Friday, March 29, 2024

Genetics the driving force

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Producing high-performing, easy-care two-tooth ewes for clients running simple sheep-breeding and finishing businesses is one of the primary focuses of the Massie family, of Dannevirke. “For the last six years we have contracted 1500 ewes to two large clients who don’t breed their own replacement females,” Grant Massie says.
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“They mate all their ewe flock to terminal sires and all the progeny are finished as lambs.

“It is our challenge to meet their specifications of a 58kg ewe in December/January. We must be achieving this because they keep on coming back and want more next year.”

The clients are Derek Mitford at Rere, near Gisborne, and Sam and Hannah Morrah at Wallingford, in Central Hawke’s Bay. The Massies are in the process of negotiating with another possible client. The contracted ewes, along with the Massies’ ewe replacements, are generated from the mating of 4600 Highlander mixed-age ewes and hoggets. 

The Massies also buy extra Highlander ewe hoggets to ensure they have the numbers to meet specifications and increasing demand.

The Massies have been breeding Highlander sheep for 19 years, since first developing them with Andy Ramsden, and are now breeding partners with Focus Genetics. This arrangement gives them access to Focus Genetics’ elite rams.

“The Highlander breed gives us our competitive advantage,” Grant says.

“They revolutionised the concept of hogget mating for us and have almost made the practice of flushing redundant.”

The Massie family has farmed in the Dannevirke area since 1908 when Grant’s great-grandfather secured a 110ha ballot farm at Raumati, 8km northeast of the town. 

Grant was raised on that farm. Today the business farms 1121 effective hectares of freehold (825ha) and leasehold (297ha) land in six blocks separated by 15km of road. The farms winter 11,638su, which equates to a carrying capacity of 10.38su/ha. The sheep-to-cattle ratio is 74:26.

Most of the contour on the properties could be described as steep except for 400ha that can be cultivated.

The four blocks closest to Dannevirke, totalling 590ha, are managed by Catherine Thomas, who has just taken up the position. Before her arrival the block was managed for six years by Alistair McPherson. The rest of the farm, known as Bonnie Glen, is managed by Grant, his wife, Brenda, and four children Cameron, Logan, Brianna and Georgia. 

Grant and Brenda Massie at home with dogs Fanny, Wynn and Lewis.

Infrastructure 

The farms are well-subdivided with conventional fencing (post and batten) providing more than 220 paddocks.

“We used to fence with electric in the early days, however, it wasn’t reliable enough and we spent so much time trying to find faults that we decided to gradually replace it,” Grant says.

Nowadays the average paddock size on the hills is 6ha and on the easy country 4ha. The farms are well-serviced with lanes for easy access and stock movement

 

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