at a $1944 average, as he had kept more ewe lambs after classing this year to rebuild numbers after the drought.
Mr Kitto joins 1600 Merinos annually, with the balance joined to Poll Dorsets for a terminal cross.
"We chase rams that can give us good carcase to breed a wether lamb that is salable, while putting more punch into our cull ewes that are joined to our terminal sires to breed bigger faster growing lambs," he said.
Jamie Morgan, Geeron Partnership, Forbes, was his arch nemesis chasing a lot of the similar type rams to secure 16 for a $2000 average.
Mr Morgan runs 4000 Merinos ewes and 2000 suffolk/Merinos, with an aim to get their wethers and lambs to 40 to 45kg for sale or we can hold them over and put them through our on farm feedlot to get them to 55kg if the market permits.
"We want sheep that are low maintenance that are highly efficient feeding sheep to allow us to hit our markets," he said.
Stud buyers competed with Coddington Uardry Poll, Yeoval, paying $4000 for a new sire, while the Hooke boys, East Loddon Merinos, Wanganella, bought one at $500 and Wia-Wera, Yenda, paid $3000 for their new sire.
MQ Hunter, "Westwood", Bribaree, bought seven rams at $1643, while Lavendo Pastoral Company, Quandialla, loaded six at $2083.
The sale was conducted by Elders with Paul Dooley as the auctioneer.