SALE SUMMARY
2017 2016
Offered 94 105
Sold 76 86
Top Price $1700 $1600
Average $794 $834
DESPITE a smaller lineup and reduced buyer list at 19th Duenclin stud’s on-property ram auction, stud principal Clinton Huxtable was pleased with the outcome of the sale, held on Monday at Perponda.
The Huxtables offered 94 rams, a mixture of White Suffolks, Prime SAMM and SAMM-Merino crosses, with a White Suffolk from pen two earning the top bid of $1700 from Peter Leedham, Kalyan.
In the breakdown, 62 White Suffolk rams from 71 offered were sold averaging $774, while 12 of 16 SAMMs sold averaging $833.
Seven SAMM-Merinos were offered, with two selling for $1200 each.
The top price White Suffolk ram weighed 114 kilograms, had a 8.5-millimetre fat depth, 47.5mm eye muscle depth and a 104mm eye muscle width.
Mr Leedham, a return buyer of 10 years, bought two rams, and was impressed with the top price ram’s size and potential to bring early growth to his Merino flock.
Mr Huxtable is aiming for early growth and easy-care characteristics in the stud’s breeding program.
“It’s very easy to breed a short ram with all the muscle in the rear end and it’s easy to breed a long ram with not a lot of muscle, but it’s very hard to get both of them together,” he said.
“We’re aiming to get them as long as we can with good muscle.”
Volume buyers included Handley Pastoral Co, Meningie, which bought 15 averaging $693, while AT&AG Evans, Karoonda, took home six averaging $800.
Sedan buyer Forest Lane Farms bought five rams averaging $790, and PM,A&MP Schulz, Sandilands, took six averaging $650.
The sale was conducted by Elders with Phil Nagel taking bids.