Method could end mulesing
A NEW development promises to eliminate the need for mulesing sheep while delivering better growth rates and increased wool production.
Wool growers saw the new technique, developed by West Gippsland vet and inventor, John Steinfort, at the Balmoral Sire Evaluation Group field day.
A farm tour to properties where what has been dubbed “Steining” has been trialled in the Western District marked the start of the commercialisation phase for the new procedure, which has been 10 years in the making.
Producers and woolbrokers on the tour suggested the new technique is the first viable alternative to mulesing they had seen. Dr Steinfort’s procedure involves the use of liquid nitrogen, which freezes skin around the breech, with negligible pain to the animal.
“We have a handpiece that’s automated and picks up four pieces of skin – two around the breech and two either side of the tail – and it freezes the base of that skin upwards, protecting the underlying tissue,” Dr Steinfort said.
“It gives a dose of nitrogen according to their skin type and wrinkle type. Once the skin is frozen and thaws it’s the ice crystals forming in the cells that causes the degeneration of the cells and by definition also degenerates the nerve endings.”
Dr Steinfort said after the procedure, sheep experience no pain when the application points are touched.
One trial suggests improvements in weight gain as a result of using the new procedure could be up to 3kg.
“We’ve had a huge amount of interest,” Dr Steinfort said.
“We had a few trial farms a few years ago, and once we got our trials done and knew we had low animal impact we expanded that to larger farms where they had approached us.”