Kromspruit and Stormhoek Dohne Merino Studs,  Memel, eastern free state

 

 

Kromspruit Stud rams enjoy a keen demand and command excellent prices on Society sales. Achievements on the national sale at Bloemfontein over the past 10 years have been:

       Total Number Offered                         Average Top Price                         Average Price

                       60                                                 R 8,505.00                                      R 4,049.00

Right:Young Dohne Merino rams of the Kromspruit and stormhoek studs in preparation for the production sale

Dohne Merino Breed Society Of South Africa

Registered Breeders

Critical success factors:

 The key factor to the success of the farming unit can be set out as follows:

·    High reproduction and weaning rates.  This factor is the key to the high efficient overall production. This not only increases output per unit  of female animal, but also facilitates a higher rate of genetic change.

·    Short generation interval.  The high rate of reproduction fits in with the strategy to use rams and bulls for only one year. Only three age  groups of ewes and 5 age groups of cows are kept.  This flock structure enables Freddy to present quality animals at his production sales.

·    High selection intensity resulting in rapid genetic change.  This is also the result of high reproductive performance of all animals on the  farm.

·    Scientific justifiable breeding objectives and selection methods to achieve set goals.

 It  is a privilege to salute these two true leaders in the stock farming community on their  latest achievement on behalf all Dohne Merino breeders.

Eight months old Dohne Merino lambs in the feedlot

Mark Schmidt with some of the young sires to be used in the mating programme of the Stormhoek and Kromspruit studs.

PRODUCTIVITY OF THE FLOCK

We apply an efficient breeding system and a strict selection system which is in line with the standards set by the Dohne Merino Breed Society. Our high standards dictate that only rams that qualify for our own use are offered for sale. Breeding material produced in the Kromspruit Stud is making a profound contribution to the improvement of many studs and commercial flocks in the RSA.

 

The exceptional productivity of this stud is being successfully transferred to other flocks and studs. The easy care features of Kromspruit rams enable them to adapt well to all environments. They are making an important impact on the woolled sheep industry of the RSA.

 

Only the best 40% of the available rams are selected for use or for sale. After performance testing the best 50 rams are selected for own use. The balance of the approved rams are offered for sale. After initial mating the top 50 rams are retested for fibre diameter. On the basis of both the initial and the subsequent tests, as well as rigid visual standards relating to conformation and wool style as well as the ideal balance between them, the best 20 rams are selected as stud sires. These sires are used once and than offered on national sales. The balance of the 50 rams are offered together with stud and commercial ewes and slaughter lambs on our production sale.

 

To enhance genetic progress the generation interval is kept short in the Kromspruit stud by using only one age group of rams and 3 age groups of ewes. "Although I sell my best rams at an early age, thus generating good cash flows by using them first, the genetics stay on the farm"

 

 All wether lambs are sold as weaners to feedlots. Dohne Merinos are renowned for their growth potential, in both the feedlot and on pastures. Average daily gains of up to 400 grams with feed conversion rates of 4 to 1 are regularly attained in feedlots. For this reason feedlot owners have a preference for Dohne Merino weaners.

Below: Dohne Merino ewes on natural sour grass pasture

2012 SECOND TIME IN A ROW WINNERS- FREDDY AND MARK SCHMIDT

 Freddy and Mark Schmidt, owners of the Kromspruit  and Stormhoek Dohne Merino Studs, situated near Memel in the Drakensberg area of the Orange Free State, won the Virbac Top Breeder award for 2012.   Freddy won the award for the first time in 1992 and after his son Mark joined the farming enterprise in 2008, they won it again  in 2010 and now successively in 2012.  Freddy’s outstanding stock farming unit was also the regional winner (Eastern Free State) seven times viz.   1991, 1995, 1999, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2011.  Freddy was also awarded  the National Sheep Farmer of the Year award in 2006,  Molatek Cattle Farmer of the Year (commercial) in 2010 and the Agricultural Journalist’s  Best General  Farmer of the the Year award in 2006,  Molatek Cattle Farmer of the Year (commercial) in 2010 and the Agricultural Journalist’s  Best General  Farmer of the Year award also in 2010.  All these awards are the outcome of the general recognition of Freddy Schmidt  as one of South Africa’s best stock farmers.

 

 Stud History

 The history of the Schmidt’s Dohne farming dates back to 1952 when Freddy’s farther, Mr Johan Schmidt mated his Merino ewes to carefully selected German Merino rams.   Johan Schmidt then used rams selected from the F1 progeny as the next generation sires.   Johan Schmidt was very strict on selecting sheep with good conformation. No ewe was ever retained which did not  lamb or weaned a good quality lamb.  Johan Schmidt’s next priority was good quality wool.  This commercial flock of Dohne Merino’s was steadily built up to 4000 ewes in 1979 when Freddy arrived on the farm, to begin the next phase of the farm’s history.   Freddy selected 1000 ewes, which were utilised  in an open nucleus system to develop the current Kromspruit stud.  The Stormhoek fine wool stud was founded in 2002 by selecting ewes with the highest body  weights and lowest fibre diameters amongst both the stud - and upgrading flock ewes.  Mark joined his farther in 2008 after completing a B(Agric) qualification at Elsenburg,Stellenbosch.   Mark is  managing both studs, in conjunction  with the general  management of the entire unit. Freddy is currently functioning in an advisory capacity,    which as he explains, marks the start of a new chapter in the Schmidt farming history.

 

 Farming activities:

 Freddy and Mark are farming with both Dohne Merino sheep and Bovelder cattle.  Crop production is practised for the purpose of animal production.  A rotational production system with maize and soy beans on 500 ha prime land is followed, where only the excess grain is marketed.

 

 The Schmidt’s host two production sales annually.  The Summer sale include 60 rams from the Kromspruit and Stormhoek fine wool stud,  100 stud ewes as well as  roughly 1000 pregnant commercial ewes (which represent one age group).  Cattle usually comprise 200 cows with calves 150 pregnant cows and 150 pregnant heifers (also representing one age group).  The winter sale usually includes ± 70 AA rams and 50 veld tested Bovelder bulls.

The environment

The property is situated west of Memel in the North Eastern Freestate at an altitude of 1800 metres. It has an average summer rainfall of 770 mm. Winters are severe and cold. The Schmidts’ aim is to breed a vigorous, easy care sheep that is adapted to this highland sourveld environment They breed rams that will produce progeny with the highest possible economic potential in terms of lamb and wool production under these conditions according to the guidelines set by the Dohne Merino Breed society.

Sheep management:

 The Kromspruit and Stormhoek studs consist of 1200 and 300 ewes  respectively.   The stud ewes  are AI’d and scanned before lambing in March.  Only 100 ewes  are put to one ram  in order to limit the rate of change in  inbreeding.  The ewes with single  births lamb in lambing camps and thereafter transferred to natural grazing with supplementation as required.  The ewes with multiple births (approximately 60% of the total flock) lamb in lambing pens  and then transferred to  unharvested maize and soya bean fields.

The lambs are weaned  at 100 days when they weigh  approximately 36 kg on average.  Feed lots buy 15% of the lambs and the rest are kept on unharvested soya bean - and maize fields until the summer season.  Thereafter they are kept on summer veld  with a phosphate supplement.  Atthe age of 12 to 14 months they are performance tested.  After weaning their lambs the ewes go back to natural grazing supplemented by a self prepared lick.

 

Commercial ewes are managed exactly the same as the stud ewes;the only difference being that after synchronization, they are naturally mated to rams in a ratio of only 8 ewes to one ram.  This practise helps to prevent losses to predators while also reducing labour cost.  The commercial wether lambs  and 20% of ewe lambs get sold to feed lots for fattening.  The rest of the ewe lambs (± 80% of the total number) are kept for selection at 12 months of age. 

 

 During Freddy’s time on the farm, lambing percentage increased from  ± 100 percent to the current 180 – 200% (the key factor to the Smidts‘ success).   In fact; recent  incidence of triplets and even quadruplets is not  at allunusual.   The exeptional  mothering ability of the flock is proven by mothers  of quadruplets which frequently rear all four lambs by only receiving an appropriate ration.

 

The principle applied by the Schmidts‘  is not to supplement individual animals in need of food, but  to feed all animals on the farm according to their true production potential.

Cattle:

 Freddy and Mark’s Bovelder cows have a 94% calving rate.  Annually approximately 750 bull calves are produced of which 15%are field tested at 12 months of age under supervision of Veld Bull SA.  No supplement is supplied until they are marketed at three years of age.

Right: Top AA Dohne Merino ram from the stud

Click here for Ram Catalogue

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