ANOTHER quality WA ram is on track to being an Argentinian stud sire after a $9500 top price was paid at Richard and Cindy House's Barloo Merino and Poll Merino stud ram sale at Gnowangerup last week.
The purchase follows at least six others from WA by Argentinian buyers in recent months, with the South American country's stud breeders favouring our State's premium genetics in a flurry of buying activity including at this year's Rabobank WA Sheep Expo & Sale in Katanning.
The ram purchased at Barloo's on-property sale by retired World Federation of Merino Breeders president Glen Keamy, Wembley Downs, on behalf of Manuel Camus, manager of Arroyo Verde Cabana Merino stud, Alto Rio Senguer, Churbut, Argentina, was a crowd pleaser.
The young Merino ram filled its pen (lot two) from end to end and was the product of the old Barloo Dominator lineage - a family which was started in 1986 and has stood the test of time.
Argentinian buyers of late have proven they favour wools with extra nourishment in order to stand up to their country's harsh climate and in selecting this particular ram the parameters were no different.
The ram also proved a great eye for well-balanced animals with real stud wool - body in the staple and the ability to cut plenty of fleece.
In terms of measurements it had wool figures of 20.3 micron, 3.8 SD, 18.7 CV, 98.9 per cent comfort factor plus, 814g/day wool growth rate, 306g/day growth rate, 122.5 kilogram bodyweight.
It was sired by Dominator 220.
Mr Keamy said the ram will do very well in Argentina because its breed is the most environmentally acclimatised of all the sheep in the world - adapting easily to the farm's mild summers, cold winters and low rainfall grazing country in the Patagonian region near the Andes.
Mr Camus visited WA following this year's Rabobank WA Sheep Expo & Sale and asked Mr Keamy to seek out a good ram for him come sale season.
"I picked out a couple and his preference was for this ram which was more ideally suited to the measurements they're breeding for and the Patagonian conditions," Mr Keamy said.
"It's a decent sized sheep with well-nourished wool, a good average micron around the 20-21 range and all the general things good stud breeders buy and breed for here in WA - conformation, size, quality wool and overall purity in the sheep.
"Having paid $9500 I still had a bit up my sleeve in terms of the budget and Mr Camus is very selective with the WA studs he targets."
The top-priced ram will be shorn, backlined and quarantined for a period of time before being shipped to South America to form part of Arroyo Verde Cabana's stud breeding program (which includes a sizeable AI program) from March/April next year.
All but four of the 34 registered buyers went home with rams.
This year the House family offered 200 rams, sold 188, averaged $1788 and grossed $336,100 overall.
The 159 Merinos sold (of 164 offered) and 29 Poll Merinos sold (of 36 offered) generated average prices of $1884 and $1262 respectively under the hammer.
Last year the sale went to a top price of $5100 ($3200 was paid for the top-priced Poll) and averaged $1662 overall ($1799 for Merinos and $1143 for Polls).
Just like last season commercial buyers were also out in force with semi-retired commercial breeder Peter Potter, Dunbar Farm, Katanning, buying the top-priced Poll Merino ram (and second top-priced ram of the sale under the hammer) for $4500.
The ram in lot nine had figures of 19.8 micron, 3.5 SD, 17.7 CV, 99.7pc CF, 846g/day growth rate, 298g/day growth rate and 128kg bodyweight.
Fathered by a Majestic Poll sire (a relatively new Barloo family of very long-bodied rams that have been joined to Wallinar-blood Barloo ewes), the ram caught Mr Potter's attention immediately.
"My two sons run the farm but were unable to make it to the sale," he said.
"We join about 4500 ewes each year and have been Barloo clients since it started selling Polls about six years ago.
"We look for size, wool characteristics and conformation when buying rams and breeding from them.
"The boys run quite a low micron flock but I believe in bread and butter wool at about 21 micron.
"We also look for heavy cutters with well-nourished wools and a good straight back."
Mr Potter bought two Poll Merinos altogether - the other for $2800.
Following the final fall of the auction hammer a private negotiation also took place between the House family and fellow Merino stud breeder Jason Griffiths, Canowie Fields Merino stud, Gairdner, which saw a deal struck and Mr Griffiths pay $7000 for lot 55 - a Barloo reserve stud sire which was passed in for $7500 during the auction after failing to meet its $8000 reserve.
The Impact-bred ram had measurements of a 20.1 micron, 3.3 SD, 16.4 CV, 99.6pc CF, 900g/day wool growth rate and 300g/day growth rate.
It'll be used in Canowie Fields's stud breeding program (AI and/or natural mating) from January next year.
"It has a great structure and stood well among the other white woolled sheep in the shed," Mr Griffiths said.
"There were plenty of good Impact rams in the line-up and hopefully it'll be the first step in helping us to start a new line of sheep and introduce some new genetics to our stud operation."
Other well-placed buyers from the top end of the sale catalogue included loyal clients Greg and Shirley Stewart, Teddington Farms, Gnowangerup, who bought six for an average of $3267 and brothers Daniel and Luke Patterson, Redwood Enterprises, Tambellup, who picked up two for $3900 and $4100.
Jerome Hardie, Wallinar Grazing, Broomehill, also bought his two for the day from the first run of rams at $4000 and $2800.
David Bungey, ER Bungey & Son, Borden, purchased seven from the first half of the catalogue for an average of $2250 while Geoff Cosgrove, Cosgrove Farming, Mingenew, did the same and purchased 10 for a $1990 average.
In the volume buying stakes it was Will Carrington-Jones, Warrenup Pastoral, Kojonup, who got top honours with 14 for a $1407 average, while Peter English, E & M English, Wagin, bought 13 ($1169 average) and Kelvin Holmes, CM Holmes & Co, Pingrup, purchased 13 ($1954 average).
Andrew Stewart, DM MCL & JA Stewart, Lake Grace, bought 11 ($1454 average) and Elders stud stock representative Russell McKay on behalf of Woodside, York, also picked up 11 for an average of $1454.
Mr House was extremely happy to see all his long-term Barloo clients buying good quality rams again this year.
"They're obviously getting good results and investing back into the industry with confidence," he said.
"It's great to see the top end of the catalogue being supported by a range of different studs over the years and it's a privilege to send our second ram for the year to Argentina after selling our first at the Rabobank WA Sheep Expo & Sale in August."
Elders stud stock manager Tim Spicer said the sale produced an outstanding line-up of sheep with the stud's usual buyers back and operating within their budgets.
"The Argentinians this year have bought more rams out of WA than any other State and it's pleasing to see representation turn up here today," he said.
"It certainly gives Barloo and the WA Merino industry at large another feather in its cap."
