Paki-iti Romneys – 100 Years of Breeding
"The Paki-iti Romney offers all round performance - growth, fertility, survival and constitution using a steep hill country property as a breeding testing ground."
The Paki-iti Romney points of difference are:
- For 100 years, Paki iti has bred Romneys on the hard hill country of Paki-iti, a 890ha property 93% of which is Class 6 land or steeper.
- Breeding program based around STRUCTURE, CONSTITUTION AND PERFORMANCE.
- The Paki-iti Romney flock is bred for Growth, Meat, Reproduction, Survival, Wool, Hogget Fertility and Worm Resistance.
- There are 1200 SIL recorded ewes used annually in the Romney breeding program.
- Breeding full bodied, strong boned and heavy muscled sheep.
- Romney sale rams and breeding program utilise 5k and 50k DNA testing – faster genetic gain, greater reliability.
- 16 years of working with 10 other Romney breeders.
- 10 years of breeding a Facial Eczema tolerant sub-flock.
Paki-iti Romney Rams offer you...
1. Fast Lamb Growth
With 10 years involvement in progeny trials involving 650 ewes per year, progress has been made in identifying the better performing bloodlines for growth and yield. The aim is to produce lambs that grow in the key times - up to weaning and the period between weaning and the autumn. A high weaning % has the direct effect of lowering the weaning weight, so at a weaning % of 150% the target is 36kg. The growth up to the autumn period is also important for slaughter lambs, as well as hogget replacements and hogget mating.
2. High Fertility Ewes
The 5-year average lambing percentage at Paki-iti with Nil shepherding at lambing is 150%.
3. High Lamb Survival
Lamb survival starts with ewe survival and with 40 years of no shepherding at lambing an easy lambing type of ewe has evolved. Survival of the lamb is lowly heritable, with the environmental effects being huge, however there are differences between sire lines which can be exploited.
4. Easy Care Sheep
Easy care = low labour input. This covers a whole range of areas, from breeding free moving sheep that muster easily on hill country, to lambing ewes without having to do a lambing beat, to dag scoring and culling daggy sheep, reducing drenching levels, DNA testing for footrot resistance... the list goes on.
5. Efficient Ewes
This is a MA ewe that will average 65 – 68 kg pre-tupping. We believe that at this weight she is at her most efficient weight, defined as output (meat and wool) relative to input (grass) which in turn determines the output (kg and $’s) per hectare. A more efficient ewe produces a greater weight of lamb and wool for her body size.
6. Higher Yielding Lambs
Through the use of eye muscle scanning over a number of years we have been able to breed a heavily muscled sheep, which we believe goes hand in hand with breeding tougher sheep. With our continued involvement with Romney progeny trials over the past eight years we have been able to compare performance with other breeders and share proven genetics.
7. Ability to Lamb as a Hogget
Although hogget lambing doesn't suit all hill country operations; we believe the onset of hogget oestrus is a good indication of lifetime fertility. The aim is to retain only those hogget’s that get in lamb.
8. Quality Wool
Over the last ten years our focus at Paki-iti has been to maintain wool weights with the ewes clipping around 6kg/year. Quality has also been maintained with a good covering on the top of the fleece leading to constantly dry sheep, being good for animal health and reducing fly strike.
9. Sheep with Immunity to Worms
We have now tested over 1600 ram hogget’s using the CARLA test which analysis those animals that have high levels of antibodies, preventing worms establishing in the gut and therefore fewer worms being passed onto pasture.
With 10 years involvement in progeny trials involving 650 ewes per year, progress has been made in identifying the better performing bloodlines for growth and yield. The aim is to produce lambs that grow in the key times - up to weaning and the period between weaning and the autumn. A high weaning % has the direct effect of lowering the weaning weight, so at a weaning % of 150% the target is 36kg. The growth up to the autumn period is also important for slaughter lambs, as well as hogget replacements and hogget mating.
2. High Fertility Ewes
The 5-year average lambing percentage at Paki-iti with Nil shepherding at lambing is 150%.
3. High Lamb Survival
Lamb survival starts with ewe survival and with 40 years of no shepherding at lambing an easy lambing type of ewe has evolved. Survival of the lamb is lowly heritable, with the environmental effects being huge, however there are differences between sire lines which can be exploited.
4. Easy Care Sheep
Easy care = low labour input. This covers a whole range of areas, from breeding free moving sheep that muster easily on hill country, to lambing ewes without having to do a lambing beat, to dag scoring and culling daggy sheep, reducing drenching levels, DNA testing for footrot resistance... the list goes on.
5. Efficient Ewes
This is a MA ewe that will average 65 – 68 kg pre-tupping. We believe that at this weight she is at her most efficient weight, defined as output (meat and wool) relative to input (grass) which in turn determines the output (kg and $’s) per hectare. A more efficient ewe produces a greater weight of lamb and wool for her body size.
6. Higher Yielding Lambs
Through the use of eye muscle scanning over a number of years we have been able to breed a heavily muscled sheep, which we believe goes hand in hand with breeding tougher sheep. With our continued involvement with Romney progeny trials over the past eight years we have been able to compare performance with other breeders and share proven genetics.
7. Ability to Lamb as a Hogget
Although hogget lambing doesn't suit all hill country operations; we believe the onset of hogget oestrus is a good indication of lifetime fertility. The aim is to retain only those hogget’s that get in lamb.
8. Quality Wool
Over the last ten years our focus at Paki-iti has been to maintain wool weights with the ewes clipping around 6kg/year. Quality has also been maintained with a good covering on the top of the fleece leading to constantly dry sheep, being good for animal health and reducing fly strike.
9. Sheep with Immunity to Worms
We have now tested over 1600 ram hogget’s using the CARLA test which analysis those animals that have high levels of antibodies, preventing worms establishing in the gut and therefore fewer worms being passed onto pasture.