SALE SUMMARY
Offered 437
Sold 285
Top $730
Av $360
IN an Australian first, Orrie Cowie stud, Warooka, held a stud Merino and Poll Merino ewe reduction sale last week through AuctionsPlus.
In a 65 per cent clearance, 285 ewes sold into three states, averaging $360.
The innovative marketing decision by stud principals Dennis and Heather Dalla produced more than 4000 hits, including 3300 views of the full catalogue of 98 lots.
For the first stud ewe sale solely online, 240 people logged in across the sale’s two days, including more than 100 registered bidders.
The mostly 1.5-year-old to 4.5-year-old ewes were mated for six weeks from mid-November and scanned in-lamb.
The extensive background and performance description, plus videos of each lot, eliminated the need for potential buyers to travel and enhanced the health and wellbeing of the SIL ewes.
The catalyst for the flock reduction was an enterprise restructuring following Dennis and Heather’s son John’s return to the property.
The Dallas have reassesed the number of stud ewes needed for their ram breeding program under the revamped property management plan.
The $730 top price was a single lot – OC 056 – a 2.5-year-old ewe, sired by the $28,000 Coddington Poll Eclipse.
It was SIL to DC Majestic – a massive son of the $30,000 Collinsville Majestic.
At the January shearing, the 78-kilogram ewe cut 9.2kg of 20-micron crimpy, white nourished wool.
While the sale received widespread buying support, it was near neighbours Garry, Gwen and Joseph Murdoch, North Cowie, who made the winning bid – one of four single ewe lots they bought.
“They certainly did their homework; they picked out extremely good ewes with outstanding depth of pedigree and performance,” Dennis Dalla said.
SA buyers accounted for 37 per cent of the sales, but it was NSW which provided the strongest buying support.
In the past few years, Orrie Cowie has shown extensively interstate and had many successes at Dubbo, Hay and Sydney Royal Show in NSW and Canberra Royal Show, which has raised the stud’s profile, attracting buyer interest.
“Considering this was the first sale of its kind, it was a very good result,” Elders Yorketown manager and co-assessor Adam Pitt said.
Dennis acknowledged the commitment from Elders staff and the AuctionsPlus team, with special mention to assessor Scott Thrift, Tom Penna and Mr Pitt.
“This whole exercise when you look at the big picture has been a huge success, regardless of what the clearance ends up at,” he said.
“These ewes have more than eight decades of rigorous high selection standards behind them, with the most sought-after of our bloodlines being Exceller, Earle, Eclipse and Prince, plus Collinsville lines such as Majestic and Imperial.
“At their most recent shearing, the sale ewes cut from 7kg to more than 9kg of skirted fleece into the press with 11 months wool growth, while the hoggets cut 5kg with just 6.5 months wool growth.”
