Benefits of EID

There are many potential flock and cost management benefits of electronic identification (EID) for producers to use on the farm.

As we have seen in the dairy and beef industries, the potential is there for:

• greater efficiencies
• improved genetic gain
• enhanced feedback and information availability, including product feedback such as carcass quality

Improved accuracy

The EID tag or device contains a microchip that can be read electronically in a fraction of a second by producers who have a suitable reader (panel or handheld). With electronic reading, transcription errors can be eliminated saving both time and labour in the yards while increasing the accuracy of your information.

Individual animal management

Within a flock there is a substantial variation in the characteristics that influence an animal's production level.

Electronic tagging allows this variation to be captured by measuring the performance of individual animals. The producer can then apply decisions specific to that individual, reducing costs and labour and maximising returns.

Benefits to wool flocks

Some of the benefits of EID in wool flocks include:

• use of fibre diameter measurement in classing and selection
• fleece weighing
• pregnancy status each year
• ram allocation
• selecting stock for improved current and future production
• in a dual purpose enterprise it can be used for allocating Merino ewes or lambs into wool and meat groups based on fibre diameter, fleece weight and body weight

Benefits to meat flocks

Some of the benefits of EID in meat flocks include:

• use of weight records and individual growth rates to assist in meeting market specifications
• pregnancy status each year
• tracking specific bloodlines
• Pedigree MatchMaker to match ewes and lambs to calculate kilograms of lamb weaned per ewe
• using carcass feedback to inform genetic and management decisions
• ram selection and allocation to specific groups of ewes
• selecting stock for improved current and future production

Optimising meat and wool

You can optimise meat and wool in your flocks by:

• segmenting Merino lambs into wool and meat groups based on fibre diameter and body weight
• calculating the optimal number of ewes to mate to wool versus meat sires
• making better decisions on which ewe to mate to wool and meat sires based on production levels

Reproduction

• Consideration of reproduction rate on selection strategies
• Optimal use of pregnancy scanning data
• Capturing pregnancy status using EID
• A guide to the use of Pedigree MatchMaker
• A guide to litter weight weaned

Parasite control

You can minimise the risk of parasite outbreaks by:

• using selective drenching
• identifying poor performers in the flock

Simple stocktake

With EID you can easily answer these questions:

• Exactly how many sheep are on your property right now?
• Which have received a treatment within the last month?
• What sheep did you sell in the last 6 months?

The most basic EID systems using electronic NLIS (Sheep) tags can help you by counting and recording stock whenever they are handled, together with any treatments that they may receive.