Preparing six Merino wethers for the annual NSW Schools Merino Challenge in August are Brock Ryan, Isaac Johnston, Olivia Dimmick, Annabella Gallop, Tempe Lemon and Lilly-May Kavanagh-Bailey.
WELLINGTON HIGH School has participated in the NSW Schools Merino Wether Challenge each year since 2018 with some successes in a competition between upwards of 70 schools from throughout the state.
The competition began at the annual Dubbo National Merino show and sale at Dubbo each August in the mid-2000s giving high school year 9 to 11 students a real ‘hands-on’ learning experience with six wethers they have to feed and prepare for the two-day showing.
Wellington High School agriculture curriculum teacher, Rod Dimmick said the students take ownership for managing their wethers which provides a unique and practical experience, much different from classroom learning.
“We have been quite competitive in the wool and carcase sections of the trial, but success is highly dependent on the weather and rainfall,” he said.
“The competition is based around a replacement wether, so basically in the eyes of a buyer looking for the best replacements for his flock.
“Wethers are judged on conformation, then shorn and the wool is weighed, valued and judged, then judged again as a bare-shorn animal on their carcase merit.
“One of the important parts of the competition is to match animals in a group as like setting up lines for quality.”
The National is held from August 11 and 12.