MOTHER nature has been far from considerate in recent months, with weeks upon weeks of torrential rain bursting streams into rivers and fields into paddling - even swimming - pools, however, there is still hope for sheep farmers, with the first of the scanning results actually up on the year.

And, despite the incessant floods and constant battering from the wind and the rain, most ewes have come through the first part of the winter in relatively good nick, according to well-known sheep and cattle scanner, Archie MacGillivray.

"The ewes I've scanned so far have mostly been in good condition and virtually all flocks have scanned better than last year and with fewer yeld, but then we had a really good, dry back-end, with plenty of grass available," said Archie.

"Several flocks have produced their highest ever figures, which is not always a good thing as there are a lot more triplets due this year.

"I scanned one lowland flock recently with 1200 ewes, that recorded 360 sets of threes, with an overall scan of 215%!"

However, results are unlikely to be up in all flocks or in all areas, as Archie, who has been scanning for 29 years, and now scans in excess of 150,000 ewes and 25,000 cows per year, mostly throughout the Central Belt and into the Borders, and a further 100,000plus ewes every year in New Zealand, believes hill lambings will be down, with more barren.

"Considering the weather, sheep have scanned out really well, but then these flocks were tupped in September and October when the weather was dry and there was plenty of grass. With the wet weather coming in November and more or less being consistently wet since then, you would expect hill lambings to be down as there will have been a lot of reabsorption."

It's a trend which is seen every year too, with the generally drier regions in the east producing better scanning results than the wetter west.

This year of course there has been torrential rain almost everywhere, however, the wettest areas at tupping time are still expected to produce some of the worst scan results.

On a similar vein, extremely dry weather at tupping time, where grass quality and quantity is reduced, produces much the same affect, but obviously, is more likely to be seen in New Zealand.

"Sheep don't like a wet bed which when there has been as much rain as there has been, adds stress to an animal, so there is a risk that ewes will reabsorb and they can reabsorb up to 100 days, and even after," he added.

Archie, who learnt his trade from fellow scanner, Ewan McMillan, Traquair Hill, Innerleithen, and scans as far north as Montrose, and across to Dumfries-shire, said that in general, the same farmers, lowland and hill, produce the best scan figures every year, with the best results not only the result of good health and nutrition, but also high tup ratios.

"The flockmasters who consistently produce the best scans will virtually always use teaser tups and run multiple rams - 1:20 or 30 ewes. After that, it's all up to Mother Nature," he said.

It's a similar situation down under in New Zealand too, with some of the best lowland flocks now consistently producing results of 200+% and for huge numbers.

One of the best last year - where Archie scans between June and August - saw a unit of 6000 ewes, scan out at 205% with a barren rate of just 1.5%.

It was in New Zealand where Archie really picked up the art of scanning - at speed. After the costly investment of an actual scanner, the most difficult part of the technique is being able to identify how multiples can appear on the screen, especially between twins and triplets, of which there are growing numbers of every year. As a result, he can easily identify ewes carrying three, four, five, even six and the best ever, seven lambs.

And, having travelled to New Zealand every year since 1991, Archie who now works alongside his daughter, Megan (19) has perfected his technique to such an extent that he has scanned as many 7500 ewes in one day down under. His biggest day in Scotland, saw more than 5000 ewes go through the crate, but then that included travelling to two or three different units.

With the ability to scan large numbers of sheep, from 50 days post conception right up to 135days, Rock and Roll as he's better known to all, is constantly in demand too, so much so that he has to turn new work down, or hand it over to another member of this talented family!

Brother Andrew also scans huge numbers of ewes throughout Scotland, while father Ian scans cows. Notably, Archie's other brother, David, of DM Handling Systems, developed a sheep handling crate with ID reader and weight system, while his sister, Margaret, does all the bookwork.

It was nevertheless, their mother, Nancy, who sadly passed away last year and will be sorely missed, who was ultimately the backbone of the business.

It's not only sheep and cattle that Archie scans though. He will also turn his hand to dogs when required and even humans if need be... How many farmer's wives have been asked if they would like a wee turn in the crate??!! Surprise, surprise, he's given up asking me!

But with most of his work centred around the winter months, conditions can be far from favourable.

While he is able to scan an individual ewe in seconds, if there is four or five inches of snow on the ground the same day, or huge floods, travelling to individual farms can prove problematic.

And on arrival, working in bitterly cold and often wet conditions, warm, waterproof clothes and gloves in particular are a must. With his business reliant on an expensive scanner, Rock and Roll always has to make sure there is at least one in good working order, but then a spare is carried in the jeep, and two are left all year in New Zealand.

It may appear a relatively lucrative profession from the outside, but how many of us would actually be prepared to work every day of the year often in the coldest and the wettest of conditions, and more importantly, still enjoy it?

And, how many would be able to put in the hours or indeed the time to properly learn the technique with the speed to match. Probably not many.

So, scores on the doors are: Archie Quads : everyone else Naughty.