increase font size
Weaning is an ideal time to body condition score ewes.
Weaning is an ideal time to body condition score (BCS) ewes as it allows valuable summer feed to be partitioned into lighter ewes to give them a lift before tupping.
Beef + Lamb New Zealand’s general manager North Island, Matt Ward, says BCS is a cheap yet valuable way to save feed and improve flock performance.
Poor condition ewes (less than BCS 3) at mating are less likely to get pregnant in the first 17 days of breeding, they will have lower scanning percentages and will have less buffering in late pregnancy and lactation resulting in lighter lambs at weaning.
Ward says the key drivers of profit in a sheep flock are kilograms of lamb weaned per hectare, weaning weight per lamb and the number of lambs weaned per hectare – and ewe body condition impacts on all three.
Ideally, ewes should be maintained at a BCS 3 or 4 all year round, but lactation, pregnancy, mob pressure and competition for feed will see some ewes falling below this.
“Body condition scoring at weaning, mating and scanning will allow lighter ewes to be identified so they can be priority fed or culled,” he says. “It’s about minimising the number of tail-end ewes (BCS 1 and 2) as these are the ones bringing down the overall flock performance.”
Ward says BCS is a way of comparing sheep independent of frame size, liveweight, breed, gut fill and stage of gestation. It relates to the production ability of sheep regardless of body weight.
It is done by assessing the amount of body fat by feeling the vertical (spine) and horizontal (short ribs) processes.
This is done by placing a hand behind the 13th rib, pushing fingers under the short ribs with pressure and finger on the spine.
BCS is based on a scale of one to five -- one being very skinny and emaciated and five being too fat.
Ward says getting exact numbers is not the main thing, but rather identifying ewes that fall below an optimum condition of 3, i.e. the BCS 1 and 2 ewes.
Recent widespread autumn rain will have triggered the germination of subterranean clover seeds, and the resulting seedlings should be allowed to reach the 3–4 trifoliate leaf stage before grazing, says Beef+Lamb NZ.
A hub farm in each of Beef + Lamb NZ’s seven regions and more focus groups are being rolled out for the red meat sector this year.
The red meat sector is poised for a strong rebound this season, with export receipts forecast to top $10 billion and farm profitability to almost double.
Progeny testing at Pāmu’s Kepler farm in Southland as part of Beef + Lamb New Zealand’s Informing New Zealand Beef programme is showing that the benefits of hybrid vigour could have a massive impact on the future of beef breeding.
Beef + Lamb New Zealand (B+LNZ) has reiterated calls for New Zealand to revise its methane targets after the Government's "disappointing" announcement of its revised Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC).
Academic Dr Mike Joy and his employer, Victoria University of Wellington have apologised for his comments suggesting that dairy industry CEOs should be hanged for contributing towards nitrate poisoning of waterways.
Environment Southland's catchment improvement funding is once again available for innovative landowners in need of a boost to get their project going.
The team meeting at the Culverden Hotel was relaxed and open, despite being in the middle of calving when stress levels are at peak levels, especially in bitterly cold and wet conditions like today.
A comment by outspoken academic Dr Mike Joy suggesting that dairy industry leaders should be hanged for nitrate contamination of drinking/groundwater has enraged farmers.
OPINION: The phasing out of copper network from communications is understandable.
Driven by a lifelong passion for animals, Amy Toughey's journey from juggling three jobs with full-time study to working on cutting-edge dairy research trials shows what happens when hard work meets opportunity - and she's only just getting started.
