WITH a waft of clouds, a hint of green and a good dust storm, the annual Etiwanda White Dorper ram sale was well supported by locals at the Cobar property of the Mosely family on Wednesday.
There was also a large gallery of buyers using the AustionsPlus interface.
Buyers from four states took home 68 of the 79 rams offered, with others sold after the sale. A top price of $5600 and a draft average of $1327 proved to be a great result.
First time buyers to the stud, Bronte Mawson and Annabel Mangal from Australis and Genelink White Dorpers, Nairne, South Australia, successfully made the high bid for the 85.5 kilogram twin ram.
He held a top 10 per cent post-weaning eye muscle depth (PEMD) of 2.6 and was also in the top 10 percentile of the breed with a Maternal Carcase Production (MCP) index of 141.9 while his lamb eating quality (LEQ) sat at 139.4, another top 10 per cent in the breed.
Mr Mawson said they aimed to breed easy care sheep and their new ram would suit their program as out-cross genetics.
"We have been looking at the Mosely's genetics for years, their breeding plan is similar to ours," Mr Mawson said.
"He is a well balanced ram with good Lambplan figures."
Local repeat buyers Susan and Tim Prince, Bindi Station, Cobar, selected 20 rams after recent rain turned their season prospects around.
"We have had about 80 millimeters of rain are looking to build up again and need the rams to produce more lambs," Mr Prince said.
"They are very hardy sheep for the conditions out here," Mrs Prince added.
"They are very resilient, they are not soft at all."
Dominic Prince, also a local repeat buyer from Cobar, purchased seven rams.
"I like the size and quality. They take to our conditions out here," he said.
Justin McClure, Tilpa, secured six rams.
"I was able to get these rams a bit cheaper than normal," he said.
"I have been purchasing from the Moselys for about 10 years now. I am very happy with their breeding figures and the selection that Andrew and Megan use. Their ability to breed rams in the harsher conditions shows."
Auctioneer John Settree thought it was a good result with great support from Western Australia, South Australia and other states online.
"The Moselys do very well with their Breedplan and the figures and the rams that they put together," he said.
"They have been commercially accepted and also studs have shown strong interest in their program."
Vendor Andrew Mosely was very happy with the sale and clearing about 90 per cent.
They attracted quite a few new clients and also saw rams go to studs for the first time.
"We are very appreciative of the local support that we get," he said.
"We have been focused on getting our performance data right. We had 50 per cent of the draft in the top 30 per cent of the breed and 30 per cent in top 10 per cent of the breed.
"We are really focused on balanced performance, the maternal carcase production index, looking for growth, carcase and reproduction.
"We are trying to get an animal that is good with performance and profitable."
Megan Mosley added that they had a very strong support through AuctionsPlus.
"Our figures are getting stronger and that is what we are all about, getting results for our clients," she said.
The sale was conducted by Landmark Russell, Cobar with John Settree, Nutrien Stud Stock manning the rostrum.
