A LOCAL sheep stud has claimed a double delight at the Melbourne Show, winning the Supreme Champion Suffolk Exhibit and Most Successful Suffolk Exhibitor titles.
Sayla Park Suffolk Stud won the Supreme Champion title thanks to Jon Sutherland, who started the stud with his partner Jody Zoch over a decade ago in 2014.
Daughter Saige Zoch-Sutherland accepted the award, celebrating 18 months of hard work and determination.
There’s a reasonably long process involved in the lead-up to these shows, including breeding, lambing them down, growing and feeding them through cold and hot temperatures, and finally making sure they’re healthy and good to go for the show.
The Supreme Champion Suffolk Exhibit award is a premier competitive title awarded to top-tier Suffolk sheep at major agricultural events like the Melbourne Show.
“I’ve been looking after them for 12 years. The rewarding part is seeing your breed and genetics go on and perform at other people’s places,” Mr Sutherland said.
The show has decreased in size over the decade the stud has been competing at it, but that doesn’t stop the family from having a good time in Melbourne.
“It was good. The kids had fun, and it was a good space for it all.”
“It’s good for publicity, it gets people looking at you, ask more questions and follow the story along.”
The Sutherland family weren’t the only winners in the local area though.
Local father-daughter duo Andrew and Charlotte Hiscock from Brurob Poll Dorsets had great success with their white suffolk rams, claiming the champion ram, reserve champion ram, supreme champion ram as well as the reserve interbreed champion ram at the Melbourne Show.
Young Charlotte took charge showing the rams, with dad Andrew an able assistant.
