BALANCED, profitable sheep is the goal for Curlew Merinos, and the Victorian stud is helping clients meet market specifications with rams that will breed sheep that can thrive in the Western District.
The stud, run by Tony and Angela Kealy and their children Bernie and Elise at Edenhope, has been breeding rams for the past 30 years and is best known for its combination of white, stylish wools and strong Australian Sheep Breeding Values (ASBVs) for a wide range of traits.
Having a large commercial flock of 12,000 sheep alongside the 500 stud ewes allows the family to identify the best genetics based on their own flock's performance, and it's led to improvements in a range of traits, including growth, fat and muscle, as well as worm resistance.
The sub-clinical losses of sheep without worm resistance are significant, according to Bernie Kealy.
"Sheep with high worm burdens produce less fleece weight and milk, have lower tensile strength fleeces and lower body weights," he said.
We aim to breed a sheep tailored to thrive in our environment as that is what will be most profitable for our commercial farm. This means we grow plenty of white, stylish, fine wool that is not susceptible to fleece rot, on a sheep that is resistant to worms, which can wean high numbers of fast growing lambs.
- Bernie Kealy, Curlew Merinos
"Worms are a financial cost and it is very labour intensive to muster and yard sheep for drenching.
Aside from one mob of hogget ewes, that raised lambs at 13 months of age, none of Curlew's adult sheep required a drench last summer.
"We aim to breed a sheep tailored to thrive in our environment as that is what will be most profitable for our commercial farm.
"This means we grow plenty of white, stylish, fine wool that is not susceptible to fleece rot, on a sheep that is resistant to worms, which can wean high numbers of fast growing lambs.
"Fat and muscle improve the carcase of the sheep, in addition to creating a more resilient and efficient animal."
Curlew clients are predominantly based in western Victoria and south east South Australia, in similar environments to the Curlew flock.
The higher rainfall in those regions prompted the Kealys to focus on producing sheep with good structure and well-nourished white wool which doesn't get fleece rot or dermatitis, and is not susceptible to flies.
"In the last two years we have entered two rams in sire evaluations in high rainfall environments and both of these rams, at different ages, had the least number of culls compared with all other sires entered," Elise Kealy said.
"That shows that you don't have to give up your wool quality to have great data behind your sheep."
The Kealys also have a strong emphasis on the traits that allow clients to cease mulesing such as breech wrinkle and cover.
"Our emphasis over the last few years has been to transition to a low maintenance, non-mulesed animal, as fast as possible," Ms Kealy said.
"We are pleased that we have been able to make enormous gains in this area while not only maintaining, but continuing to increase our clean fleece weight.
"We are unique in maintaining our 18-micron clip on a resilient and highly reproductive sheep."
Approximately 80 high performing Curlew sires will be available at the stud's annual on-property sale on Monday, October 4, which will be interfaced with AuctionsPlus. A sample of their sheep will be on display at Sheepvention at Hamilton in August.
The family will also have the sale draft on display at an on-property field day on September 20, which will feature guest speaker Andrew Thompson, speaking on genetic evaluation, productivity, efficiency and profitability.