ABOUT PRECISION SHEEP MANAGEMENT

What is Precision Sheep Production?
Precision Sheep Management (PSM) is based on the concept of measuring and identifying animals on merit to lift flock productivity. The key to precision sheep management applications is individual identification and the use of accurate weighing, recording and drafting systems. An option to collect accurate data on individual animals is through the practical application of radio frequency identification (RFID).

It is a more integrated production system based on measurement, management and marketing of animals according to their individual merit. Selection on merit allows management according to potential, and selling based on market specifications.

The application of more intensive management and making use of this information in selection and management is the first step in a precision production system, or PSM.

Benefits - Commercial and Stud
The sheep industry has an enormous opportunity for productivity gain because of the measurable variation within a flock. While large differences exist between the top 25 percent and bottom 25 percent of animals in fleece weight, fibre diameter, growth rate and reproduction, the differences in dollar value can be extreme - three to five times between the upper and lower quartiles.

PSM uses selection, management and marketing strategies to increase the value of the top 25 percent of the flock and minimise the costs of the bottom 25 percent. These new management approaches will only be realised if animals are measured for their potential level of production.

Understanding the variability that exists within a flock provides a platform from which to select the most productive sheep. (see download of Table 1).

1. Stud selection. The variation indicates the massive scope for selection and genetic improvement within studs. This potential exists because most of the production traits are not only variable but highly heritable and relatively cheap to measure. So, a specialised ram breeding sector operating efficiently delivering genetic gain will continue to be an important element for the industry.
2. Commercial flock selection. The same variability is important within commercial flocks because we can further increase productivity by using selection within the commercial flock and the benefits complement those provided through stud rams. The same features of variation, high heritability and low cost of measurement - make precision production attractive.
3. Management. In addition to the scope for selection, the variation within a flock offers an important opportunity to identify segments of the flock for specific management and marketing purposes. The aim is to devise strategies that will increase the value of the most valuable 25% of animals and minimise costs of the least valuable 25% of the flock. This is a very different approach to minimising the costs of managing the whole flock.

New measurement tools are emerging to compliment traditional tools. Automated data capture to more effectively collect information not previously possible has delivered new capabilities.

Practical application of radio frequency identification (RFID) as a means of recognising individual animals has improved the efficiency and accuracy of data capture, and improved the use and re-use of information for selection and management.
 
See download: Cost comparison of using Visual and RFID tags for collecting sheep weights and data cleaning.

More importantly, this research has identified new possibilities for animal-activated data capture. Walk-over weighing (WOW), where an animal's identity and weight are captured remotely without the need for mustering and labour-intensive weighing have been developed.

Pedigree Matchmaker uses the physical association between (tagged) ewes and their lambs and provides an opportunity to record lamb survival and assign maternal pedigree without undertaking costly mothering-up procedures.

Making the most of pedigree
The majority of Merino breeding flocks have partial (sire only) or no record of pedigree. This is due in part to the labour intensive nature of collecting maternal pedigree (mothering-up) and the management of large numbers of individual records. Pedigree Matchmaker offers an effective alternative method of collecting dam pedigree and when added to sire pedigree, adds substantially to the value of the information.

Having access to dam pedigree will:
• improve the reliability of the information used to predict breeding values;
• allow accurate genetic comparison between animals over time; and
• provide genetic links between flocks so across-flock evaluation is possible.

Research undertaken on QPLU$ lines at Trangie, NSW, demonstrates:
• for males, including pedigree, improves selection accuracy by 11% - 16% when used with two-stage shearing records.
• for females, including pedigree, leads to at 19% - 21% improvement in selection accuracy.

Cost comparison:
• Pedigree Matchmaker: Cost - $3 - $4 per lamb.
• Mothering up: The additional labour required to catch and tag each lamb at birth: Cost - $10 - $12 per lamb.
• DNA analysis: The cost of DNA testing the progeny at a later date: Cost - $30+ per lamb.

Identify animals that make most money
Sheepmeat and wool producers have an enormous opportunity to achieve major gains in productivity adn profitability because of the measurable variation within each and every flock
The large differences that exist between the best and worst performing animals in fleece weight, fibre diameter, growth rate and reproduction can mean significant differences in dollar value.

Precision sheep management enables the capture and use of individual animal records in selection, management and marketing strategies to identify the top 25 percent of the flock and minimise the costs of the bottom 25 percent thus increasing overall farm profitability.

Financial advantage
Accurate data is essential when making breeding and selection decisions. Electronic data capture can reduce errors to near zero. Some flocks have realised or unrealised errors well in excess of 5%. Electronic tag reading can deliver in excess of 50% savings in labour input costs and an even larger reduction in the cost of data cleaning.