From Victoria’s Western District’s cooler, higher rainfall country to the hotter, drier conditions of NSW’s mid-west, Kurralea Studs principal Ben Prentice says one of the strengths of the stud’s Poll Dorset and White Suffolk genetics is their ability to perform across a wide range of commercial environments in key sheep breeding regions.
It is a trait underpinned by more than 50 years of breeding at Kurralea, Ariah Park, where structure, growth and commercially relevant performance continue to drive the program.
Around 300 Poll Dorset and White Suffolk rams are expected to be offered at Kurralea’s annual on-property sale on Tuesday, September 29, including about 30 stud rams and an even split of flock rams across the two breeds.
“We sell rams into the wet country, and we sell rams into the dry station country, so I think our rams are suited to all areas,” Ben said.
“That comes back to structure, durability and correctness. We’ve always been very hard on feet and shoulders and making sure our rams are put together right.”
That structural focus is balanced with the growth Kurralea has long targeted for commercial prime lamb production.
Ben said feedback from clients showed the genetics were performing for producers targeting both fast-turnaround sucker lamb production and those taking lambs through to heavier weights.
“We’ve always considered growth to be one of the most important traits,” he said.
“For the guys wanting to get lambs off quickly, they’ve got that growth to get them big quickly, but our rams are also generally larger framed, so they have the ability for producers who want to keep their lambs longer and feed them through to heavier weights.”
Rather than chasing figures at the expense of phenotype, Kurralea has maintained a consistent breeding direction, using performance data alongside visual assessment.
“We try to keep the figures going in the right direction without losing sight of what our rams should and need to look like,” Ben said.
New genetics will feature prominently this year, including the first progeny of two Goorama Poll Dorset sires, Goorama 115-23 and Goorama 912-23.
Goorama 115-23 was purchased in partnership with Mallee Park and Sunnybanks studs, while Goorama 912-23 was purchased outright by Kurralea. Both sires were selected in part to introduce additional eating-quality genetics while complementing the growth already established within the Kurralea flock.
Kurralea 181-23 will also be strongly represented among the Poll Dorset stud offering.
In the White Suffolks, Kurralea 11-23 and Kurralea 38-23 are producing their first sale progeny. Both are sons of Farrer 24-21, purchased for $21,000 and described by Ben as a sire that has done “a terrific job” within the program.
Several young rams are already catching Ben’s eye ahead of the sale, including Lot 17, Tag 304, and Lot 16, Tag 315, both by Kurralea 38-23 in the White Suffolk group.
“I think 304 is up there with as good a ram as we’ve offered,” Ben said.
Lot 3, Tag 148, by Goorama 115-23, and Lot 5, Tag 247, by Goorama 912-23, are also emerging as the Poll Dorset rams to watch.
Seasonal conditions are adding further confidence ahead of spring, with Kurralea receiving about 35 millimetres in a recent rain event.
“Things are going as good as they could be for this time of year,” Ben said.
After a dry season kept some regular buyers away last year, he believes improved conditions and strong lamb prices provide a positive backdrop for this year’s sale.
For Ben, however, the objective remains much the same as it has throughout Kurralea’s breeding history – producing rams he is proud to see working in the paddock.
“I find it very rewarding to get to sale time with a team of rams that you enjoy driving around the paddock and being happy with how they look,” he said.
Kurralea Studs’ annual Poll Dorset and White Suffolk Ram Sale will be held on-property at Ariah Park, NSW, on Tuesday, September 29 at 12.30pm.
Stud rams will be offered via AuctionsPlus, with flock rams selling in the shed.
