Karridale · Western Australia
Every trait must earn its place.
We breed sheep that move freely, shed cleanly and need fewer routine interventions.
Our breeding intent
Good husbandry begins with time to watch the flock.
No shearing, mulesing or tailing means fewer routine trips through the yards, leaving more time to focus on condition, feet, lambing and nutrition.
Our aim is sheep that move freely, hold condition and raise their lambs well, with each generation leaving the flock more useful than the last.
Glenarty Road has used SheepMaster genetics since 2012, with our rams and ewe lambs now working in flocks across Australia.
Our standard ↗Selection pressure
A long look.
Then another.
At the first draft, around 150 ram lambs are assessed at six months; Ben and Archer retain 50, watch them for another twelve months, and twenty remain.
Maternal
A ewe should conceive readily and raise her lamb well.
Movement
A sheep must cover country freely and stay sound.
Growth
Early growth should carry useful meat.
Shedding
The coat must leave the animal clean without intervention.
Temperament
The flock should be straightforward to handle.
2026 ewe lambs · AuctionsPlus · 29 September
A young flock
to make your own.
We’re offering a line of 2026-drop ewe lambs from the flock at Glenarty Road, giving buyers the chance to start with young females and grow them on as the foundation of a shedding flock, whether that is for a smaller farm, a new enterprise or a gradual move away from wool.
They come from the same flock we have been shaping with SheepMaster genetics since 2012, with selection pressure on movement, shedding, growth, maternal ability and temperament.
2026 South West SheepMaster Ram Sale
Wagin.
22 October.
Ben and Archer are selecting the final twenty rams from the fifty retained at six months, assessing movement, shedding, growth and conformation before the final team is offered at Wagin.
Date Thursday 22 October 2026
Venue Woolorama Ram Pavilion, Wagin
Inspection 10:30 am
Auction 12:30 pm · On-site & AuctionsPlus
Individual ram profiles will be added after final classing.
Fourth generation · SheepMaster since 2012
Ben and Archer McDonald.
Ben is the fourth generation to farm Glenarty Road. The home farm ran as a dairy until 1960, when his father Peter moved the enterprise into sheep, and Ben returned to the family farm after completing his Diploma of Agriculture in 1995.
His eldest son Archer is now central to the SheepMaster program, with the two classing the flock together and looking closely at structure, movement, coat, growth, maternal ability and temperament.
Today the commercial flock numbers around 1,500 ewes, with Glenarty Road supplying ewe lambs and rams to producers across Australia and offering ewe lambs through AuctionsPlus each spring.
The genetic build
Built trait by trait.
Each breed entered the flock for a reason.
Wiltshire Horn
Chosen for their feet and their ability to shed in Karridale.
Shedding Poll Dorset
Added to put more meat through the hindquarter.
Van Rooy
Introduced to give the flock more height.
SheepMaster
Neil Garnett’s rams were introduced to strengthen reproductive performance in retained ewe lambs.
For producers across Australia
More time for good husbandry.
A shedding coat removes shearing and crutching from the calendar, while retaining tails removes tailing and mulesing, allowing more of the work to stay focused on condition, feet, lambing and nutrition.
Shedding coat
The coat leaves the animal clean without shearing or crutching.
Tail retained
No tailing or mulesing. The flock is selected to stay clean and straightforward to manage.
Built to move
Loose skin, sound feet and free movement matter when sheep have country to cover.
Rams and ewe lambs are sold to producers across Australia.
From flock to plate
We follow the animal all the way to the plate.
Our sheep are served in Glenarty Road’s farm restaurant, giving us another way to understand the animals we breed and allowing eating quality to remain part of the conversation around the flock.
South West SheepMaster Breeders
Working together for a stronger market.
Glenarty Road is part of a group of South West breeders working together on genetics, classing and the market for SheepMaster, with the collective now including eight studs from the South West to the Wheatbelt.
2026 joint ram sale · Wagin · 22 October
Glenarty Road SheepMaster genetics
Genetics for the work ahead.
The 2026 ram team will be offered at Wagin on 22 October, while quality ewe lambs are offered to producers across Australia each spring.
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