An MLA-funded Producer Demonstration Site (PDS) which supported sheep producers to transition to non-mulesed flock has delivered improvements to their on-farm productivity.
As part of the 'Transitioning towards non-mulesed sheep' PDS, 53 participants in NSW and Victoria used genetic tools and resources – which were readily available – to develop and initiate their own property-specific transition plans.
Steps to success
PDS facilitator Lisa Warn said regular meetings between the producers involved were important to guide them through changes to their management and breeding programs, to enable the transition to non-mulesed flocks.
"Heading into the experience, we were aware that while there was a large number of producers who wanted to cease mulesing, they often reported lacking the confidence to do it without increasing the risk of flystrike within their flock," she said.
"We felt a group environment where participants could gain support and different insights from their peers who were in the exact same position would really help kickstart a widespread adoption of non-mulesed sheep."
The producers involved were divided into four working groups – three in Victoria and one in NSW. Where possible, these subgroups were linked to producers operating in a similar environment who had already completed the transition to non-mulesed flocks.
"This gave participating producers the opportunity to chat with producers who had already completed the transition about what their journey was like, what their key challenges were and how they overcame them.
Readily available tools
Following an initial workshop with each of the groups, the first step on-farm was for producers to familiarise themselves with already-available genetic tools and resources.
"We started the project by getting each producer to provide a summary of their enterprise, markets and constraints," Lisa said.
"Then, it was straight into using DNA analysis tools to understand where their flock's genetic baseline was currently sitting, and what traits would need to be focused on improving in order to reach that goal of a non-mulesed flock."
The tools used included the flock profile tool and Australian Sheep Breeding Values (ASBVs).
"Once producers completed the initial benchmarking of their flock, we worked with them to determine what traits of genetic merit need to be improved to meet their breeding objectives and achieve non-mulesing," Lisa said.
"This is especially important in the lead-up to buying rams as we wanted our participating producers to be confident with all their reproduction decision making."
Taking charge
Each producer had the opportunity to run their demonstration in a way that suited their production goals to reflect the various pathways to achieving a non-mulesed flock.
For example, one producer ran a sire evaluation demonstration. They separated rams into two groups: high early breech wrinkle ASBC (EBWR) and low EBWR. Lambs born from sires in the high EBWR group had a breech wrinkle score of 1–5, while the lambs born from the low EBWR sire group had breech scores of 1–3 (see Figure 1).
Breech wrinkle scoring chart.
Other producers from different regions in NSW worked together to run smaller non-mulesed mobs, while still keeping a larger mulesed mob to observe different management requirements.
These producers found shearing every six months was most effective, and the seasonal risk of flystrike determined how much they would have to invest in purchasing drenches and monitoring their flock.
Changes to production
At the conclusion of the PDS, half the producers involved had made changes to their husbandry procedures calendar and 70% had made changes to their reproduction decision making to improve genetic traits.
"Transitioning to non-mulesed does not have to be scary," Lisa said.
"All changes made to production for these producers have been for the benefit of both the animal and their business.
"When you're reaching out to the experts and other producers along the way, your short-, medium- and long-term goals will all be met with confidence and certainty."
