There were plenty of woollen jumpers on show at the annual Gippsland Merino Ram sale last Tuesday, where the rams were lined up indoors at the new Gippsland Agricultural Centre.
The venue was the toast of the day, making a marked improvement on previous sales, particularly being protected from blustery spring winds.
There were 140 Merino rams offered, auctioned alongside the pens, of which 116 sold at auction for an average $2243 a head.
The top-priced ram was a poll from Pendarra Merino stud, knocked down at $8000, and sold to repeat buyer of almost 20 years, Rod Hill at Jarroe Valley Grazing, Strathbogie.
“Lot 14 was our first pick, and we wanted him,” Mr Hill said of paying the top price.
“You don’t buy what you can afford, you buy what you need.”
He said his family bred their own long bodied sheep with quality wool and were going down the unmulesed path, so were after a plain bodied wool cutter.
Averages for rams sold at auction included Pendarra stud, Benambra at $2630; Round Hill, Omeo at $1973; The Fringe, Briagolong at $1000; Nicholson River stud at $1430; Macehill, Munro at $1093 and Stockton Merino stud, Hillside at $1375.
Luke and Casey Nicholls, Macehill, Munro, sold rams for the second time at the Gippsland Merino Ram sale, trying to promote their stud.
Mr Nicholls said they had been running the stud for five years and concentrated on quality, breeding for deep, meaty frames and non-mulesing, with an average micron of 17.
Rosedale’s Scott Langley took two of the Macehill rams home, saying he was trying to breed sheep that had wool length and wool weight.
“We’re shearing every six months, so we want those two characteristics, and that’s the path Macehill are going down,” Mr Langley said.
Top-priced ram vendor, Kelvin Pendergast, Pendarra stud, Benambra, said Lot 14 had always been a standout, with quality, free-growing, stylish wool and being structurally correct.
“The sale overall for us far exceeded our expectations,” Mr Pendergast said.
Pendarra had one ram passed in of the 72-head offering but already had a paddock to go to.
“It’s an exceptional clearance for us, particularly for the way the wool industry and the sheep market is.
“But if you’re breeding sheep you have to keep that quality up.”
Mr Pendergast said there were several repeat volume buyers, including the Lyons family of Wilka Hereford stud at Hamilton; the Couttes family at Maryborough; the Armit family of Swifts Creek; and Alan Bennett, of Nariel P/L at Lawloit, in the Western District.
Mr Bennet took 11 rams home with him, and said he used to buy rams from Murray and Janet Toland’s Bindawarra stud at Cobungra.
“That’s why these sheep can go into the Western Districts because they survive harsh conditions,” Mr Bennett said.
“The purity and quality of the wool stands out to me.
“It’s an opportunity to buy quality sheep at terrific value and it’s been a fantastic sale in a tough environment.
“It’s proof the rams are doing their job, you can’t put your ewes out of gear for a year.”
