Multispecies swards add the finishing touch on Sligo farm
Jonathan Higgins, who with his father Philip, runs a mid-season lambing sheep flock, alongside a contract heifer-rearing system in Skreen, Co. Sligo, joins us on this week’s OviCast. The duo are also hosts of this year’s Irish Grassland Association Sheep Farm Walk. Jonathan talks to us about their contract rearing system and we delve into the performance and management of the ewe flock in detail. We also explore the challenges of farming on a fragmented unit with varying land types. Plus we spend time discussing the role of mixed-species swards on the farm, with Jonathan sharing his experience of managing them over the past few seasons. For more details about the farm walk go to:https://www.irishgrassland.ie/event-detail/sheep-event-2025/ For more episodes from the OviCast podcast, visit the show page at:https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/sheep/ovicast-sheep-podcast
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Sheep 2025 Preview
Sheep 2025 – the largest dedicated sheep-focused open day on the island of Ireland – takes place on Saturday, 21st June, from 10am to 5pm at the Teagasc Mellows Campus in Athenry, Co. Galway.For this week’s OviCast, Teagasc’s Michael Gottstein and Margaret O’Donovan preview this free event for us. Michael acknowledges the vital contributions of industry partners and sponsors who help make the event possible and he also walks us through the extensive range of technical information that will be available on the day. Michael highlights the breed competitions and shares some of the other key attractions attendees can look forward to.Margaret provides insights into the trade stands that will be present and discusses additional features of the day – from butchery and cookery demonstrations to sheep shearing and dog training demos. Tune in for a full preview of what’s on offer at Sheep 2025 – a must-attend event for anyone involved in or interested in sheep farming.For more info: https://www.teagasc.ie/news--events/national-events/events/sheep-2025.php For more episodes from the OviCast podcast, visit the show page at:https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/sheep/ovicast-sheep-podcast
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Wool, shearing and improving the market prospects
With the shearing season in full swing, on this week’s OviCast, we're joined by Pat Coffey, merchant, wool exporter, and member of the Irish Grown Wool Council. Pat brings four generations of experience to the wool industry and gives us a valuable insight into the current state of the wool market, explaining some of the key factors influencing it today. We discuss best practices in shearing and how they impact wool quality, including the importance of the Shear Success guide recently distributed to farmers as part of the 2024 census. Pat also walks us through the journey that wool takes from the farm to market, explaining how it’s often blended with fibres from other countries to meet customer specifications. We wrap up with a look at ongoing work in the sector, including a new initiative piloted last year that delivered higher returns for farmers. Shear success guide: https://irishgrownwoolcouncil.com/shear-success-guide-for-sheep-farmers-2/ For more episodes from the OviCast podcast, visit the show page at:https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/sheep/ovicast-sheep-podcast
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Using GPS technology to learn more about hill sheep grazing
Teagasc Walsh Scholar, Michael Dever, and Teagasc researcher, Dr. Frank Campion, join us on this week’s OviCast to discuss an exciting new project, recently launched in collaboration with SRUC. The project aims to use GPS technology to better understand hill sheep grazing patterns.Frank provides background on the project, while Michael outlines how they will assess animal performance across different groups of sheep that are released onto the hill at various stages. He also explains how the team will evaluate the botanical composition of the different grazing areas.Michael goes on to describe how GPS collars fitted to the ewes will allow the researchers to track their movements and identify specific grazing zones on the hill.We wrap up the episode with Frank sharing insights into the future direction of the project and the next steps in their research.For more episodes from the OviCast podcast, visit the show page at:https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/sheep/ovicast-sheep-podcast
OviCast is the Teagasc Sheep podcast.
Presented by Ciaran Lynch it brings you the latest advice, insights and technical updates for the sheep industry.
Visit the show page at: https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/sheep/ovicast-sheep-podcast/
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