Patrick Goldsworthy Meat the flock Photographs & drawings: Copyright Goldsworthy Associates Limited, Jake Tebbit

The Shepherd Part time Past experience –Teenager: Cotswolds and Jacobs –Ag Student: night shift 2 x 500 Greyfaces –“Farmer” 150 ewes Mule/Greyface - Suffolk/Texel cross Edge of Dartmoor Texel, Suffolk, Southdown and Dorset Down tups Now – c. 25 Southdown ewes

Origins 15 year aspiration 1 acre paddock needed mowing 3 in-lamb ewes bought from local breeder Jan 2008 Now up to c.28 acres

Why Southdowns Docile and easy to handle Tight stocking/ folded Early finishing potential Early relief of grazing pressure Lambing ease Outstanding conformation Best tasting lamb Past experience Looks!

Ambleside farmland Free rent 1.5 Ha Paddock 0.4 Ha Front Field 1 Ha Hill Farm 6 Ha Let for 2011 Orchard Row 3 Ha To be sown autumn 2010 Anglian water land no boundaries visible in field 2010 c.20 ewes and followers on 2.9 Ha

Grazing and grass Buy-in most hay Permanent pasture (tenanted FOC) –80 kgN/Ha Leys –180kg N/Ha (subject to rain/soil moisture) Establishing new leys out of arable –Autumn undersown WW with PRG/clover mix or –HSG grasses sown with Rye/Westerwolds/IRG cover

Tups and tupping Ewes flushed on grass or with ewe nuts New for 2010 –Ewes sponged to synchronise lambing –PMSG to increase ovulation rate in shearlings and some ewes –7ewes per ram

Lambing Ewes in at Xmas Lamb indoors Feb- Mar Keep in until grass and weather “fit” Lambs dressed & weighed at birth Tails and castration at 4-6 days

Current flock (at ) Rams –Two stock rams –One shearling (for sale) one ram lamb Ewes –12 ewes w 1 or more lamb crops –18 shearlings –9 ewe lambs Butcher –2 lambs (2w)

Lambing performance YearEwes to tup Lambs born Lambs survived Ewes survived

Health Work with young vets on Flock Health Plan Open flock while growing –No quarantine –Feet and worm new arrivals Blue Tongue Vaccine Heptavac P Not currently –Scrapie testing… Autumn 2010 –Maedi Visna

Worming and Flystrike Worming –No FEC –Land sheep free until 2008 –Worming until 12 months Panacur -white (fenbendazole) and Cydectin – clear (moxidectin) –alternate years Flystrike –Vetrazin (cyromazine)/Crovect (cypermethrin) late March to shearing –Vetrazin post shearing –Crovect for misses

Signet Recording More scientific way to analyse performance and genetics “Marketing” edge for unshown flock Benefits commercial breeders who want high performance terminal sire

Signet: What’s involved Flock breeding data Birth weight Eight week weight 140 day –Weight –Scan Muscle Fat £££s

Signet Data Eight week weight Mature size Litter size Maternal ability Scan weight Muscle depth Fat depth Index Maternal qualities Terminal sire qualities Terminal Sire Index based on all terminal sire qualities

Signet data EBVIndexAccuracy Estimated Breeding Value Against breed benchmark Confidence in results (%) Actual value in stock Eg kg, mm, no. Low numbers= low confidence due to limited data and connectivity

Challenges Lowland flock –Flystrike –Twin lamb disease East Anglia –Climate and soil –Limited livestock services Markets/abattoirs Veterinary resources Fallen stock

Sales Ewe lambs mostly retained Whethers to butcher for private sale and own use Rams for sale/hire