Competition is currently high for store lambs with repeat customers, buoyed by positive performance in 2014 and 2015, entering the frame at an earlier stage and joined by new customers.

Some of these new customers are beef finishers who are less confident in the trade since the Brexit vote and want to split their risk by restocking with lower cattle numbers on grass and filling the shortfall with store lambs. This approach is advantageous from a thrive perspective as sheep will generally achieve high performance on cattle swards.

While the purchase price is an important consideration, it should not be the only factor on which decisions are made.

Lambs should be purchased to suit the most economic finishing system. There is little point purchasing light lambs that will not be finished until the new year if grass supplies are only available to carry lambs until the end of October, resulting in a higher feed bill than can be justified in a budget being required. The following factors should be used in helping to form your decision:

  • Finishing system: Where grass forms the basis of your finishing system, use realistic performance levels. Lambs will gain 150g to 180g per day on average during August through to mid-September. This will drop to 120g to 140g until early November, after which point liveweight gain will become variable and dependent on weather, grass quality and utilisation.
  • Ration cost: Be realistic if purchasing light lambs as they are likely to require some level of concentrates to finish. This ranges from a relatively low supplementation level in lambs that have a good run on dry land to 1kg to 1.3kg daily for lambs finished intensively indoors. Over a 50-day intensive finishing period, lambs consuming 1.2kg concentrates at a cost of €240/t will generate costs of €14.40 per head.
  • Mortality: It is important to factor in a level of mortality, especially if purchasing light lambs that will not be finished until next spring. Typical mortality of 1% to 1.5% should be factored in for long-keep lambs.
  • Market price: In the last few seasons market returns have increased significantly during February and March, hitting a peak for the Easter market.
  • Marketing costs: Do not forget to factor costs such as transport and purchase/selling costs into account. These can quickly add up to €4 to €5 if buying and selling in marts.
  • Opportunity cost of grass: If in a breeding sheep enterprise, will having lambs around the farm competing for diminishing supplies of grass later in the season affect the performance of ewes or increase costs?
  • Hill lamb budget calculator: Teagasc has developed a very useful budget for finishing hill lambs which can be found on www.teagasc.ie or accessed through your local adviser.
  • Fencing: Many farmers with rotational grazing think fencing may not be adequate for store lambs but if there is a power source lambs will quickly become accustomed to two to three strands of an electric fence.

    • Top tips for buying or selling

    The way lambs are marketed can have a big impact on the number of sellers attracted to your lambs, while for buyers beware of the telltale signs that may end up costing you dearly.

    Top tips for selling

  • Group lambs at an even weight, size and lamb type: If there is a large variation, split the group in two. Keep tight-wooled lambs, crossbreds or hill lambs together as buyers have a strong preference when buying.
  • Group lambs on gender: At present in lowland sales wether and ewe lambs are selling best. There is a premium for ewe lambs with breeding potential making it very worthwhile to market suitable ewe lambs together. In hill sales, some producers finishing lambs intensively indoors still prefer ram lambs.
  • EID tags: Farmers purchasing ewe lambs with breeding potential will in many cases be willing to pay a few euro extra for lambs that are electronically tagged.

    • Top tips for buying

  • Avoid batches or lambs where there are one or two light lambs thrown into the mix. These lambs may take longer to finish and end up being the ones that put the economics of your budget under pressure.
  • Put all lambs standing: If purchasing in a sale, assess lambs closely and put all lambs standing. Investigate if lambs lying down continually have lameness issues.
  • Don’t lose track of the budget: It is easy to get caught in a bidding contest at present given demand for store lambs. Stick to the budget and pass lambs that are getting too expensive.
  • Poor performers: Poor-performing lambs that are very dry in the wool or short condition will take longer to start performing. Where possible, avoid lambs that are showing signs of being stunted in growth.
  • Target market: If pushing lambs into higher weights and hoping to attract butcher buyers, the market has a preference for wether lambs. Wether lambs will often be easier than ewe lambs to push to heavier weights without going over-fat.

    • Formulating a health programme for store lambs

    A health programme will depend on the type of lambs purchased and the background history.

    Quarantine period

    A quarantine period will depend on the range in dates in which lambs are purchased and if they are likely to come in contact with sheep already on the farm. While not always feasible, the length of the quarantine period should generally be two to three weeks for optimum protection.

    Worming protocol

    Combatting anthelmintic resistance is important. The more traditional approach is to treat animals with a product containing levamisole (yellow drench) and avermectin, with a moxidectin-based product the drug of choice due to lower levels of resistance. A more modern approach now regarded as the safest is to treat animals with a moxidectin product and one of the new-generation wormers – Zolvix or Startect.

    Sheep should be treated on arrival and kept off pasture for 24 to 48 hours so that worm eggs present in the gut will not pass on to pasture. Sheep should then be turned on to pasture that has been previously grazed by sheep.

    Investigate liver fluke

    Liver fluke can cause issues later in the season (September onwards), particularly where lambs are coming off farms where liver fluke is a known issue. Investigate the background and if in doubt treat with products containing trichlabendazole and another active ingredient such as closantel to safeguard against resistance to trichlabendazole.

    External parasites

    Dipping is the optimum method in controlling external parasite risks such as sheep scab, lice, ticks, etc. For complete control, sheep should be immersed for 60 seconds with their head plunged under the solution two to three times. Alternative options are injectable or pour-on products but be careful as there is no one fit that covers all external parasites, meaning a combination may be required. Take note if repeat treatment is required.

    Tackle lameness early

    Sheep should also be footbathed on arrival. The commonly used products are copper and zinc sulphate (10% solution) and formalin (3%) although other products are available on the market. Sheep should be monitored closely and run through the footbath at any stage of handling. Particular caution should be paid to footrot or CODD (contagious ovine digital dermatitis) which can spread rapidly.

    Vaccination

    Clostridial diseases are the main threat here. One shot may suffice for short-keep lambs but for long-keep lambs, the advice is to administer a booster four to six weeks later.