Apparel Wool, Meat for a Feast
Christmas Newsletter 2020
Members are to be congratulated on their ram sale results off the back of prolonged drought, low wool prices and low national breeding ewe numbers.
Council has some exciting projects on the table for 2021. One in particular is the Dohne Sire Evaluation which commence’s with Artificial Insemination on January 25.
A big thank you is extended to the Holt family for running the trial and providing the ewes, management and staff.
Thank you to those members who have entered a sire, we have a great representation by state, genetics and ASBVs.
The information collected from this evaluation will be invaluable in progressing our breed and, with the changing face of the Australian Sheep Industry, aid in seeing the Dohne flourish in years to come. Continue reading
December Newsletter 2020
The secretary's office will be closed for Christmas holidays starting Wednesday 9 December 2020 and reopening Tuesday 12 January 2021.
There will be only one more Dohne Analysis this year, that will run on Monday 7 December 2020. Sheep Genetics will not be running the December 21 analysis for 2020.
Reminder to all members, when submitting data, please use the new Dohne Data Submission Request Form.
National Promotions has decided to produce a revamped high quality journal. One size advert, is being offered to members and that is 1/4 A4 page. These will be published early March 2021, and will be distributed to each state so that they can be promoted at next year’s field days and sales. Continue reading
Dohne Ewes Make $438
When the Holt family of Coonong Station at Urana received $438 per head for their scanned in lamb Dohne Merino ewes, they gave much of the credit to a marketing campaign run by 24-year-old agent Helen de Costa.
The ewes were sold in AuctionsPlus' weekly national sheep sale earlier this month and the $438 pen featured 340 two-year-old Dohne ewes, scanned in lamb with a White Suffolk.
The ewes were some of the 1990 Coonong sold in total, including two pens of six-year-olds, for an average of $314.
Ms de Costa of H Francis and Co said their marketing campaign had included a combination of social media and print advertising, along with getting the word out in their agent network. Continue reading
Dohne breed is the complete package
THE Dohne breed fitted the bill when brothers David and Peter Smith wanted to increase the performance of their farm's sheep program 16 years ago and the breed is still ticking all the boxes.
The brothers farm 4000 hectares in north east Carnamah where they have a 70:30 mixed farming enterprise favouring cropping.
They also produced pigs for 40 years but moved away from them early this year, so their full focus other than cropping is their Dohne sheep breeding program.
Originally Merino breeders, the Smiths wanted to increase the profitability of their sheep and turned to the Dohne breed to achieve their aims. Continue reading
Productive, Profitable Dohne Operation at Wallandbeen
INCREASED fertility, doability and lamb production are some of the benefits introducing Dohne genetics in the flock at Milbey, Wallandbeen. Luke Wells, who manages the property for owners David and Kandee Thorn, is currently running 5000 ewes, and has been using Dohne genetics for the past four years. "We were after a plainer bodied sheep for the flies and to step away from mulesing, which we've done for the last three years." Continue reading
November Newsletter 2020
The Dohne Sire Reproduction Evaluation onsite meeting was held at Tom & Sophie Holt’s ‘Coonong Station’, Urana in the Riverina of NSW, on Sunday 1st November 2020.
This day allowed all parties to meet, greet, inspect facilities and finalise arrangements for the evaluations commencement in January.
1275, 2017 drop ewes will now be AI'd to 13 Dohne sires (including 1 link sire) and 2 Poll Merino link sires. Continue reading
Meeting wool, lamb markets with Dohnes
"We can turn off lambs around 50kg at prices up to $160, so considering their ability to sustain weight and wool cut, I'm very happy."
Commercial Dohne breeder, Will McClenaghan has had plenty of exposure to the sheep industry growing up in the New England region but an introduction to the Dohne breed over 15 years ago has changed the way he operates.
2003 marked the change for Mr McClenaghan, forming an association with a local Dohne stud that would point the operation of his 1000 acre property, ‘Balaclava’, Armidale, NSW, in a new, more versatile direction. Continue reading
Surviving in Tough Conditions
“They are a little bit hardier, and they suited our climate and property which is semi-arid. One of the other benefits we discovered is that they wouldn’t need mulesing, ” he said.
When the Dohnes were first introduced to the property, there were two joinings a year for both autumn and spring lambings. Today, however, the Dohnes just have a spring lambing. Mr Hawker said he was also impressed by the quality of the wool itself, and it seemed to have improved over time.
Fibre diameter usually measures 20-micron, down slightly from the Merinos which were measuring 21- to 21.5-micron. Many of Mr Hawker’s Dohnes had recently been sold to feedlots. Continue reading
Breed Trials Commence at Muresk
In achieving this objective over the past five years, the Muresk Dohne flock has become a valuable part of the commercial enterprise that is now supplying animals for industry led research that is undertaken at Muresk.
Farm Manager, Steve Wainewright, says the fertility and early growth are major benefits of the breed; ‘The ewes have performed brilliantly under trying conditions this season.’ Continue reading
TIME FOR DOHNES TO SHINE
THE Australian sheep industry may never have been in a more unique position.
Prices for sheep meat, wool and breeding ewes are at near all time highs, while flock numbers are at their lowest levels since the early 1900s.
The breed's true dual purpose nature means it can take advantage of both the strong sheep and wool markets. Continue reading
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