Cameron Farnan

I've made quite a few changes since my first Next Generation ambassador meeting. I have taken the decision to leave my full time shepherd position which has not been an easy step to take. Although I enjoyed my job, and my employer could not have been more accommodating to the development of my own flock and business ventures, I've felt I need to make the breakaway in order to progress my flock and farming enterprise forwards in a time-sustainable way.

I have realised that there will never be a 'perfect' time to make a move and with the changes in agricultural policy currently, who knows what the future hold.

My small group of pedigrees have lambed well so far. It has been the first year I've incorporated a teaser ram before tupping and it has significantly tightened up the lambing window. I am looking to turn the ewes out to grass full time by the end of the month, and the recent warmer temperatures have notably brought on grass growth over the last week or so. I will be preparing for my last lambing with the 1000 outdoor Romney's over the next week, which are due from the start of April. As with all outdoor lambing operations, I hope the weather remains favourable!

Since the last update as with presumably all fellow ambassadors the majority of my time has been taken up with lambing. I commenced lambing around Sunday 3rd April on the 1000 ewe organic NZ Romney flock and we have just crossed over into the second cycle. It has been a really positive lambing with significantly lower lamb mortality losses, somewhat down to the warm weather being in our favour for the last ten days or so. We synchronise the ewes here with teaser tups and have approximately 3/4 of the expected lambs on the ground already, so it has been at a relatively fast pace with just myself and my girlfriend Becky shepherding the whole flock as one team. 

Before lambing kicked off I managed to fit in a quick shearing weekend to fellow ambassador Ed Brant's farm to pre lamb shear his flock with winter cover combs. 

Really looking forward to the next Ambassador meeting in May.

It has been a rather busy spell for me moving house along with a full shearing calender. Most of my time has been occupied with shearing so unfortunately there has not been much else occurring, but for my first year shearing full time it has been encouraging that I have been kept so busy.

Despite an average scanning from my group of 50 late lambing outdoor Romneys and crossbreds, it has been the easiest group of sheep to lamb, with less than 6% lamb losses. Shearing the flock pre-lambing certainly simplified the system and they are one less flock to shear whilst I am at my busiest!