Dairy cows are taking while the national sheep flock is continuing a steady decline, Statistics New Zealand revealed today.

There was one milking cow for every New Zealander in 2009 with a record 4.6 million in the national herd. Total dairy cattle numbers hit 5.8 million during the year, up 4% on 2008.

The increase was due to both dairy conversions and also growth in the number of milking cows in existing herds, according to agriculture statistics manager Gary Dunnet.

Sheep numbers declined 5% on 2008 to 32.4 million.

“Numbers were below half the peak of 70 million reached in 1982,” Mr Dunnet said.

Numbers in the sheep breeding flock also dropped since the 1980s. In 2009, 23.9 million ewes and ewe hoggets were mated, a little over half of the 42.5 million in 1989.

However, this drop was partially offset by an increase in the lambing percentage.