Southdown NZ breeders visit East Takaka flock
Christina Jordan, Julie Gill and Richard Gill behind a pen of Southdown lambs. Photo: Neil Wilson.
More than 40 members of Southdown New Zealand visited Golden Bay last week as part of their annual conference and tour.
Coming from as far afield as Winton and Warkworth, the sheep breeders were in East Takaka to visit the Southdown flock belonging to Julie and Richard Gill. There they observed mixed-age ewes, two-tooth ewes, ewe lambs and ram lambs, and they were impressed.
“Julie and Richard started with Southdowns in 2005 and they’re making good progress in what is pretty unfamiliar territory,” said Southdown New Zealand president Christina Jordan. “They’ve got a good breeding programme going here.”
Julie said that she had gone into Southdown breeding partly for sentimental reasons.
“My father, Ray Baigent, had Southdowns here in the late 60s,” said Julie. “When I was looking for a good breed to go into Southdowns seemed an obvious choice.”
Miss Jordan said that the Southdown breed was renowned for its early maturing lambs, its quality and high-yielding carcasses.
“The Southdown is a great terminal sire. The breed is definitely on the up. Southdown New Zealand has about 80 members of whom about 60 are running active studs. The 2008 Flock Book recorded 4550 stud ewes. That year more than 2000 ewe lambs were kept as replacements. That’s a real vote of confidence in the future of the breed.”
Miss Jordan said that the characteristics of Southdown sheep had been altered over time and that development would continue.
“We’ve got to stay aware of developments in the market and drive the breed forward,” she said. “Our aim is to make the Southdown the number one terminal sire in New Zealand.”
Neil Wilson
