Shane Moore, BETTER Farm sheep participant, has been developing the infrastructure on his farm in recent years to allow him to increase output from his flock, while controlling costs and improving profitability.
Join Teagasc on the ‘Let’s Talk Sheep’ webinar series this Thursday evening at 8:00p.m, to hear about the developments and improvements Shane has made on his sheep farm and have the opportunity to interact with Shane and the panel of speakers.
Meet Shane Moore, Teagasc BETTER Farm Sheep Participant
Shane farms with his family near Athleague, Co. Roscommon, and has taken over running the farm from his parents in recent years.
He is currently running a mid-season lambing sheep flock alongside a small spring calving suckler-to-weanling herd, and the farm comprises mainly good, free-draining soil, and includes an area of marginal land usually only grazed by the cattle.
The owned land is split in two main blocks approximately 5km apart, with an third block of 4ha rented nearby.
Developments and Improvements on Shane’s Farm
Shane joined the Teagasc Sheep BETTER Farm Programme in 2018, with the aim of increasing productivity on the farm from a grass based, mid-season lambing system.
In order to do this, Shane has invested in the key infrastructure required for flock expansion from paddocks, to recently constructed sheep housing. He has also focused on improving soil fertility, and implementing a breeding plan to increase output and efficiency of his system.
Housing capacity for the increased ewe numbers has also had to be developed and just this winter – Shane built a new sheep shed. The shed is five bays long with two feed passages, half the animal area is straw bedded and the other half slatted with plastic slats.
The labour efficiency of having all his ewes in one place for feeding in the new shed is crucial for Shane who also works off-farm.
What will be covered on the night?
During the webinar on Thursday evening at 8:00p.m hosted by Teagasc Sheep Specialist Ciaran Lynch, Shane – along with Teagasc BETTER farm sheep programme leader Frank Campion – will be discussing the grazing infrastructure he has put in place on the farm in recent years and how he manages a fragmented farm, grassland management at this time of year, the use of PastureBase Ireland for grass management and lamb performance to date this year on the farm.
Shane will be joined by his Teagasc Advisor Michael Conroy and Teagasc Sheep Specialist Damian Costello, to discuss how he went about designing and building his new sheep shed including the costings, TAMS funding application, the building process and key considerations for designing the shed to best suit Shane’s needs during the winter and at lambing time.
There will also be a chance for to submit questions to the panel on the night.
To register for the event online, click here.
