Scanning---

[Tim W]

Having just finished my scanning i wanted to add my score to the thread on BFF but i will just have to start it off anew here;

688 ewes 173%---includes 180 yearlings that lambed/raised a lamb as ewe lambs, this brings the average down a bit. The mature ewes averaged 186% ----3.8% barren (bit poor)
242 ewe lambs 67%----didn't do as well as previous years for some reason

All in all not bad for April lambers---as an aside one of the best scanning groups spent the autumn & were tupped on red clover leys

 

[Philip Watkins]

242 ewe lambs 67%----didn't do as well as previous years for some reason

Is that correct? Should it be 167%

 

[Tim W]

Its correct----many didn't get in lamb but then many would have been very small ....28kg when they went to the tup
The ones that get in lamb tend to be the bigger ones, ---there has been a very strong weight/pregnancy correlation in the last few years (although i haven't analysed this years stats yet---will do in due corse)
They were tupped in a few mobs of about 70 lambs , 1 ram lambs with each mob, again i haven't figured how the various groups fared yet but as soon as i get a chance i will sort through it

 

[Philip Watkins]

Are they all singles, or some with twins? I presume those not in lamb will get a second chance as yearlings.

 

[Tim W]

10% twins---others will either get another go or be sold as yearlings
Some raise twins but most seem to loose 1 somewhere down the line

 

[EJS]

What breed are they Tim, my suffolk mules only averaged 165% this year, and only 168% last 5 years - seems lower than alot on BFF, think I may be keeping them too light at flushing.

 

[Tim W]

Exlana---- www.provensheddingsheep.co.uk or www.sig.uk.com

A wool shedding breed ---bred by performance not looks- when i select sheep for breeding i do on the computer not in the field! Obviously any unfunctional animals are culled out too

They are about 60/65kg mature wt and seem to perform ok in a variety of situations
This year the best scanning results were on a group tupped on Salisbury plain at 900ft

The yearlings that lambed as ewe lambs typically then scan at 145% as yearlings but i think that if they rear 1 as a ewe lamb and then 1.2 as a yearling they are still ahead of an animal that first lambs as a yearling----

 

[Yale]

We've had the best ever scanning this year,

Older ewes,194%,mules and vendeen cross mule.

Yearlings,first time to tup,186%

Welsh,around a third yearlings 161%

Around 660 to lamb,61 triplets.

 

[Philip Watkins]

How many quote scanning percent based on ewes put to the tup and how many on ewes in lamb, discounting barreners.

 

[Spartacus]

I always quote sheep to the tup to the number of lambs. Got 480 swale ewes, run 200 pure and cross the rest to the BFL, down 20% on last years scanning. Also run 115 mules to the texel tup and they were 192% so pretty much same as last year. Recently sorted early and late twin and found 220 early lambers (in the first ten days) and only 55 late twins. A next door neighbour had his best scanning results ever this time.

 

[Banana Bar]

Texel cross shearlings 154%. Lambing starts 17th March

 

[EJS]

always include barreners in % although might have felt better if excluded them this year!

 

[Flossie]

200%














Just the one ewe

 

[Tim W]

always include barreners in the %age---no point in fooling yourself

 

[farmer Les]

Evening,
Been prowling on BFF for a year!
Aged sheep 170%
Lleyn x shearlings198%
Had tups in for 3 weeks with 80 ewe lambs but only caught 6, usually catch more, weather responsible?

 

[dodger]

158% between 20-30% back on previous years, less lambs at scanning with 120 ewes more than last year, ewes which scanned 190% last year 112% this year, not looking forwards to lambing one bit,seems a waste of time....

 

[johnspeehs]

"Had tups in for 3 weeks with 80 ewe lambs but only caught 6, usually catch more, weather responsible"

when did you put the ram out?? sounds like he must have been fireing blanks

 

[dodger]

tups went in mid-end october, 3-4 in with each bunch so doubt thats the problem, more than likely the weather and fluke/condition of ewes,

 

[farmer Les]

Had 3 charolais tups with them so all of them shouldnt be firing blanks! They went out mid sept, we never aim to tup all the ewe lambs, but a few more would of been handy!

 

[Razor8]

Scanned 170 Lowland Ewes

6 Empty
38 Singles
107 Twins
18 Trips

185%

Scanned 24 Lanarks

2 Empty
11 Twins
11 Singles

142%

Scanned 42 Ewe Lambs

6 Empty
24 Twins
12 Singles

143% These will keep me busy

I was feeding ewes round bales of silage along with feed buckets before tupping as i ran out of grass so i am really happy with results
Scanner said two of empties had mush in them so they carried for awhile