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00:00 As hundreds of sheep make their way to Waver in the next week, it is a long path to get there.

00:04 It all starts before you even breed it, basically.

00:07 We're just thinking about the genetics.

00:10 This young ewe here, she's two year old now.

00:12 Then you plan the breeding of it a year before that.

00:17 So it's been three years in the making to get her to this stage.

00:20 So what drives these breeders to dedicate their time to showing,

00:23 whether at the Royal Adelaide or their local country show?

00:26 I like it as a comparison to sort of the best in the industry.

00:30 So we bring our sheep up, I can put them out there and we compete.

00:35 And also sort of can see industry trends, where are people heading?

00:40 And yeah, definitely just that comparison is the main thing,

00:43 just to make sure that we're on the right track.

00:47 We're a smaller breed, so it's an excellent way for us to get our name out there.

00:55 And look, the other thing is probably the social side of things too,

00:59 is it's no matter what show you go to, you always find new friends, people like mine.

01:06 You get to catch up with old friends and then also just meet new people and all of that.

01:12 It's a brilliant social event too.

01:15 There are those that describe showing animals as an alternative Saturday sport.

01:18 Yeah, it is a bit of a sport.

01:20 You get some people, they do chase the shows heavily

01:23 and are very good at what they do with competing.

01:26 But yeah, a few injuries with the actual sport.

01:31 Yeah, two knee reconstructions,

01:33 probably can't do too much running around in the contact sports anymore.

01:36 It's a bit hard to get the work done.

01:38 Can't really shear my sheep when I'm on crutches.

01:41 The grand final of the short wolves is the Adelaide show.

01:44 Adelaide's the last major show, so it's sort of the pinnacle,

01:48 especially for the short-wooled rams and ewes.

01:51 They hit their peak in September when the weather gets a bit warmer,

01:54 they get a little bit more mature and they get a bit longer and stable.

01:57 Any time that you actually get out there in the interbreed,

02:01 I think no matter who you are, that's always a real feather in your cap.

02:05 This year, Adelaide, we've got the feature,

02:07 so I think that's going to be a fairly big highlight.

02:11 And what is going through the minds during the competition?

02:13 Yeah, I'm very competitive in what I do.

02:15 With the shearing competitions and sport, I've always been that way.

02:18 So you get out on the mat and it's like you're playing that game.

02:23 And so you're making sure that they're standing upright,

02:26 you're holding their head in the right position,

02:28 all their feet and legs are standing, standing how they should be.

02:32 You've already done the work of feeding them and prepping the wool,

02:35 so you can't change any of that by the time you get on the mat.

02:37 All you can do is make sure you hold it correctly and present it to the judge.

02:43 It's always nice to know someone feeds highly of the sheep.

02:46 Look, Dad's always taught me as well that a judge is just for something on the day.

02:53 It's nice when, say, your sheep do well,

02:56 but you can never aim your breeding objectives just from that.

Showing sheep at Adelaide Sept 1 | Stock Journal

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