Farmers should use the scanning information to know their ewes' rate of conception and the reasons for this result. Have changes in management this year given farmers the results they wanted?

From their scanning results, farmers should draft and manage their dry, single, and twin-bearing ewes separately, as they all have different nutritional requirements.

READ ALSO:

Cross-bred ewes reach peak energy requirements 25 days after lambing. These ewes require approximately 25 megajoules a day for a twin bearer, 14 to 18 MJ/day for a single bearer, and 8 MJ/day for a dry ewe.

Farmers need to manage their dry, single, and twin-bearing ewes in separate mobs, Mr Newsome advised.

"If you run these three classes of stock together, your dry ewes will out-compete your pregnant and lactating stock," he said.

Leaving single and multiple-bearing ewes in the same mob can increase the risk of lambs and ewes dying, or lambs not growing.

If farmers shear pregnant ewes in winter, they should remember that the ewes need more nutrition. Cold weather or wind causes fleeceless sheep to burn more energy to keep warm.

Mr Newsome recommended feeding grain or a good quality hay as sources of energy.

"I realise these feeds are difficult and expensive to source, but they can make the difference to the survival of the ewe and lamb," he said.

For more information, contact Northern Tablelands Local Land Services livestock officers Max Newsome on 0427 007 190, or Brent McLeod on 0413 884 710.