TOUGH conditions faced by farmers in Bremer Bay, Western Australia, have proven the durability of Dohnes to commercial sheep breeder and wool classer, Julie Leenhouwers, seeing wool results exceed expectations. ‘Cardiminup’, sits on approximately 2800 acres right on the coast of Bremer Bay between Albany and Esperance and generally experiences high rainfall with the last couple of years seeing drier, more challenging conditions. Continue reading →

NOEL CLEAR is on track to build his Dohne flock on his property in Bracknell, Tasmania. The traditionally high rainfall region, has presented some breeding challenges in the past with his original flock of Merinos. Mr Clear’s property ‘Gaters’, 1,400 acres 33km southwest of Launceston, Tasmania is a mixed farming operation running Angus cattle, Merino and now Dohne sheep. Continue reading →

AFTER A DROP in the wool market during 2007, commercial breeder and shearer Brad Blackwood looked to change his strategy in sheep. Finding the Dohne to be capable of providing more than just quality wool, the breed made a mark on the productivity of the family operation with its dual-purpose traits. Continue reading →

IT’S NOT just traditional grazing operators that swear by the Dohne, feedlotters are hopping on board the dual-purpose sheep too. South Australia’s Shayne Willmott and his family run a mixed farming operation and a feedlot on 3,000 acres in Manoora, marketing their own Dunira Prime Lamb brand to butchers locally and internationally. Continue reading →

THE DOHNE sheep are hardy animals and continually prove to be the most versatile breed on the market. For commercial breeder Andrew Tunstill, switching to the Dohne has improved the viability of his business, even in the harshest of seasons. Andrew and his veterinarian wife Kirsten Tunstill live near Kalannie in the central wheatbelt of Western Australia. Kirsten stumbled across the breed through her veterinary work and was extremely impressed, telling Andrew to look into them immediately. Continue reading →

"I love the Dohne as they’re tough. We’re pushing our sheep much harder in that we’re shearing twice a year and looking to get 1.3 to 1.4 lambs out of her. They love fibre (roughage) and they’re good doers." Continue reading →