Omarama Station Stock Manager Craig Morgan.
Image Credit
Meet Craig Morgan
(aka Weasel).
Our partners over at ZQ Merino sat down with Craig Morgan, Stock Manager, at Omarama Station to talk about what a Stock Manager does on a day to day basis, what his favourite part of the job is and what it’s like to bring up a family on a New Zealand High Country sheep station.
What does a Stock Manager do?
I am responsible for organising the daily shifts and processes for all the staff and the animal health plans for all of the sheep. Basically the day to day running of the farm. There are 22,000 animals on the station, so being mindful of where they are and what they are up to as well as planning where they have got to go next is essential.
Whats the favourite part of the job?
Being up on the hill mustering on a nice clear day. It’s really cool to see how different feeds and different nutrition we give the sheep impact the quality of the wool.
How often are you on the hillside?
Not as often as I’d like. This time of year we’re mustering and bringing the ewes and lambs down but we can go weeks without getting out on the hill as we focus on different parts of the farm. No two days are the same here at Omarama.
How many dogs do you have and what are their names?
Eight dogs in total. Five that work with me everyday, a couple of older dogs and a new pup. The main heading dogs are Deck and George. The huntaways are Nell, Fist, Tank, Buzz (Older), Gyp (Older) and a new pup.
What does a day in the life of a stock manager look like?
This morning for example, my alarm went off at 4 in the morning. I got up, drank a cup of coffee while thinking about the day ahead... A bit of planning and then we usually have breakfast at 5 o’clock. A big cooked breakfast for the day and then we set off to what we’ve got to do. It’s still quite hot at the moment so we aim to get the bulk of the work done before it gets too hot and it’s too hard on the animals. Today for example, lunch was at 1 o’clock, after that we have a rest. Then we start again and do a couple more hours when it gets cooler in the evening. The stock, the dogs, everyone is way more happy when they are nice and cool and you can get twice as much done.
What’s it like bringing up a family here?
It’s really good to bring them up out in the country. They are quite keen little wee farmers, and I couldn’t imagine bringing up a family anywhere else. Omarama is a pretty cool place in the world.
Crewneck Vest.
Omarama Station Stock Manager Craig Morgan.
Meet Craig Morgan (aka Weasel).
Our partners over at ZQ Merino sat down with Craig Morgan, Stock Manager, at Omarama Station to talk about what a Stock Manager does
on a day to day basis, what his favourite part of the job is and what it’s like to bring up a family on a New Zealand High Country sheep station.
Grace, can you introduce youself to the Flock?
Hey! I'm Grace Mahary, fashion model, sommelier, and founder of non-profit Project Tsehigh/PjT.
How did PjT start?
On a trip visiting family in Eritrea, I experienced power shortages and encountered heavy duty pollutants from the diesel generators being used for electricity; thus, I decided to create PjT, a nonprofit dedicated to providing renewable energy solutions to under-served communitites.
What project do you currently focus on?
PjT currently focuses on solar energy projects around the world. We just completed facilitating solar powered street lamps for basketball courts in Burkina Faso and Nigeria.
What does a Stock Manager do?
I am responsible for organising the daily shifts and processes for all the staff and the animal health plans for all of the sheep. Basically the day to day running of the farm. There are 22,000 animals on the station, so being mindful of where they are and what they are up to as well as planning where they have got to go next is essential.
Whats the favourite part of the job?
Being up on the hill smustering on a nice clear day. It’s really cool to see how different feeds and different nutrition we give the sheep impact the quality of the wool.
How often are you on the hillside?
Not as often as I’d like. This time of year we’re mustering and bringing the ewes and lambs down but we can go weeks without getting out on the hill as we focus on different parts of the farm. No two days are the same here at Omarama.
How many dogs do you have and what are their names?
Eight dogs in total. Five that work with me everyday, a couple of older dogs and a new pup. The main heading dogs are Deck and George. The huntaways are Nell, Fist, Tank, Buzz (Older), Gyp (Older) and a new pup.
What does a day in the life of a stock manager look like?
This morning for example, my alarm went off at 4 in the morning. I got up, drank a cup of coffee while thinking about the day ahead... A bit of planning and then we usually have breakfast at 5 o’clock. A big cooked breakfast for the day and then we set off to what we’ve got to do. It’s still quite hot at the moment so we aim to get the bulk of the work done before it gets too hot and it’s too hard on the animals. Today for example, lunch was at 1 o’clock, after that we have a rest. Then we start again and do a couple more hours when it gets cooler in the evening. The stock, the dogs, everyone is way more happy when they are nice and cool and you can get twice as much done.
What’s it like bringing up a family here?
It’s really good to bring them up out in the country. They are quite keen little wee farmers, and I couldn’t imagine bringing up a family anywhere else. Omarama is a pretty cool place in the world.
What does a Stock Manager do?
I am responsible for organising the daily shifts and processes for all the staff and the animal health plans for all of the sheep. Basically the day to day running of the farm. There are 22,000 animals on the station, so being mindful of where they are and what they are up to as well as planning where they have got to go next is essential.
Whats the favourite part of the job?
Being up on the hill mustering on a nice clear day. It’s really cool to see how different feeds and different nutrition we give the sheep impact the quality of the wool.
How often are you on the hillside?
Not as often as I’d like. This time of year we’re mustering and bringing the ewes and lambs down but we can go weeks without getting out on the hill as we focus on different parts of the farm. No two days are the same here at Omarama.
How many dogs do you have and what are their names?
Eight dogs in total. Five that work with me everyday, a couple of older dogs and a new pup. The main heading dogs are Deck and George. The huntaways are Nell, Fist, Tank, Buzz (Older), Gyp (Older) and a new pup.
What does a day in the life of a stock manager look like?
This morning for example, my alarm went off at 4 in the morning. I got up, drank a cup of coffee while thinking about the day ahead... A bit of planning and then we usually have breakfast at 5 o’clock. A big cooked breakfast for the day and then we set off to what we’ve got to do. It’s still quite hot at the moment so we aim to get the bulk of the work done before it gets too hot and it’s too hard on the animals. Today for example, lunch was at 1 o’clock, after that we have a rest. Then we start again and do a couple more hours when it gets cooler in the evening. The stock, the dogs, everyone is way more happy when they are nice and cool and you can get twice as much done.
What’s it like bringing up a family here?
It’s really good to bring them up out in the country. They are quite keen little wee farmers, and I couldn’t imagine bringing up a family anywhere else. Omarama is a pretty cool place in the world.