New Wiltshire Horn sheep breeder takes home supreme champion at ASWS

Byrne Harris, Trewilga, NSW, is new to the world of livestock.

On Saturday, he was surprised to see his Windsong stud ram take home the supreme champion ribbon for Wiltshire Horn sheep at the Australian Sheep & Wool Show.

The Windsong stud has been operating for four years since Mr Byrne established it with the help of O'Loghlin Wiltshire Horn stud principal Jason O'Loghlin, Blighty, NSW.

Mr O'Loghlin and his 10-year-old son Justin were awarded champion ewe and the most successful exhibitor of the breed.

Winning supreme champion and champion ram came as a nice surprise for Mr Harris, who was a mechanical engineer shortly before venturing into livestock.

Now, he runs 40 Wiltshire Horn ewes with the aim of producing studstock for breeding purposes.

"It's been a learning curve and we're a very small operation," he said.

"We'll stay a small operation for a while because we're just concentrating on improving the line that we're breeding."

Mr Harris said he was drawn to the breed's "hearty nature" and easy maintenance, citing parasite resistance and a good meat-to-fat ratio.

"They're a very good meat sheep, with the yield being quite high on the carcase," he said.

"They look stunning and regal in the paddock.

"They shed their wool, and they're quite intelligent and easy to work with.

"We don't use dogs, and I can walk them to where they need to be quite easily."

First-time judge Sally Scott, Coolac, NSW, picked the Windsong stud ram over the ewe when deciding the supreme champion.

Ms Scott praised the Windsong ram for its superior physique.

"I couldn't fault him, he just had everything a ram needed," she said.

"He had good muscle, depth, carcase, he has a strong head and shoulders.

"He had everything going for him."

Mr Harris is a new exhibitor at agricultural shows, with prior shows including the Sydney Royal Show and the Dubbo Agricultural Show.

It was his first time showing in Bendigo, where he exhibited three Windsong sheep on Saturday.

"We showed a pair of sheep at the Sydney Royal Show last year, but we were the only Wiltshire Horn exhibitors there," he said.

"It's nice to see your particular breed of sheep being appreciated.

"With how hard the weather has been this year, seeing the quality of all the sheep in this shed, it's a credit to everybody who has worked hard to get here.

"It's an amazing show to be part of."