Central Progeny Test (CPT) 2015

Plans for this year’s CPT are progressing rapidly. We are currently assembling our ram list for the AI programme and have a full panel of rams assembled for some breeds. We will be meeting with breed society representative in Portlaoise next Thursday 17th September to discuss this panel of rams before we make our final selection. This final selection will be included in this weekly update in the coming weeks.

The CPT ram selection criteria for this year is as follows:

• High Replacement Index
• High accuracy% – over 35% if possible
• Breed by a breeder with a good Data Quality Index (DQI)
• Ram must be available from the last days of September to October 20th
• From a variety of different bloodlines within each respective breed
• Ram must be physically correct and suitable for future use in pedigree flocks

Once the ram selection process is complete all rams will be moved to Lyons estate in UCD where a period of quarantine and thorough health checks are required. The first day of AI will take place on the farm of James Napper, Oldcastle, Co. Meath on Monday 12th October. Other flocks with ewes involved in the programme include John Large (Tipperary), Andrew Moloney (Offaly), UCD (Lyons Estate), Brian Nicholson (Kilkenny), and Teagasc Athenry (Galway).

Meeting with Breed Societies

We have extended an invitation to all the breed societies involved with Sheep Ireland to a meeting in the (Change of Date and Venue: Maldron Hotel Thursday the 17th September). We will use this meeting as an opportunity to update flockbooks on the progress of Sheep Ireland, LambPlus and Ovigen. We will also be looking for feedback from the societies on all these programmes as their involvement is pivotal to their success.