Flock Rebuilding - "Pregnancy Scanning and Ewe Management"

Summary

This Producer Initiatied Research and Development project (PIRD) set out for producers to learn more about the reproductive performance of their flock and management options by using pregnancy scanning to identity dry ewes, ewes with singles and ewes with twins. The project aimed to: 
To improve the producers understanding of the nutritional requirement of the ewe and how to condition score.To determine if the pregnancy scanning management practice can increase productivity and is economically viable.Rebuild the sheep flock in the Eyre Peninsula Fire Area.
The results Ram joining percentage ranged from 0.5% to 2.75% averaging 1.93%Ewes were in condition score 3-4 from mating to lambing13% of the ewes scanned were dryThere was a 3% ewe death rate from scanning to markingThe lambing percentage of the ewes mated was 89.6%The lambing percentage of the ewes scanned in lamb was 102%Twin ewe mobs that were managed separately had an average lambing percentage of 145.4%The lambing percentage of ewes scanned in lamb, for Merino ewes mated to Merino rams was the same as Merino ewes mated to terminal sires.Improved understanding of the reproductive performance of the flock Changes to implementIncrease knowledge of nutritional requirements of pregnant and lactating ewesImprove feeding of pregnant and lactating ewesSet up enough paddocks so more mobscan be managed separately.Improve ewe management to reduce lamb wastageAll producers indicated that their experience with pregnancy scanning was worth while and will scan again in 2007Farmers were able to get together and share results and experiences, which was valued highly by the participants