IN a normal year Longreach-based contractor Bowden Shearing aims to see some 360,000 sheep go across the board.
This year Raelene Bowden reckons the numbers will be more like 100,000 as extreme drought conditions continue to grip Western Queensland.
"We've been to Victoria and back chasing work," Raelene said.
"We now have about six weeks work around Longreach before we will be back on the road taking work wherever we can find it.
"There just are not the sheep in western Queensland any more. The drought has seen to that."
Last week the highly skilled team was shearing some 2000 wethers which were on agistment at Dungorm, a 3189-hectare traprock property at Gore, between Warwick and Inglewood.
Sheep owner Rob Pearce, Mernoo, Ilfracombe, said he was shearing the wethers with 60 millimetre to 70mm length wool staples with the aim of catching the continued strong wool market.
"We usually shear when the staple gets to about 75-80mm," Mr Pearce said.
"It means we are shearing about every nine months, roughly three shearings every two years.
"It's just great that we have been able to have our regular Longreach-based shearing contractor come and do the work for us.
"They have always looked after us, and we are very keen to look after them.
"We're certainly all doing it tough. There hasn't been rain at home in past three years and that has hit everyone in the industry."
Mr Pearce said his aim was to grow about 20 per cent more wool over a two-year period.
"We are finding the sheep are better in body condition because they are not carrying the fleece for that last three months," Mr Pearce said.
"Importantly the market seems to want a 75mm staple."
The cost of the extra shearing is partially offset as the sheep are not crutched.
- Elders wool and sheep adviser Peter Sealy said the lift in the wool market had been a tremendous morale booster for producers.
"The eastern wool market indicator started this week on 1263c/kg clean, down about 100c since the peak on June 11," Mr Sealy said.
"But everyone is pretty aware the market is still about 250c/kg clean ahead of the same time last year." - Picture: RODNEY GREEN.