I farm: “63ac, including 15ac of forestry, with my wife Nicola, daughter Alex and son Ted. Although still young, Ted is a great help when working with the sheep.”

Sheep: “I’m hoping to lamb 130 ewes this year. In the last few years, I have begun to switch away from high maintenance, high input stock and more towards a hardy, easier lambed ewe with lower input costs. The flock is a mix of Bluefaced Leicester, Texel, Mayo x Valais and Mule ewes.”

New start: “We moved into our new house before Christmas and are slowly getting the farm fenced and housing built. Both my wife and I are teachers. I teach biology and agricultural science at St Patrick’s College.”

Lambing: “Lambing occurs at Easter every year, to coincide with school holidays. Two weeks before ewes lamb they have access to young leafy grass and no meal. Some feeding takes place after lambing for both ewes and lambs. The primary aim of this feed is to offset changeable cold spring weather and reduce incidence of mastitis in ewes. Lambing is synchronised and condensed with the use of a teaser ram.”

Lamb prices: “Prices were good this year for all sheep farmers, but the big winners were the store men, who had lower input costs and higher profit margins at the end of the year.”

Silage: “Our aim is to use all our surplus silage to feed our stores over winter and avail of the higher prices the following spring. Silage quality and lamb health are two very important factors influencing output and margins from this system.”

Planning ahead: “Farmer stress can be high, especially around lambing and calving. Tight margins and changeable weather don’t help so it’s important to plan well ahead for the unknown. There’s nothing like a walk in the fields after a day in school.”

Ted O'Callaghan.

Ted O'Callaghan.