The Royal Adelaide Show is always a busy time for Lucindale Area School students which participate in the led steers, school goats and the Merino wether competition but this year they added one more- exhibiting White Suffolks for the first time in the stud sheep classes.
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The school has had its own stud since 2017 when two local breeders Anthony Hurst, Seriston stud, Avenue Range and Aaron Clothier, Woolumbool stud, Woolumbool, provided some foundation ewes.
It has since grown to 40 ewes with 14 rams to be sold this spring.
Two of the four rams which have been lotted in Woolumbool's annual sale on October 4 were selected by the students to be fed and prepared for the show.
Agriculture teacher Carol Hille says they decided to show sheep after interest from Year 10 student Harmony Reed.
"She really enjoyed the Merino SA school wether competition last year and wanted to take it further so she approached us and said how can I do sheep again?" she said.
"It was a great opportunity for her to be pivotal in getting us showing here."
Ms Hille says the sheep stud adds to the students' ag education, particularly teaching them about breeding technologies.
"Our founding genetics have come from Woolumbool and Seriston but we have since gone to getting some semen for our AI program from Ella Matta stud on Kangaroo Island, the kids have been involved in selecting the straws of semen and have got a lot out of it," she said.
Although the school didn't come home with any ribbons Ms Hille said it was a fantastic experience.
"It not only allowed them to benchmark our rams against other studs but also created key opportunities for them to meet other people in the industry, creating connections that may in the future lead to job interests or possibilities," she said.
"We have already begun planning and are looking forward to next year's competition with our White Suffolk stud sheep."
