The reserve ram that made $70,000 during a private sale at Bendigo
A Western Australian stud has sold a $70,000 ram for the second time in three years at Bendigo's Australian Sheep & Wool Show.
Wiringa Park nearly broke their own record in a private sale at the event when they sold stud reserve ram Wiringa Park 240742 to White River Merino stud, Minnipa, SA.
The sale is an equal record top price for the stud, following in the footsteps of renowned sire Wiringa Park 450, which sold privately to Lachlan Stud, Forbes, NSW, for $70,000 at Bendigo two years ago.
Wiringa Park stud co-principal Allan Hobley said he thought the ram would attract interest when he was picking out the stud's team of 10 rams he drove across the Nullarbor to display at Bendigo.
"I knew before we left that he was a pretty exceptional sheep," Mr Hobley said.
"Someone asked me what I would sell him for before I left, and I jokingly said, 'I reckon he's better than the one we sold for $70,000, so maybe $71,000'.
"I thought the seasonal conditions might have been up against him, but we would have been happy to keep him if he didn't sell."
This year was only the stud's third year displaying sheep at Bendigo, an endeavour that Mr Hobley said had been well worth the effort.
"They probably weren't getting the recognition they deserved stuck over here in WA," he said.
"I think having all those sons of 450 scattered throughout Bendigo has elevated our status.
"We have a bit of a reputation for that breeding now."
The young double polled ram ranked in the top 5 per cent for Sustainable Merino (159.55) and Wool Production (213.5) indexes and all greasy and clean fleece weight traits, top 10pc for lean meat yield (2.73) and top 20pc for yearling fibre diameter (-2.25) and adult staple length (14.45).
The 117-kilogram ram boasted wool tests of 19.6 micron, 2.9 standard deviation, 14.8 coefficient of variation and a comfort factor of 99.4pc.
Almost $200,000 in private sales was conducted over the Australian Sheep & Wool Show weekend, with four rams alone totalling $170,000, far surpassing the top price of the special Merino ram sale on the Sunday of the show.
"You're not going to expose a top-end ram to a market that might be a bit flat," Mr Hobley said of their decision not to enter the ram into the sale.
"I made it pretty clear what I thought he was worth.
"I could have put a reserve on him and put him in the sale, but the chances of getting there were probably slim.
"Everything is for sale for a price, but a lot of those really top-end sheep aren't going into an auction."
Two of the major private sales were sons of the notable sire Wiringa Park 450, both sold by Kamora Park Poll Merino stud, Sandalwood, SA, for $40,000 and $20,000.
Other large private sales included another $40,000 ram by Laraben Poll Merino stud, Botobolar, NSW, which sold to Banavie Merino and Poll Merino stud, Marnoo.
Wiringa Park 240742's new owners, the Daniell family, said the ram "has the power in his pedigree that makes him extremely potent".
"He carries a well-aligned, deep-crimped wool that is oozing natural nourishment and lustre," the family said in a post on Facebook.
White River is selling semen from him for $60 a dose.
