Agriculture
22 August, 2023
Firm start to ram sale season
WENTWORTH brothers Warren and Stuart Duncan paid the top price of $8000 at the season-opening Loddon ram sale season auction at Terrick West Stud. They faced strong bidding to secure the first of 84 lots to go under the auctioneer’s hammer. The...
WENTWORTH brothers Warren and Stuart Duncan paid the top price of $8000 at the season-opening Loddon ram sale season auction at Terrick West Stud.
They faced strong bidding to secure the first of 84 lots to go under the auctioneer’s hammer.
The 19.2 micron ram had been sired in South Australia by the ram Moorundie M61.
Warren Duncan said they had wanted to include that bloodline for breeding in their 4000-ewe Dunedin Park stud.
“We saw this ram at the Victorian Merino Field Day in Marnoo last month - we had been looking at others but this ram stood out for its structure, brilliant back-end and good wool and a broad back,” he said.
“We’re focusing on spending on rams and this purchase will be joined to a few select ewes in our flock of about 4000 breeding ewes.”
It was the first purchase by the Duncans of a Terrick West ram in 15 years.
Friday’s top priced ram had a standard deviation of 2.9, co-efficient of variation of 15, and comfort factor of 99.5 per cent.
The sale’s average was $3112 on a clearance of 78 of 84 rams.
While down on last year’s record average of $3703 - the top price in 2022 was $6500 - Terrick West co-principal Ross McGauchie said: “Last year was phenomenal and after a difficult period last year (floods), we were very happy with the rams that were offered today.”
“We’re very pleased that a lot of people agree with us and spent good, serious money on good rams,” he said.
Top buyer at the sale was Murray Miller who purchased nine rams at the stud’s 34th annual sale.