6.9.1 - Sheep must have been weaned at least 14 days prior to sourcing for export, unless the exporter has approval under Standard 6.1.17 to export livestock with young at foot.

6.9.2 - Sheep must not be sourced for export or exported unless they have a liveweight of more than 20kg. Sheep less than this weight must not be sourced for export or exported, unless the exporter has approval under Standard 6.1.20 to export miniature or light weight breed livestock.

6.9.3 - Sheep must not be sourced for export or exported unless they have been assessed by a competent stock handler against the sheep body condition scoring in Table 35 and have a body condition score of 2 or more but less than 4 (on a scale of 1 to 5).

Table 35 Sheep body condition score

Score	Backbone	Short ribs	Illustration
1	The bones form a sharp narrow ridge. Each vertebra can be easily felt as a bone under the skin. There is only a very small eye muscle. The sheep is quite thin (virtually unsaleable).	The ends of the short ribs are very obvious. It is easy to feel the squarish shape of the ends. Using fingers spread 1 cm apart, it feels like the fingernail under the skin with practically no covering.
2	The bones form a narrow ridge but the points are rounded with muscle. It is easy to press between each bone. There is a reasonable eye muscle. Store condition ideal for wethers and lean meat.	The ends of the short ribs are rounded but it is easy to press between them. Using fingers spread 0.5 cm apart, the ends feel rounded like finger ends. They are covered with flesh but it is easy to press under and between them.
3	The vertebrae are only slightly elevated above a full eye muscle. It is possible to feel each rounded bone but not to press between them. Forward store condition ideal for most lamb markets now. No excess fat.	The ends of the short ribs are well rounded and filled in with muscle. Using 4 fingers pressed tightly together, it is possible to feel the rounded ends but not between them. They are well covered and filled in with muscle.
4	It is possible to feel most vertebrae with pressure. The back bone is a smooth slightly raised ridge above full eye muscles and the skin floats over it.	It is only possible to feel or sense 1 or 2 short ribs and only possible to press under them with difficulty. It feels like the side of the palm, where maybe one end can just be sensed.
5	The spine may only be felt (if at all) by pressing down firmly between the fat covered eye muscles. A bustle of fat may appear over the tail (wasteful and uneconomic).	It is virtually impossible to feel under the ends as the triangle formed by the long ribs and hip bone is filled with meat and fat. The short rib ends cannot be felt.

Source: Lifetime Wool

6.9.4 - Female sheep with a weight of 40kg or more, and all female fat-tailed sheep, sourced for export as feeder or slaughter animals must be individually pregnancy tested using ultrasound within 30 days prior to export, by a competent pregnancy tester who must certify in writing that the animals are not detectably pregnant. The certification must include the certifier's name, veterinary registration number or attestation to experience and skill in pregnancy testing of sheep, signature, the mob's identification, and the date of the procedure.

6.9.5 - Female sheep sourced for export as breeder animals must:

1. be pregnancy tested using ultrasound foetal measurement by a competent pregnancy tester; and
2. be certified in writing by the competent pregnancy tester as either not detectably pregnant or pregnant and if pregnant include the number of days pregnant. The certification must include the certifier's name, veterinary registration number or attestation to experience and skill in pregnancy testing of sheep, signature, the individual identification number of the animal and the date of the procedure. Certification is valid for 60 days for not detectably pregnant sheep, from the date of the procedure; and
3. be no more than 100 days pregnant at the scheduled date of export, unless otherwise provided in a last third of pregnancy management plan approved in writing by the department.

6.9.6 - Sheep with horns must only be sourced for export or exported if the horns:

1. would not cause damage to the head or eyes of the animal or other animals; and
2. would not endanger other animals during transport; and
3. would not restrict access to feed or water during transport; and
4. are no longer than 1 full curl, unless otherwise provided in a long-horned livestock management plan approved in writing by the department.

6.9.7 - Sheep must be penned in accordance with the minimum aircraft crate pen area requirements shown in Table 36. For weights between those shown in Table 36, the minimum pen area per head must be calculated by linear interpolation.

6.9.8 - When calculating pen space allocation, the pen area per head must be increased by 10%:

1. for sheep with horns (not cumulative with b)); and
2. for sheep with more than 25mm of wool or hair (not cumulative with a)).

Table 36 Minimum aircraft crate pen area for sheep exported by air