Ewe culling and retention strategies to increase reproductive rates in Merino sheep

Abstract

The present empirical study of data from three Merino resource flocks of varying genetic backgrounds run in different environments investigated the impact of various selection strategies aimed at culling poor performers (‘passengers’) or retaining good doers (‘performers’) longer, or both, on the flock reproductive performance. Four strategies were investigated and applied either individually or in combination, to quantify their impact on the litter size, rearing type and breeding efficiency (number of lambs weaned per ewe per year) of the whole flock. The main benefit from implementing any of the strategies was a decrease in the proportion of dry ewes in each flock (1–7%). There was little difference between the single strategies of culling twice-dry ewes or culling ewes that twice lambed and lost their lambs. When retaining a cohort of older ewes, it was more efficient to select these on the basis of their lifetime reproductive performance. There was only a marginal benefit gained by combining strategies and, in some cases, a single strategy was still better in terms of breeding efficiency. Commercial producers can improve the reproductive rate of these flocks by culling twice-dry ewes on the basis of their pregnancy scan data.