The Benefits of Better Breeding in the Scottish Sheep Sector Sheep Focus Farm Project Year 2

The Benefits of Better Breeding in the Scottish Sheep Sector Sheep Focus Farm Project Year 2 www.scottishsheepstrategy.org.uk Telephone: 01463 811 804

The Benefits of Better Breeding in the Scottish Sheep Sector INTRODUCTION by Maimie Paterson, SSS Chairman Welcome to the second Scottish Sheep Strategy update! It doesn't seem like two years since the Strategy was launched at the Huntly event, but it's been an interesting journey on a steep learning curve. We've been successful in our primary objective of raising awareness of recording as a means of improving flock performance, lamb quality and producer profits. Love it or loathe it, there's just no getting away from the fact that performance recording can make a sheep enterprise fitter. With 2013 fast approaching, you need to start now getting your flock into shape to be able to prosper without the safety net of the Single Farm Payment (SFP). Efficient, productive flocks also stand to gain most from improving prices, so make a start on performance recording and make the most of your flock's potential. It doesn't have to be expensive or complicated - Go on! - Just ask us! This booklet comprises two parts. The first is an outline of the findings from the first year of a four-year sheep breeding trial conducted by the Scottish Sheep Strategy (SSS). Titled The Benefits of Better Breeding its objective is to improve the quality of lamb and increase producers returns by demonstrating the physical and financial benefits of better breeding. The second part comprises a guide to buying a suitable recorded tup for your flock, an introduction to Pen Cards and instructions as to how to access a directory of UK Performance Recorded Flocks. If you only do what you ve always done, you will only get what you ve always had. 2

FOREWORD Rod McKenzie, SSS Development Manager This project is a unique on farm breeding trial examining the long term impact of high performance maternal growth and carcase traits in ordinary commercial flocks. This project will enable the Scottish Sheep Industry to have an independent appraisal of the benefits that Estimated Breeding Values can bring to our industry. The participating farmers have undertaken a task that is not for the faint hearted, and we are extremely grateful to them all for their commitment and enthusiasm. The methodology of the trial and a summary of the first year s results are explained later on in this booklet, so I want to say a few words about the practical aspects of the trial. The first task was to find farms whose sheep operations were compatible with our requirements. Each farm had to have a large enough flock to enable us to work with a minimum of 180 ewes for four years, in addition they had to finish their lambs, and breed their own replacements. Each farm also had to be prepared to host at least three meetings per year for the four year duration of the trial. We have been extremely fortunate to find farms which reflect the diverse nature of sheep farming in Scotland from hard hill farms, hill farms which are not so harsh, upland units and mixed livestock /arable farms. The trial also encompasses four different breeds of tups and there is an opportunity to compare different cross bred ewes as well. This is a bonus and should prove very interesting. Certain things are already coming to light, but it is too early in the trial to form any conclusions. The fact that the trials are run on commercial farms, and all the work and selections are done by the host farmers means that they are extremely relevant, and better reflect what happens in real life situations. Like everybody else, Foot and Mouth The difference between a tup lamb and a wether lamb is about 30 seconds. It could be time well spent! 3

affected the results last year as some groups of lambs were selected for slaughter, but did not get killed for several weeks after the original planned date. That is one of the advantages of running this trial over the four years as we can see definite patterns emerging and the effects of unplanned events will be ironed out over the duration of the trial. The Scottish Sheep Strategy is extremely grateful to: Lord Roseberry, Dalmeny Home Farm, South Queensferry, trialling Texel tups on Mule cross Texel and Mule cross Lleyn ewes with the help of Charles Stewart, David Arkley and Hugh Kyle Alistair and Alexander Brewster, Rotmel Farm, Pitlochry, trialling Blackfaced tups on Blackfaced ewes. Dorothy and Amy Clark, Kinnahaird Farm, Strathpeffer, trialling Texel tups on Highland Mule and Cheviot Mule ewes with the help of Billy Thow. Forrest and Mary Irving, Whitchesters Farm, Hawick, trialling Hill NCC tups on Hill NCC ewes. Andrew and Bryan Robb, Westerhall Farm, Dollar, trialling Blackfaced tups on Blackfaced ewes. Derek and Cindy Steen, Hazelbank Farm, Lockerbie, trialling Lleyn Tups on Lleyn ewes with the help of Keith Whitelaw Without their help, co-operation and enthusiasm this work would not have been possible. The Dalmeny Team Success has many fathers. Failure is an orphan. 4

SECTION 1 Background The economic value of using genetic improvement information when selecting breeding stock is well established in the beef, dairy, pig and poultry sectors and producers use of the performance recording systems in these sectors is strong. Uptake of performance information in the sheep sector has traditionally been much slower and in August 2006 the Scottish Sheep Strategy announced funding for this trial to assist with some of the main issues surrounding awareness and skills in using the systems available. Its ultimate objective is to encourage the use of performance information when selecting breeding stock: To improve the quality of lamb from the Scottish sheep industry and To increase producers returns by improving the production genetics within their flocks Approach The project activities focus on two main areas; A) dissemination of results from on-farm trials, and B) the sharing of knowledge and skills amongst producers via farm meetings. A) Farm Trials Over the four-year term of this project, the financial performance of lambs from High Index tups is being compared to that of lambs from Low Index tups and also to that of lambs from Farm Choice tups (i.e. those bought by eye ) in terms of: i) The slaughter value of the lambs produced Growth rate, Age at Slaughter, Carcase Weight, Carcase Conformation, Fat Classification, Killing Out Percentage, Lamb Value /Head, Proportion in Specification The progency of any tup can help you or haunt you for years. 5

ii) The breeding value of the females produced The High Index, Low Index and Farm Choice daughters produced by the trial tups will be compared not only in terms of the slaughter value of their lambs (per the above) but also in terms of prolificacy (lambing percentage) and maternal ability (the number and total weight of lamb produced at weaning) The purpose of this is to identify and quantify the economic benefit of High Index recorded tups in terms of their value as sires of the slaughter lamb generation, and as sires of breeding ewes under normal commercial conditions. The farm trials are running on six farms using tups from the following breeds as follows Mr & Mrs F Irving, Teviot Rigg, Whitchesters, Hawick, Borders Mr A Robb, Westerhall, Dollar, Clackmannanshire Mr A Brewster, Rotmell, Ballinluig, Pitlochry, Perthshire Roseberry Estates, Dalmeny Home Farm, South Queensferry, West Lothian Messers J P Clark Ltd, Kinnahaird, Contin, Strathpeffer, Highland Mr & Mrs D Steen, Hazelbank, Corrie, Lockerbie Hill North Country Cheviot Scottish Blackface Scottish Blackface Texel Texel Lleyn Nothing else in the world is so powerful as an idea whose time has come Victor Hugo 6

The trials commenced with the 2006 tupping season, where four commercial recorded tups were purchased for each farm. Two tups on each farm have high EBVs (Estimated Breeding Values) and two have low EBVs for each of the following traits: Growth, Muscle Depth, Fat Depth, Litter Size and Maternal Ability. In Years 1 and 2 of the trial (2006 and 2007 tupping), these tups were mated to two groups of randomly selected ewes of similar breed type and age. A third group of ewes are being mated to the Farm Choice tups (i.e. those without any performance data) that have already been purchased by and used on the farms. Lambs born to all three sire groups are tagged at birth with a unique identifying number and basic lambing details recorded in terms of sire, date of birth and whether a single, twin etc. Lambs are weighed at around eight weeks of age and again when they are drawn for slaughter. Finally, details from the abattoir kill sheets are recorded. This has been carried out successfully for Year 1 and initial results follow. Year 2 results will be available early in 2009 once all lambs are sold. In Years 3 and 4 of the trial (tupping 2008 and 2009), the focus will swing away from the tups direct performance to how they compare as producers of ewes. The High Index, Low Index and Farm Choice ewes they produced in Years 1 and 2 will be mated to common sires on each farm in Years 3 and 4 and the lambs slaughter results will be compared as before. In addition, however, the ewes will also be compared in terms of their prolificacy (lambing percentage) and maternal ability (number and total weight of lambs weaned) and the differences in terms of total economic return established. Measurement is the first stage of management! 7

B) Farm Meetings One of the main vehicles for disseminating the information from these trials are meetings that run regularly on each of the trial farms, with a minimum of three occurring on each farm each year. A fixed group of around 15 to 20 local producers and other industry representatives attend each meeting. The purpose of them is to examine and discuss the breeding policy of each flock, including target setting and review. The trial results and gross margin data (prepared once per annum by an independent adviser) are an integral part of this process. If you would like to join one (or more!) of the groups, please contact Rod McKenzie 01463 811804. This trial is unique in respect of its length and focus on tups as sires of not just slaughter lambs but as producers of ewes. The developing results will present information on the use of performance systems in the sheep sector in a new way in Scotland. Used as part of the Scottish Sheep Strategy and QMS ongoing knowledge transfer programme it will help overcome barriers and assist better breeding as an integral part of modern lamb production. If you think you are a man of influence, try working someone else s dog! 8

FARM RESULTS - YEAR 1 (2007 Lamb Crop) SUMMARY Details of the relevant 2007 results are included in the pages that follow. In summary... Lambs sired by High Index tups were worth more than lambs sired by Low Index lambs as follows... 13.95/ewe ~ Whitchesters 2.83/ewe.` ~ Rotmell (interim results) 3.29/ewe ~ Kinnahaird Results for Rotmell are interim only. A further 20 lambs remain to be slaughtered at time of going to press. No data was available at time of going to press for Westerhall. Hazelbank joined the trial in 2007/8. First year's results will be in 2008. Results from Dalmeny showed no significant difference between groups. Striving for maximum production is vanity, striving for maximum profit is sanity. 9

WHITCHESTERS (65 lambs finished 1 ) Breed: NCC rams on NCC ewes Growth Tup Group Avge. Liveweight of Retained Ewe Lambs @ 180 days (kg) Avge. Liveweight of Finished Lambs @ 180 days (kg) Avge. Carcase Weight (kg) Avge. Killing Out % High Index 48.7 kg 39.0 kg 20.5 kg 46.5% Low Index 44.8 kg 41.4 kg 20.4 kg 47.7% Farm Choice 48.4 kg 39.0 kg 20.6 kg 47.8% Return Tup Group Avge. Age at Slaughter (days) Avge. Gross income adjusted to 183 days of age 2 ( /lamb) Avge. No. Las Reared per Ewe Avge. Gross Lamb Sales ( /ewe) High Index 199 44.47 2.06 91.60 Low Index 183 46.22 1.68 77.65 Farm Choice 223 41.62 1.67 69.50 Returns from High Index lambs worth 13.95/ewe more than returns from Low Index lambs In a 400 ewe flock this would mean additional lamb sales of over 5,500 per year! 1 Records for a further 68 lambs not available from abattoir 2 Assumed cost of keeping a lamb = 0.12/day When you come to a fork in the road take it. 10

ROTMELL (50 lambs finished 1 ) Breed: BF rams on BF ewes Growth Tup Group Avge. Liveweight of Finished Lambs @ 270 days (kg) Avge. Carcase Weight (kg) Avge. Killing Out % High Index 36.58 kg 17.19 kg 47.9% Low Index 34.33 kg 15.75 kg 45.6% Return Tup Group Avge. Age at Slaughter (days) Avge. Gross income adjusted to 265 days of Age 2 ( /lamb) Avge. No. Las Reared per Ewe Avge. Gross Lamb Sales ( /ewe) High Index 265 48.63 1.29 62.73 Low Index 273 42.48 1.41 59.90 Returns from High Index lambs worth 2.83/ewe more than returns from Low Index lambs In a 400 ewe flock this would mean additional lamb sales of over 1,100 per year! 1 Interim results. Approximately 20 lambs remain to be sold at time of going to press 2 Assumed cost of keeping a lamb = 0.12/day Let your performance do the thinking. 11

KINNAHAIRD (177 lambs finished) Breed: Texel Rams on Highland Mule and Cheviot Mule ewes Growth Tup Group Avge. Liveweight of Retained Ewe Lambs @ 100 days (kg) Avge. Liveweight of Finished Lambs @ 207 days (kg) Avge. Carcase Weight (kg) Avge. Killing Out % High Index 32.9 kg 47.9 kg 21.8 kg 45.8% Low Index 32.8 kg 47.0 kg 21.7 kg 45.7% Farm Choice 31.2 kg 46.4 kg 21.5 kg 46.3% Return Tup Group Avge. Age at Slaughter (days) Avge. Gross income adjusted to 212 days of age 1 ( /lamb) Avge. No. Las Reared per Ewe Avge. Gross Lamb Sales ( /ewe) High Index 212 50.99 2.23 113.71 Low Index 216 50.42 2.19 110.42 Farm Choice 213 50.23 2.29 115.03 Returns from High Index lambs worth 3.29/ewe more than returns from Low Index lambs In a 400 ewe flock this would mean additional lamb sales of over 1,300 per year! 1 Assumed cost of keeping a lamb = 0.12/day The key to change is to let go of fear Rosanne Cash 12

SECTION 2 TUP BUYING MADE EASY An up-to-date directory of performance recorded flocks is available by logging onto www.scottishsheepstrategy.org.uk or by contacting Rod Mckenzie on 01436 811804 or Alison Glasgow on 0131 535 3237. 13

BUYING THE RIGHT TUP FOR YOUR FLOCK FIRST consider your breeding targets. What will make you most money? Store/Finished Lambs Faster growth rates Better muscling Heavier carcases Leaner lambs Ewe Lamb Replacements Better Mothers More live lambs Producing faster growing lambs DISCUSS you requirements with the breeder who will help select tups with the combination of EBVs to meet your requirements OBTAIN a breed benchmark if you wish to compare the tup's EBVs with the rest of the breed REMEMBER Maternal EBVs are available for all sheep, even if they are not displayed (ask the breeder) EBVs can be compared within breed, not between breeds. Buy early to choose from the best selection of recorded tups with the EBVs you want EBVs do not assess fitness and other breed characteristics. FOR INFORMATION telephone Rod McKenzie, Scottish Sheep Strategy, on 01463 811804 14

Hill Breeds Pen Card EAR NO: ABC: 123 LOT: 1 High Mature Size EBV Lambs will grow into larger breeding animals High Litter Size EBV Female offspring will be more prolific High Maternal Ability EBV Female offspring will produce more milk to rear their lambs Estimated Breeding Values Mature Size 8 wk weight 5.6 2.8 Litter Size Scan weight Maternal ability Muscle depth kg 0.05 4.2 1.10 1.32 kg Fat depth -0.5 kg kg High Eight Week Weight EBV Lambs will have high early growth rate High Muscle Depth EBV Lambs will have a high lean meat yeild mm mm High Scan Weight EBV Lambs will have high growth rates Negative Fat Depth EBV Lambs will have leaner carcases HILL INDEX 188 High Index EBV Overall breeding merit rates highly within the population 15

Maternal Breeds Pen Card EAR NO: ABC:123 LOT: 1 Estimated Breeding Values High Mature Size EBV Lambs will grow in to larger breeding animals Mature Size 2.2 kg 8 Wk Weight 2.3 kg High Eight- Week Weight EBV Lambs will have high early growth rates High Litter Size EBV Female offspring will be more prolific, losing fewer lambs High Maternal Ability EBV Female offspring will produce more milk to rear their lambs Litter Size 0.08 % Maternal Ability 0.9 kg Scan Weight 2.2 Muscle Depth 1.32 Fat Depth -0.5 kg mm mm High Scan Weight EBV Lambs will have high growth rates High Muscle Depth EBV Lambs will have a high lean meat yield Negative Fat Depth EBV Lambs will have leaner carcases MATERNAL INDEX 1 48 Maternal Index Identifies animals with good maternal ability that will produce faster growing lambs with better carcase conformation 16

Terminal Sire Pen Card * A. N. Other 117 Using Estimated Breeding Values (EBVs) Z18 2.97 6.52 4.32-0.02 237 R1 * * *** * ** High 8 Wk Weight EBV = High Early Growth Rate High Scan Weight EBV = High Growth Rate High Muscle Depth EBV = Better Conformation Negative Fat Depth EBV = Leaner Lambs Index = Overall Ranking for Growth & Carcase Traits Consider the EBVs that are important for your system For assistance ask the breeder or contact MLC s Signet Breeding Services on 01908 844195 The tables and contents of this publication may not be reproduced without the express permission from SSS or Signet. All information is correct at time of going to press. Neither SSS, QMS, Signet or the authors shall in any event be liable for any loss, damage or injury howsoever suffered directly or indirectly in relation to this directory or the information on which it is based. 17

NOTES 18

2008 EBV WORKSHOP DATES Each summer the Scottish Sheep Strategy runs a series of EBV workshops throughout Scotland. These workshops are designed to help people feel more comfortable about using Performance Recording figures by helping them to understand what the figures mean and how using the figures provided can help them to make a final selection when sourcing new tups. This year the workshops are to be held on the following dates at the various locations mentioned below. They are open to everybody, but please check our website, www.scottishsheepstrategy.org.uk or phone Rod on 01463811804 or mobile number 07889963907 to ensure that we are not overbooked. Dates for your Diary 2008 EBV Workshops 26th August Melvich, Thurso by kind permission of Mr William Finlay 27th August North Essie, Peterhead by kind permission of Mr & Mrs Fowlie 9th September Corstanes, Biggar by kind permission of Mrs Mary Dunlop 10th September Allanfauld, Glasgow 12th September Kelso Ram Sales 19th September Otter Estates, Tighnabruaich 20th September Lorgba Croft, Port Charlotte, Islay by kind permission of Mr & Mrs MacGregor by kind permission of Mr David Newton by kind permission of Mr J Roy 19

Information on sheep breeding is available from a number of sources: Scottish Sheep Strategy Rod McKenzie: Telephone 01463 811804 Mobile 07889 963907 rod.mckenzie@sheepstrategy.org.uk www.scottishsheepstrategy.org.uk Quality Meat Scotland Signet Kathy Peebles: Telephone 0131 472 4040 kpeebles@qmscotland.co.uk www.qmscotland.co.uk Alison Glasgow: Telephone 0131 535 3237 alison_glasgow@ahdbms.org.uk www.signetfbc.co.uk Text in this leaflet prepared by Signet on behalf of Scottish Sheep Strategy For other technical information visit www.qmscotland.co.uk We cannot stand still while the world around us is on the move Jean Monnet