Breeding in both the group of 40 hogget ewes and 140 mature ewes has started positively on Tullamore Farm.

Rams were joined with ewes on 24 October and flocked a week later on 31 October to reapply raddle.

At that stage, there were 23 out of the 40 ewe hoggets served and in the region of 50% of the mature ewe flock raddled.

The raddle colour was also changed from green to blue to give a better assessment of lambing date.

This will allow ewes to be penned according to lambing date and also facilitate more precise feeding levels in the run-in to lambing.

Under more pressure

The flock of mature ewes are running with two Texel hogget rams and one ram lamb.

These will be under more pressure than the hoggets, which are running with two mature Charollais rams and will be monitored closely to ensure no issues arise.

Manager Shaun Diver reports no problems to date, with libido of all rams described as excellent.

The option is available to switch rams between groups after the first or second cycle if required.

The ewe lambs averaged 21.08kg carcase weight

The 15 ewe lambs will also be joined with a Charollais ram at the end of the first cycle in the mature flock.

This will keep the lambing spread tight, while lambing ewe lambs when pressure on housing and lambing facilities will hopefully be reduced will afford the opportunity of keeping ewe lambs in lambing pens for longer.

Drafting continues

There are just 15 Charollais-cross lambs remaining on the farm, with eight ewe lambs drafted last week.

The ewe lambs averaged 21.08kg carcase weight, with four grading R3 and four R4.

The R3 lambs received €4.88/kg, with the R4 lambs cut 15c/kg due to excessive fat cover.

The average price received for the eight lambs was €101.17.

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Grass holding steady on Tullamore Farm