How regularly condition scoring ewes reduces losses

Regular body condition scoring proved critical for Devon sheep farmer Richard Stanbury during last year’s dry summer.

It highlighted how timely data and targeted management – particularly for young ewes – can help safeguard flock performance under pressure. 

Weston Farm, near Knowstone, has undergone a transformation under Richard’s stewardship.

Over the past four years, the system has shifted from indoor, intensive production to an outdoor, forage-based management approach.

See also: Advice on using flock data to set achievable goals

Farm Facts: Weston Farm, Devon

Richard Stanbury © Elanco

• 202ha owned, 142ha rented, 61ha of grasskeep and 142ha of common grazing
• 160-cow suckler herd 
• Outdoor calving, progeny sold store and fat through Sedgemoor Livestock Market, and direct through a local butcher and small farm shop
• 1,400 Exlana and Easycare ewes
• Outdoor lambing from 25 March
• Lambs sold to ABP

This transition has seen the business move away from Mule and Suffolk-cross ewes towards wool-shedding Exlana and Easycare genetics within the 1,400-ewe flock.

While the change has reduced labour and input costs, the dry summer exposed the vulnerabilities of a forage-based system. 

With flock expansion ongoing, and more than two-thirds of ewes under three years old, pressure on sufficient grazing for younger ewes was intensified.

“Grass growth slowed, and competition for grass increased.

“We also reseeded 101ha [250 acres], which was a lot to remove from the grazing profile, especially in a dry year,” reflects Richard, who farms alongside his parents, John and Rosemary, and wife Laura.

Importance of regular body condition scoring

Richard Stanbury uses condition scoring as a management tool, with advice from sheep consultant Nerys Wright © Elanco

For Richard, the dry weather highlighted the value of proactive body condition scoring (BCS) and data recording.

He has been working with independent sheep consultant Nerys Wright since August 2025 as part of a three-year data recording and worm management project with Elanco.

“Ewe body condition drives fertility, lamb survival, lifetime productivity and overall flock resilience. Yet, in many flocks, condition scoring remains irregular, reactive and lacking structure,” says Nerys. 

At Weston Farm, BCS became a key management tool. Initially planned for October, ewes were instead scored in August to give Richard more time to act ahead of November tupping.

Using a handheld reader, ewes were individually scored and split into three management groups: thin (BCS 2.5 and below), medium (BCS 2.5-3.5), and fat (more than 3.5 BCS).

Doing this allowed thinner ewes to be given the best grazing with the aim of getting them up to 3-3.5 for mating.

Faecal egg counts taken between August and November added another layer of insight. Thin ewes recorded counts of 1,900 eggs/g.

These were treated with a clear wormer for strongyles, and a reduction test was repeated 14 days later, which revealed 99% efficacy.

“They probably weren’t thin because they had a worm burden; they had a worm burden because they were thin,” points out Nerys, while Richard confirms that ewes began to pick up after treatment. 

Intervention before mating

Two weeks before tupping, ewes were re-scored. Most thin ewes had recovered, but 50 remained below target. Of these, 20 were sold and 30 were managed separately and tupped. 

Ewes typically run in mobs of 400 at tupping, with a ratio of one ram for every 50-55 ewes. 

Easycare and Exlana rams are used to breed replacements; remaining Mules and Romneys are mated to terminal sires. In addition, 320 ewe lambs were bred to Southdown rams.

On Nerys’s advice, rams were left in for two cycles rather than until scanning in January.

This has helped tighten the lambing period to 35 days and avoids having stragglers born in June.

Young ewes hit hardest

January scanning revealed a mixed picture. The previously thin group scanned at 110%, highlighting the lasting impact of earlier condition loss, despite these ewes subsequently being given preferential feed.

Compared with the previous year, barren rates were similar, twin and triplet rates declined, and singles increased (see table).

Scanning results compared
% of flock	Barren	Singles	Twins	Triplets
2025	4%	34%	52%	13%
2026	5%	45%	46%	4%
Scanning %	Ewe lambs	Shearlings	Three-crop	Overall
2025	65%	n/a	n/a	169%
2026	70%	123%	145%	149%
Source: Weston Farm

Detailed analysis showed that shearling ewes were the main contributor to poorer scanning results.

Ewe lambs bucked trends, scanning at 70% this year – up from 40% three years ago –  largely due to a focus on lamb growth rates during the summer drought, and being run as a single group.

“Managing shearlings alongside adult ewes is common across the industry, but it hides their different needs. Without detailed data, underperformance can be masked,” says Nerys.

“We need to remember that sheep don’t reach full maturity until they are three or four years old. We are asking a lot of them.”

Improving performance resilience 

© Elanco

Although Nerys believes improvements to condition monitoring, groups and grazing strategies undoubtedly reduced losses at Weston Farm, the experience has prompted further changes in management for the year ahead. 

Ewes will be condition-scored earlier this year – around eight weeks post-lambing – to allow thinner animals to be weaned sooner thus preventing a greater loss in condition.

Nerys thinks more flocks could benefit from regular BCS, so encourages shepherds to score at least at weaning to allow sufficient time for condition to be rebuilt ahead of tupping.

“I like to think of it as a car battery: don’t let the condition get to its reserve. Keep it topped up or it will cost you more to recharge,” she explains.