New shed part of a long-term investment

Sheep aren't the only string to his bow, with cattle and grain in the mix as well, but the shearing shed investment means there will be opportunities to take advantage of market changes in the sheep industry going forward, and given recent positivity in those spaces, it's no surprise to hear of the odd sheep related infrastructure investment around the State.

"The wool and sheep markets are certainly enough to justify the sheep side of our business at this stage," Mick said.

"Like a few others in the area we tried some exotic sheep here for a while but they tested the mental health a bit which is why we've gone towards and stuck with the Merinos."

Mick buys in Merino ewes each year to be joined to locally-bred prime lamb sires for crossbred lamb production, meaning he sees a wool cheque or two as well as a lamb cheque very year.

Rams are bought out of the Chapman Valley ram sale each year, with Poll Dorsets from Tipperary or Woodgrove studs the go-to choice for crossbred lamb production out of bought in Merino breeding ewes.

"Generally when we're buying ewes we aim for a MPM type from the local area wherever possible," Mick said.

"Though we did buy in some from Jerramungup last year when the opportunity came up, so we keep an eye out for whatever is out there at the right price."

Together with his stock agent Murray Paterson, Landmark Geraldton, Mick finds additional ewes each year, but has also looked at other options beyond buying in breeding ewes, with some Merino wethers bought in from Eneabba last year.

"That's one of the many reasons why the shearing shed was something we wanted to invest in because it means we have options for maybe trading a handful if the season permits," Mick said.

"It just frees us up to be able to buy sheep in with a bit of wool and make some money off that wool."

When looking for the right type of ewe to fit into the business, Mick said it needed to be low maintenance and capable of rearing a good lamb.

"We're looking for plain-bodied, easy-care, large-framed ewes that can raise a good crossie lamb and so far that type has done well for us."

Well enough it seems to take the plunge on investing in a new shearing shed.

"Before we made the call to build the new shed we'd had the sheep for about five years and we'd been shearing in a crutching trailer," Mick said.

"But the wool was making us money and after a while it became pretty clear it was worth installing something permanent.

"The trailer wasn't too bad for the shearers but it was difficult for us to treat the sheep off-shears and it was hard work pushing them individually into the trailer, so with a bit of money around the wool industry at the moment, we thought we'd build the shed and make life a bit easier for everyone.

"The plan is definitely to stick with the sheep into the future, so with wool and sheep prices the way they are, I think the shed will pay for itself fairly quickly."

Life will certainly be made easier for the entire shearing process, with the shed able to hold about 300 head, meaning the first run of the day won't be affected by the coastal morning dew common to the Northampton area.

"In the past we've always had an issue with getting going early enough so even though we wouldn't be able to keep shearing for four days if there was rain, but we could get going nice and early instead of having to wait for them to dry out," Mick said.

In terms of the shed design, Mick said he did do some shopping around but in the end wanted to work with local shed builders.

"I'm really happy with how it's turned out," he said.

"The sheep run in really easily and that's a huge difference to how we were operating before so I really like that."

He said shearing time at the moment is 'a bit all over the shop'.

"We've gone to an eight-month shearing now which means shearing moves around," he said.

"So that was another reason for the shed because if the time of shearing changes, having the shed helps us manage the weather more than we were able to in the past in that July-August period when hopefully we're having issues with rain.

"The aim is to get to that 70-80mm staple length range and make the most of strong wool prices with an extra clip."

The shed has already done a lamb shearing and a full ewe mob shearing with reviews from the shearers positive so far.

"The shearers like it so that's a good sign," Mick said.

About 60 bales of wool leave the property each year and going forward, there will be plenty more exiting the doors of one of the newest shearing sheds in the district.

"Quite a few people in the area have been a bit surprised we've bought a shearing shed but a lot of them have bought a new tractor in the past five years," Mick said.

"A shearing shed is a longer-term investment than a tractor but when we looked at where the wool prices were at, it made sense to us to put a bit of our faith in the wool industry."