Head Shepherd Mark Ferguson

When the going gets tough on farm, it's the tough who get going. But what fuels that resilience? 
This week on the Head Shepherd podcast, we have Kane Brisco of FarmFitNZ to discuss mental wellbeing, farm fitness and community.

In his late twenties, Kane found himself in a tough spot. He’d stopped participating in his local rugby team and his passion for farming had faded, so he didn’t know what to do with himself. Instead of packing up and changing careers, Kane took a step back and worked out what he needed to do to get himself out of that funk.

Each day, Kane starts with a routine that sets him up for success. Firstly, feed yourself right, says Kane. “You're fuelling up, it's like putting gas in your motorbike tank, you know? You don't expect it to run on empty all day, so we can't expect to do it ourselves."

Next, start with a purpose. Kane recommends writing down a list of what you want to achieve that day, stick to it and - most importantly - don’t forget to tick things off as you complete them.  “Everybody needs a purpose when they get out of bed, so for me, that's just a simple way to get a bit of clarity on the day. It takes about two minutes, not even that some days. It's a good feeling to cross them off, you know, a bit of satisfaction even on a tough day if you can just cross one of them off. It does perk you up over time,” shares Kane.

And, of course, we couldn’t talk to the founder of FarmFitNZ without discussing the influence of physical health on mental health. At his worst, Kane realised that when his physical fitness was low, so was his mental resilience. “It was that time in my life that made me realise how important it is to be physically prepared for a physical job and how that ties into your mental capability and your frame of mind and I guess your mindset and ultimately your mental health. They both work together and they're both linked,” says Kane.

Kane began running a ‘boot camp’ from his driveway for local farmers, giving them an opportunity to build strength and resilience, as well as generating that great rural community spirit. He explains, “It was just a matter of putting it out to the local community, to get them off the farm to my driveway basically to get a sweat on and test the lungs out and get together.”

“A lot of them had never done that before, something formal like that. But most of all, it was the communication with the other farmers, their neighbours from 5 km down the road that they didn't see too often … just having a catch-up, sharing what was going on regularly with each other's lives,” says Kane. “It wasn’t as much about getting fit and strong. It was actually just sharing with each other and creating those bonds within the community. You couldn't put a price on that if you tried."

If you’d like to know more, Kane has recently written a book about his journey. Find out more here: https://farmfitnzshop.com/.

Head Shepherd is brought to you by neXtgen Agri International Limited, we help livestock farmers get the most out of the genetics they farm with. Get in touch with us if you would like to hear more about how we can help you do what you do best - info@nextgenagri.com.

Thanks to our sponsors at MSD Animal Health and Allflex, and Heiniger Australia and New Zealand.

These companies are leaders in their respective fields and it is a privilege to have them supporting the Head Shepherd Podcast. Please consider them when making product choices, as they are instrumental in enabling us to bring you this podcast each week.

Check out Heiniger's product range HERE
Check out the MSD range HERE
Check out Allflex products HERE

Replacement rates in your sheep flock are determined by your ewe losses and your culling decisions. For every ewe lamb you choose to keep, that’s one less to sell. 


In this week's podcast our guest, Associate Professor Anne Ridler, discusses the findings from her recent study on ewe wastage in New Zealand sheep farming. Anne’s research found that, on average, 28 to 30 per cent of ewes leave the flock annually in New Zealand. The study aimed to understand when and why ewes exit the flock and how to reduce that wastage. 


Let's break those numbers down … say you have 1,000 ewes at mating time:
At scanning time, of those 1,000, 33 will leave the flock because they’re dry. 

Before set stocking, another 18 ewes will go due to non-reproductive reasons such as low BCS and 17 will die in this time. So, of your original 1,000, you have 932 left by the start of lambing. 

Lambing is the highest risk period, with two-thirds of your losses occurring during this period. The average is 3.7 per cent. So, that’s another 37 ewes leaving the flock up until mid-lactation/docking, leaving you with 895 ewes.

If you decide to cull wet-dries at lamb-marking, the average is 3.8 per cent, meaning another 38 ewes leave the flock, reducing your number to 874. However, another 33 ewes exit the flock between docking/tailing and breeding of year two, some of which will be wet/dry (on average, across all the farms), some will be culled for other reasons and some will die.

Then, post-weaning, based on udder issues, age, teeth or other decisions, farmers choose to cull, on average, 15.4%. That leaves you with 708 ewes and so 292 replacements need to enter the flock to get back to 1,000 for breeding.


Whilst these numbers might seem a bit confronting, they give a great insight into how you can reduce the number of replacements you require.


With most losses occurring during lambing, Anne suggests this could be an area to focus on. Feeding ewes well during pregnancy to avoid metabolic issues is a big part of keeping your ewes alive. But there are other things you can do, such as paddock audits and cast beats. 


Mark and Anne also discuss other options such as keeping wet-dries and putting them to a terminal ram.


We would be interested to hear what you base your culling decisions on. Is it age? Do you give your wet-dries a second chance? Let us know.

The study this information was derived from was funded by the Massey-Lincoln and Agricultural Trust and done in collaboration with Lincoln University.



Head Shepherd is brought to you by neXtgen Agri International Limited, we help livestock farmers get the most out of the genetics they farm with. Get in touch with us if you would like to hear more about how we can help you do what you do best - info@nextgenagri.com.

Thanks to our sponsors at MSD Animal Health and Allflex, and Heiniger Australia and New Zealand.

These companies are leaders in their respective fields and it is a privilege to have them supporting the Head Shepherd Podcast. Please consider them when making product choices, as they are instrumental in enabling us to bring you this podcast each week.

Check out Heiniger's product range HERE
Check out the MSD range HERE
Check out Allflex products HERE

In this current climate, should you be looking for ways to save money on farm? Or should you be looking at upping your production to cover rising costs?

This week on the Head Shepherd podcast, we hope to answer those questions for you.

Our guest this week, Tim Leeming, is well known for his precision lambing and we’ve had him as a guest on the podcast before (go check that one out here). 

In this episode, Tim discusses his strategies for farming success. “When it comes to your production system - when it comes to understanding what drives that in your business - whether you've got paddocks that need to be subdivided, whether you've got soil fertility that needs improving, pasture composition that needs improving … If you're a good farm manager and have a reasonable base knowledge of how the job rolls … it's not rocket science.”

Tim and Ferg discuss the mindset behind cutting costs vs upping production. While the current advice may be to not join ewe lambs or containment feed, Tim believes in identifying where profit margins exist for a job done well. “If you do a bad job, of course, the economics of those two things might be pretty ordinary, but if you do it well, the margins are there. They're proven margins. We've seen it,” says Tim.

Tim emphasises the need for clear targets and disciplined execution. “We've got evidence of it, that if you manage your nutrition right in ewe lambs and hit these targets and do all the right things, guess what, you'll get a bloody good result, and those sheep will pay you dividends for the rest of their life on your farm because you've done that well.”

Discipline is a big theme throughout this week's podcast, with Tim collecting data when the opportunity presents itself (for example, ewe body condition when ewes are in the yards). “If you think about a mob of ewes, for instance, and how many times that they might visit the stockyards over the year. There are probably at least eight times in a year that those animals will be in a yard facility and generally, they will be going up a drafting race or drenching race or through a sheep handler,” he explains.

For Tim, consistently doing the small things well sets a foundation for long-term success. “It's a two, four, five-minute job to get a line in the sand on where that condition score of that mob is at that particular time. I'm like a dog with a bone. I’m very, very persistent on making sure that we record that, every time we're bringing those livestock in the yards,” says Tim. “It’s so important in your decision-making and your management. So, you know, that is a discipline thing.” 

Tim has a huge passion for farming and there are some great takeaways from this podcas



Head Shepherd is brought to you by neXtgen Agri International Limited, we help livestock farmers get the most out of the genetics they farm with. Get in touch with us if you would like to hear more about how we can help you do what you do best - info@nextgenagri.com.

Thanks to our sponsors at MSD Animal Health and Allflex, and Heiniger Australia and New Zealand.

These companies are leaders in their respective fields and it is a privilege to have them supporting the Head Shepherd Podcast. Please consider them when making product choices, as they are instrumental in enabling us to bring you this podcast each week.

Check out Heiniger's product range HERE
Check out the MSD range HERE
Check out Allflex products HERE

Our guest on the podcast this week is Bonnie Skinner. 


Bonnie is the CEO of Sheep Producers Australia (SPA), a levy board that advocates for a better future for Australia’s sheep industry. They do this in a multitude of ways: connecting farmers, consumers and government bodies. They advocate for better outcomes for farmers and direct levy investments towards research, development and industry services.


In this episode, Bonnie and Mark discuss the current challenges faced by the industry - be it artificial proteins, climate change or getting new entrants into the industry - and also what the future holds for lamb and wool producers. 


It’s not all doom and gloom, explains Bonnie: “In terms of providing that light on the hill, there is an immense opportunity for lamb as a protein, if we can continue to meet the needs of our consumers.” 


“Of course, we are already world-renowned for a high-quality, very consistent product in the industry. We know we can continue to improve on that. But what is the customer willing to pay for? How much room is there to really drive that price up, particularly at a retail level?” These are the questions that SPA are asking, and working towards answering, with industry support. 


Another issue faced by the industry is the uptake of new technologies and practices. One example being scanning for multiples. Despite the evidence that it will improve profitability and production on-farm, only 42% of Australian producers scan their ewes and, of these, 69% scan for dry, single and multiple foetuses.


“We've got 10-15% of producers at the top, the early adopters. They are taking up all of these opportunities,” explains Bonnie. “Then we have a good subset of producers underneath that, who are interested [but are not taking the next steps towards adoption]. How do we encourage producers to take up these practices?”


In this podcast, Bonnie explains the scope of SPA’s work for the industry: from identifying required research, right through to farmer implementation, and everything in between.



Head Shepherd is brought to you by neXtgen Agri International Limited, we help livestock farmers get the most out of the genetics they farm with. Get in touch with us if you would like to hear more about how we can help you do what you do best - info@nextgenagri.com.

Thanks to our sponsors at MSD Animal Health and Allflex, and Heiniger Australia and New Zealand.

These companies are leaders in their respective fields and it is a privilege to have them supporting the Head Shepherd Podcast. Please consider them when making product choices, as they are instrumental in enabling us to bring you this podcast each week.

Check out Heiniger's product range HERE
Check out the MSD range HERE
Check out Allflex products HERE

With greater unpredictability in our weather patterns, managing pastures is an ever-evolving challenge for farmers. This week on the podcast we hope to help with some handy advice from consultant, Darren Gordon.
This week we cover:
The importance of pasture and feed-quality testingThe genetics of fat and feed efficiency Maximising profit from pastureDarren emphasises the importance of testing your pastures and feed, including the neutral detergent fibre (NDF). “Just test it, otherwise it's calculated guesswork,” he says. “Test, then test again. And the NDF, especially in your hays, can change intake, especially for younger sheep.” 
Knowing the NDF of your feed is vital, as it directly correlates with the digestibility and nutritional value of the feed. Too much NDF can impede digestibility. This leads to reduced feed intake, meaning no matter how good it is, your stock cannot consume enough of it to get the nutrients they need.
Once you know where your feed is at you can allocate it to the most appropriate stock class, where it will make the greatest impact. Darren runs us through different feed type examples and which stock class would benefit most. For example, feeding your lighter twin-bearing ewes in late pregnancy yields some of the greatest returns.
Darren also discusses containment feeding and the benefits to your stock as well as your pastures and soils. If you expect that you may need to contain stock, he emphasises the importance of planning ahead, rather than deciding to do it once your paddocks are already “ruined”.
“Start thinking about it now, make some preparations, look at your water quality, look at your water quantity and what you're gonna need to do if you do have to go into containment,” he explains. “Once it gets under a thousand [FOO], you're only getting two and a half to three ME out of the paddock,” meaning you get immediate returns from containment feeding.
Darren then turns the tables and asks Ferg a few questions about how genetics can also help with managing feed deficits on-farm. You’ll have to tune in for that answer! 



Head Shepherd is brought to you by neXtgen Agri International Limited, we help livestock farmers get the most out of the genetics they farm with. Get in touch with us if you would like to hear more about how we can help you do what you do best - info@nextgenagri.com.

Thanks to our sponsors at MSD Animal Health and Allflex, and Heiniger Australia and New Zealand.

These companies are leaders in their respective fields and it is a privilege to have them supporting the Head Shepherd Podcast. Please consider them when making product choices, as they are instrumental in enabling us to bring you this podcast each week.

Check out Heiniger's product range HERE
Check out the MSD range HERE
Check out Allflex products HERE

This week on the podcast, we’re talking about Flexolt®, a revolutionary new oral treatment for lice control in sheep.

Our guests are Dr Jane Morrison and Dr Hamish Pike from our fantastic sponsors, MSD Animal Health.

Flexolt is the first-ever oral lice treatment for sheep, giving you the ultimate flexibility when it comes to treating your flock. It can be used rain or shine, with any length of wool, revolutionising how and when you can administer a sheep lice treatment.

Flexolt marks a significant leap forward in sheep lice treatment, offering farmers unparalleled flexibility and effectiveness in managing lice outbreaks. In the podcast, Jane and Hamish discuss how it works and how to get the best results from this great new product. 

Hamish and Jane also run us through the life cycle of lice, giving you a better understanding of what you’re treating and why clean musters and quarantine are so important.

Tune in to learn more about how this new product works, and also to gain a deeper understanding of the biology, and impact, of lice in your sheep. 

Flexolt is currently available through rural retailers in Australia and is expected to be available in New Zealand from April 2023 at your local vet clinic.
For more information on Flexolt, visit www.flexolt.co.nz.

ACVM No: A011971. Ph: 0800 800 543. www.msd-animal-health.co.nz
APVMA No.: 91565/132669. Ph: 1800 226 551. www.coopersanimalhealth.com.au
© 2024 Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA and its affiliates. All rights reserved.

Head Shepherd is brought to you by neXtgen Agri International Limited, we help livestock farmers get the most out of the genetics they farm with. Get in touch with us if you would like to hear more about how we can help you do what you do best - info@nextgenagri.com.

Thanks to our sponsors at MSD Animal Health and Allflex, and Heiniger Australia and New Zealand.

These companies are leaders in their respective fields and it is a privilege to have them supporting the Head Shepherd Podcast. Please consider them when making product choices, as they are instrumental in enabling us to bring you this podcast each week.

Check out Heiniger's product range HERE
Check out the MSD range HERE
Check out Allflex products HERE