Ram suggestions

[Ysgythan]

Scenario -

50 ewes. Mainly Welsh Mules. About 10 Texel x Welsh Mules. 4 second cross Texel Welsh Mules. Two Suffolk x Scotch Mules. One Lleyn (showing a fair bit of Texel if I’m honest). Ewes range in age from yearlings to brokers but the majority are younger ewes.

Will be implanted with pure Texel embryos shortly. Then left for a whole repeat cycle free of the tup, then tupped in early November. Hopefully nothing will want a tup meaning a 100% hold rate, but some may be rejected as having not cycled, some are only to be used if there’s no other option and a % will turn to the tup anyway.

Tup has to be MV. Lambs will be weaned at 80-90 days at latest.

Aim - Male lambs for our freezer or if a surplus to the Mart. They will be sold live if sold. Females to be kept as replacements. They’ll be on permanent pasture but we don’t mind creeping them.

Plan A is to run them with the Texel stock tups as usual.

What would your Plan B be?

 

[neilo]

My plan A would be a Charollais , but surely you’d not want to buy anything to cover a few returns, when you have rams there already?

 

[Ysgythan]

My plan A would be a Charollais , but surely you’d not want to buy anything to cover a few returns, when you have rams there already?

I’m inviting a challenge to my thinking. Would a mule carry the Charolais maternally?

 

[unlacedgecko]

Lleyn.

 

[bean]

Aberfeild have some great females to keep.

 

[Ysgythan]

Lleyn.

If they were mostly Second X Texels I’d seriously consider this.

 

[Ysgythan]

Aberfeild have some great females to keep.

What KG would the ram lambs finish. They’re biggish Mules.

 

[unlacedgecko]

What KG would the ram lambs finish. They’re biggish Mules.

I’ve not been that impressed with the ones I’ve seen. Aberfield is basically a stabilised BFL x Texel, so you might get some very prolific females out of mules.

 

[Northeastfarmer]

Suffolk @Nithsdale Farmer ??

 

[Ysgythan]

I’ve not been that impressed with the ones I’ve seen. Aberfield is basically a stabilised BFL x Texel, so you might get some very prolific females out of mules.

Are they MV? Suppose it would save buying mule ewe lambs. What’s an Aberfield x Aberfield x like?

 

[Ysgythan]

Suffolk @Nithsdale Farmer ??

Where can you get old fashioned ones?

 

[neilo]

I’m inviting a challenge to my thinking. Would a mule carry the Charolais maternally?

Plenty do every year.

Aberfield is a good shout. I bet you're deperate to throw some money into Innovis' coffers..... I wouldn't want to put them on a mule for fat lambs though, unless you want to keep the resultant ewe lambs as recips. Prolificacy wouldn't matter for that job after all.

 

[neilo]

Are they MV? Suppose it would save buying mule ewe lambs. What’s an Aberfield x Aberfield x like?

Innovis may have an mv Aberfield flock somewhere. They only have one accredited Highlander flock (near Kelso), but you'd have to ask them as they don't publicise the fact they don't seem overly worried about that health status.

 

[Nithsdale]

Suffolk @Nithsdale Farmer ??

Well trained! Don't even need to do the work myself anymore

Where can you get old fashioned ones?

This boy is a more old fashioned...

Or this classy lamb (who now looks like the shearling above)

Quality from a local breeder... who is currently on holiday in Jamaica

 

[Northeastfarmer]

Well trained! Don't even need to do the work myself anymore



This boy is a more old fashioned...
View attachment 836292View attachment 836293View attachment 836294

Or this classy lamb (who now looks like the shearling above)
View attachment 836291View attachment 836295




Quality from a local breeder... who is currently on holiday in Jamaica

That tup looks Jamaican

 

[Joe]

Logie? working well here across Mules and Mule crosses

 

[bean]

Logie? working well here across Mules and Mule crosses

yeah logie tex x bfl would be mv which is a bonus

 

[CharcoalWally]

I’m inviting a challenge to my thinking. Would a mule carry the Charolais maternally?

To keep the resulting ewe lambs you mean?

 

[Sandpit Farm]

As Neil has stated, I am not sure why you'd buy another breed of tup to sweep up those ewes when you have good Texels anyway... so it should be your plan A. Plan B should be... your plan A?!

If you expect your hold rate to be good, there should be hardly any lambs by this tup anyway. Buying one in means your cost per service is dramatically increased. If you use your Texels, worst case scenario is that they have to work 50 ewes and you end up with a load of Texel X lambs that you cash in with a small service cost. You then buy in MV acc females as recips or whatever your replacements were for.

Naturally, I would say Roussin (but Rouge, Bleu, Vendeen or even Border Leicester or Shropshire or similar would work well) as it is exactly what they are for but genuinely - why bother?

 

[Ysgythan]

Well trained! Don't even need to do the work myself anymore



This boy is a more old fashioned...
View attachment 836292View attachment 836293View attachment 836294

Or this classy lamb (who now looks like the shearling above)
View attachment 836291View attachment 836295




Quality from a local breeder... who is currently on holiday in Jamaica

Not that old fashioned...