Page 70, FARMER'S WEEKLY, September 26, 1986 — a South African Publication

Start with the best
you can afford

GO FOR QUALITY FROM THE START,
SAYS THIS DORPERBREEDER, WHO IS MAKING
GREAT STRIDES ON HIS SMALLHOLDING

by ROY BILLETT

In farming, you can't afford passengers, specially on a small property. And you have to maximize production, which means buying the best stock you can afford.

Dolf Lategan has proved this. He is a SAA flight engineer and part-time farmer with a prize-winning Dorper stud on his 7,5-ha property at Petit, Transvaal.

His 'holding is neatly camped and well managed, and he makes use of every square meter.

Mr Lategan intends establishing a 100-ewe stud by the time he retires in six years. Already he has made excellent progress.

As an indication of his practical approach to farming, Mr Lategan conducted a three-year survey of the Dorper and a wool sheep to ascertain which of the two would be the most rewarding in a small operation.

During the survey two of the wool-type ewes produced nine lambs while the Dorpers gave him thirteen. All the ewes were of the same age and there was one set of twins on each side.

The Dorper, he says, lambs the year round and is not seasonal as with some breeds. The mini survey showed the Dorper was more productive than the wool breed and wool in terms of revenue does not make up lamb production loss.

A separate survey involving a Dorper ewe left continuously with a ram resulted in, the ewe lambing every seven months to produce six lambs in 21 months. This proved too much of a strain for the ewe, so Mr Lategan adopted and eight-month cycle which has given him a very satisfactory lambing percentage of 187.

The surveys showed it would not be commercially rewarding for Mr Lategan to run an intensive slaughter-lamb operation on his smallholding and it would, perhaps, be better to go for a Dorper stud.

THE RIGHT DIRECTION

So, he sold all his commercial stock and bought 12 stud Dorper ewes and a stud ram. In two years the ewes produced 45 lambs but only one came up to stud standards. He, sold the offspring as commercial breeders (rams and ewes) and averaged R200 a head.

"I could see I was moving in the right direction," says Mr Lategan.

Later, inspectors of the Dorper Sheep Breeders' Society recommended he use better rams and also increase his number of stud ewes. Following their advice he saw his stud percentage of 2,2 rise to a dramatic 44 at the last inspection in April this year.

Mr Lategan emphasises it pays to invest in good rams.

He looks for a good mass in lambs at 90 days so the lamb can be marketed after weaning. This saves on the additional four months of feeding before marketing.

His average weaner mass is 40 kg for a ram and 35 kg for a ewe, but he is hopeful of pushing this up to 45 kg and 38 kg respectively.

Mr Lategan does not deviate from his feeding policy. He provides his stock at all times with more feed than they can possibly consume. The feed must be a balanced mix of good quality.

He has six camps and according to the season will grow barley, Italian rye-grass (NIEU), lucerne teff and Kikuyu. The ad lib mix available at all times to the stock consists of two parts milled teff hay and one part milled dry lucerne.

In addition, the animals will graze for 20 min in the morning and the same period in the afternoon on a green feed of either barley, Kikuyu or Italian rye-grass.

Barley is planted at the end of February and grazing starts in April through to November. He plants the barley in rows which, he says, prevents waste through trampling. With rows there is a greater concentration of fertilizer resulting in a rapid re-growth which provides nine grazings a season for his 100 or so animals (presently 50 stud ewes and two sires).

Teff is grown in the summer, from November onwards. It is cut and baled in December while the re-growth provides grazing for the stock before the summer ends. All the pastures are under spray irrigation from boreholes.

Until weaning, the lambs will take the mother's milk, growth pellets and a creep feed of milled dry lucerne.

Strict selection is required if the breeder wishes to get the best from his flock, says Mr Lategan. At 90 days he will select for possible stud animals,. and for first selection material.

"Those I think will make stud animals I keep. At 10 months they will be inspected by the society and if they qualify will be tagged as stud Dorpers."

MONEY WELL SPENT

One of the most important management aspects of farming with stock on a small area is de-worming. If not done monthly the animals will soon lose condition. An outlay of about 30c an animal a month is money well spent.

Dipping is important as apart from the diseases ticks carry they can cripple sheep and drain them of blood. With Dorper there is no blowfly problem.

The marketing of stud animals requires the breeder to either advertise or make sure his animals are shown regularly or both, says Mr Lategan.

"I do three to four shows a year. Before showing, however, it is wise for the breeder to have a good look at the market and take his animals to areas where he feels there could be a good demand for mutton sheep.

"For instance, I showed this year at Rustenburg where I won eight of the 12 Dorper championships. This included the junior and senior champion ewes, and also the reserve champion ram.

"The show-ring is an important place for the up-and-coming breeder. Here he is able to measure the quality of his sheep against others and follow the trends in breeding; for instance, breeding a longer sheep - a major aim among Dorper farmers.

"Also, he can learn from the judges, either by soliciting their advice or by listening to their judgement after each class. The show-ring is the schoolroom for the breeder. He cannot ignore it."

But, Mr Lategan warns, it is not cheap to show. First, to prepare a sheep for showing means an additional R15 in feed monthly, not to mention transport.

The Rustenburg show cost Mr Lategan R480 for his 15 sheep. But if successful, the show-ring can realize sales worth a thousand rand or more.

But if the small farmer - indeed, all stock farmers - is to be successful he must make a point of going for quality from the start. In farming, quality is money, says Mr Lategan. §

Notes:

In 1986, two South African Rands were equal to approximately one US dollar.

One kilogram is equal to 2.2 pounds.

7,5 hectares is equal to approximately 16 acres, which roughly equals 9 morgen.