Swansong for Wye Corriedales

About 80 stud ewes 2010-11-12 drop, plus five stud rams will be offered on AuctionsPlus, giving breeders a chance to bid on the sheep without leaving home.

Over the years Wye has been awarded many broad ribbons including the supreme long wool ewe at the 2013 Royal Adelaide Show. This ewe and five other 2012-drops will be offered individually, with the remainder sold in lots of five or six ewes.

The ewes will be mated and due to lamb in late May to June.

Wye was established in 1974 with the purchase of the Wanga stud to breed rams for a self-replacing commercial Corriedale flock.

Ewes were also bought from Quamby Plains stud in Tas.

Sires have since been purchased from Loddon Park and Quamby Plains studs, and semen used from top rams in New Zealand.

Fertility and growth, quality and performance have been traits of focus, aiming for heavy cutting fleeces of about 27 microns.

Wye has been performance recording since 1996 as a selection tool but Jan insists visual assessment is still the most important.

In her younger days, Jan showed Ryelands with her father but became an ardent supporter of Corriedales after meeting and marrying Tony.

She has judged throughout Australia and internationally and believes they have real value run as a self-replacing flock or as prime lamb mothers

Among the Hunts' most memorable highlights were winning most successful exhibitor in Corriedale feature shows at Adelaide in 2011 and 2000.

In 2008 they took out the supreme long wool ram and ewe champion double.

Aside from the thrill of breeding a champion Jan said they had many fond memories of the people they had met and the strong friendships they made.

The Hunts will disperse their 2013-drop ewes later in the year and hold their final flock ram sale. They will also have their swansong showing with a small team for the 2014 Royal Adelaide Show.

* Full report in Stock Journal, March 13, 2014 issue.