The Merino industry has lost one of its most respected and influential figures with the passing of former Collinsville stud master Tom Padbury late last month.
The 93 year old is being fondly remembered for turning sheep breeding into an art form.
He also had incredible foresight in breeding dual purpose sheep with wool cover and carcase without compromising structure.
In more recent times he has worked as a stud advisor to more than a dozen studs from SA, Vic and WA but his greatest mark on the industry was the 40 years he spent at iconic Collinsville stud including 25 years as stud master.
This period from 1969 to 1995 was arguably one of Collinsville's most successful periods and saw the stud's genetics dominate both in Australia and abroad.
During the 1980s Collinsville broke seven world records including selling a ram for $450,000 in 1989- a price tag that is unlikely to be surpassed.
Tom's childhood was the perfect grounding in livestock on the family's stud property, Koojan in the Moora district of WA.
His father Albany and grandfather William were talented stud breeders and during their combined lifetime they were involved in 24 different breeds of stud animals including Merinos, beef and dairy cattle, pigs and several horse breeds.
Livestock exhibited by the Padbury family won an unrivalled 19 Governor's Cups at the Perth Royal Show for the most successful livestock exhibitor between 1912 and 1939.
Tom inherited his family's enthusiasm of breeding livestock.
In 1948, after finishing school, Tom joined Elder Smith & Co where he gained valuable technical experience in their wool department before progressing to country branches and stud stock.
Then Collinsville stud master AL 'Art' Collins recognised Tom's natural talent and invited him and his wife Deborah to Collinsville in 1957.
Tom spent the next 12 years until Art's death in 1969 learning about breeding sheep suited to the environment they were run in.
When interviewed by Stock Journal in late 2010, Tom said one of the best pieces of advice he received from his mentor Art was the importance of the ewe in any mating and that "a Merino ram will never be bred that a ewe can't help".
Another breeding principle he passed on to Tom was that the "four Cs - constitution, conformation, conversion and covering were the keys to productive sheep".
When the Collins family sold Collinsville in 1985 to WA stud breeder Neil Garnett, Tom remained on as stud master growing annual sales to more than 4000 rams - a feat he was very proud of.
Neil says Tom is "unparalleled" in his influence on the Merino industry and his approach to stud breeding revolutionary.
During his tenure at Collinsville he displayed an "unwavering commitment to detail and a formidable personality that set the industry standards".
Neil says it was a great privilege to work with Tom who inspired a generation of Merino breeders.
"His encouragement to strive for excellence in every aspect of stud Merino breeding, combined with the integration of available technology, has left an indelible mark on the industry," he said.
"Many of Australia's top Merino breeders today trace their inspiration back to Tom Padbury's dedication and achievements."
Elders SA studstock manager Tony Wetherall - who sold many of Collinsville's record breaking rams- agrees Tom was "not just a stud master but a master of stud masters".
He says he was in control from the feeding of the rams to the penning up and inspection by buyers.
"On inspection days you would often see him standing back to one side, hands behind his back observing the proceedings," he said.
"At the right moment he would approach and engage with the potential buyers with a voice of authority and knowledge that had the immediate attention of anyone within ear shot of his commanding voice."
Tony says his first encounter with the great man has stuck with him.
As a young stock agent in the early 1980s he learned a valuable lesson from Tom while the Collinsville rams were being unloaded for the Adelaide Merino ram sale.
"The rams were carefully being ushered into their pens when suddenly a ram broke, not wanting to let it get passed me I lunged at the ram and grabbed the big full woolled ram by the side with a couple of handfuls of wool," he said.
"Tom who had observed it all made his way over to me and politely told me that was not the correct way to handle the Collinsville rams."
Greenfields stud principal Robert Sullivan says Tom, who was a stud advisor for them from 1996, was only too willing to share his wealth of knowledge and experience.
He would keenly follow the progress of the young stud reserves, keeping track of their tag numbers.
"In the classing race he would always stand back and visually appraise the structure and conformation of each ram before looking at its wool or any figures," he said.
"Then the top rams would be drafted off separately and walked around the yard to parade naturally."
Tom, who is survived by a son Robert and daughter Alison and their families- received an Order of Australia medal for his services to Merino breeding in 2002.
