With the $115,000 ram, from left, were Collinsville’s Tim Dalla, his wife Jade, Kolindale’s Luke Ledwith, his wife Daniella and Tony Brooks from Brooks Merino Services. Image – Studstocksales.com

WESTERN Australia’s Kolindale Poll Merino Stud at Dudinin has paid $115,000 for a Collinsville ram at the Australian Sheep and Wool Show in Bendigo.

The private sale was concluded by the parties separate from the show’s regular ram sale, which sold 79 rams for up to $20,000 for an average of $5523.

The Collinsville Stud at Hallett in South Australia holds the world record for a Merino ram of $450,000 in 1989, and general manager Tim Dalla the $115,000 price was the highest achieved by any Merino since then as far as we was aware.

Mr Dalla said the May 2020 drop ram was by Collinsville Emperor 351, a stud reserve ram.

The 178kg ram carried a 20.6 micron fleece with a standard deviation of 3.1 percent, a coefficient of variation of 15pc and 99.4 comfort factor.

“He’s just an exceptional poll sire, the best poll ram we’ve ever bred, with great purity in the head, perfect polled factor.

“He’s huge with really really good well-nourished well-marked heavy cutting lustrous wool.”

Mr Dalla said the regulation August shorn ram was ranked at 40pc above the average in fleece cut at his last shearing, among 1500 in the drop.

“His dad cut 18 kilograms shorn the week of Bendigo, so 11 months of wool as a shed-prepared animal.

“So we would expect him (351) to cut similar – 18-20kgs full wool.”

Kolindale principal Luke Ledwith said the ram was probably the best poll Merino ram he has seen “with a big pure muzzle.”

“And for that size, with that much meat on him, we’re all about quick maturity and trying to get wether lambs off.

“He’s got the best muzzle I’ve ever seen – usually the softer it is the better the wool.”

He said the ram was the second heaviest in his drop at Collinsville and he had an elite wool.

“You just don’t find rams like that – big meaty rams with an elite wool like that.

“He has got a real elite lustrous wool with a big carcase.”

Luke said the ram’s fleece had “true nourishment” through to the staple tip, which was also rare to see in a big meaty animal.