Dubbo College Senior Campus and Trangie Central School will fly the flag for our region later this month when they compete against students from 24 other schools around NSW in the inaugural Community Bank Gilgandra and Central NSW Bendigo Bank Dohne Prime Lamb Schools Competition.

To be held in Orange on July 29, around 260 young sheep handlers will take part in the competition that has been initiated and supported by the Australian Dohne Breeders Association to develop the next generation of farmers, decision makers and industry leaders.

The Currey family, Bogeweong Butcher Co, Walgett, supplied 135 lambs for the competition, allowing students to step into the role of livestock managers, taking responsibility for their team of Dohne prime lambs and building practical skills.

Each school received five Dohne wether lambs on February 25 and has had the responsibility of finishing on grain over the last five months. All lambs were shorn, drenched for worms and lice, vaccinated and tagged with a Shearwell visual tag.

Program coordinator Daniel Pumpa said students have been learning about careful feed transitions onto lamb finisher rations, monitoring weight gain and performance, and planning ahead to track feed conversion and results.

Mr Pumpa said that within weeks of receiving the lambs, students were forming strong routines around feeding and care, gaining confidence in handling livestock and an understanding of nutrition, health and performance.

“The schools initiative gives students the opportunity to raise and manage a team of five Dohne prime lambs over five months, developing real-world skills in animal husbandry, nutrition, health management and sustainable farming practices,” he said.

“Throughout the program students will learn modern breeding and performance concepts, understand maternal traits, meat production and wool quality, and explore sustainable, easy-care flock management.

“They will have the opportunity to connect with industry mentors and agricultural professionals, plus apply classroom learning in a practical, commercial setting,” he added.

Students from each school will select two wether lambs in the week of July 6-10 to be transported to Gundagai Lamb for processing and carcase data collection. The balance of the lambs will be transported to Orange for objective data collection before being transported to a selected farm for several weeks of further finishing and then final processing at Gundagai Lamb.

"This competition is more than just livestock – it is about teamwork, leadership, confidence and community connection, and showcasing the strength of agricultural education across NSW,” Mr Pumpa concluded.