Top livestock sales of 2017

Demand for the top end of pedigree stock was higher than ever too, with a Texel ram lamb Charlie Boden’s Sportsmans flock from Stockport, producing the lead sale of 2017 at 130,000gns, to become the third highest priced Texel ever sold. Living up to his name was Sportsmans A Star, a lamb sold at the Lanark Texel sale in August. This ET was bred from a 9000gns Cowal ewe and sired by Teiglum Young Gun. He sold to John Forsyth, Glenside, and Hugh and Alan Blackwood, Auldhouseburn.  

The same breed also led the females, when a gimmer from Hugh and Alan Blackwood’s Auldhouseburn flock from Muirkirk, realised 17,000gns at the Select Seven sale, in December. Notably, she was also bred from a Cowal ewe bought privately from the Campbell brothers, and sired by Glenside Willie Winkie. She sold to cage fighter, Robert Bennett, of the Plasucha flock, from Wales.

The Swaledale breed also enjoyed a bumper year with the lamb record broken on two occasions at Kirkby Stephen in October. First to set a new high at £12,000 was a lamb from Geoff and Carol Marwood’s Long Green flock, from Barningham, purchased by Messrs Harker and Hargreaves. This record was then immediately doubled to £24,000, when the champion from Kevin Sowerby, High Croft, Milburn, sold in a two-way split to the same buyers, for their Meadow Bank flock. The breed also recorded the second highest sheep price in 2017, when a shearling ram sold at the same sale made £90,000. This cracker, from Robert Hutchinson, Valley Farm, is by a £6000 Catlow and was purchased by John and Ben Richardson, Ghyll House, Dufton. 

Scotland’s hill sheep breed, the Blackface, again made it’s presence felt too, when Ian Hunter, Dalchirla, Muthill, sold the top priced male and female at £75,000 and £12,000, respectively. His top sale came for a lamb sold at Dalmally, in October, when a son of a £28,000 Auldhouseburn, was knocked down to Ian Campbell, Glenrath, Peebles and Hugh and Alan Blackwood, Auldhouseburn. Earlier in the year, Mr Hunter received £12,000 for a Blackface ewe hogg by a £10,000 Nunnerie, at United Auctions' sale in May. She was bought by Billy McFarlane and sons, Joe and Alfie, Drumgrange, Patna.

Limousins led the cattle trade with the top bull sale of 2017 – 100,000gns achieved by William and James McKay’s Ampertaine Mozart, from Northern Ireland. Sold at Carlisle in May to Procters Farm, Mozart became the fourth Limousin bull to breach the six-figure sum. He is by Kype Orkney – a bull that made 14,000gns back in 1999. 

Just 24 hours before that sale, Mike and Melanie Alford’s Limousin heifer Foxhillfarm Mammamia, from Devon, topped the females at 42,000gns, to become the highest priced pedigree female of the year. An ET heifer out of the record-breaking 125,000gns Glenrock Illusion, she sold to Brian Evans, Penrhos, Powys. 

    Valley Farm's £90,000 Swaledale shearling ram sold at Kirkby Stephen

Breed records at February Bull Sales 

TWO new breed records were set at the 2017 February Bull Sales at Stirling – for a Beef Shorthorn and a Salers.

The first week saw the Beef Shorthorn bull, Glenisla Jackpot from John Gibb and daughter Catriona, sell for 26,000gns to James Porter, of the Uppermill and Old Glenort herds, Northern Ireland. The breed also produced a best ever average of just shy of £6000, levelling at £5914.

Part two of the sales saw the Salers surpass the previous high of 11,000gns on two occasions. First to sell for 12,000gns was Drumaglea Kingpin 2 from Patrick Boyd, Tiree, which sold to Colin McClymont, Cuil, Newton Stewart. Minutes later, Whitebog Kracker from Alister MacKenzie and son Alister, Whitebog, Fortrose, made the same money selling to Peter Donger, for his Seawell herd, Northants. 

Topping the Aberdeen-Angus breed at 18,000gns was John Lascelles’ Balmachie Jack Eric, from the 25-cow herd near Carnoustie, which sold to the Elliots’ Rawburn herd from Kelso. 

Bruce Goldies’ Goldies Lordoftherings from Dumfries, led the Limousins at 12,000gns selling to Jimmy and Donald MacGregor, Dyke, Milton of Campsie, while Simmentals peaked at 21,000gns for Overhill House Guinness, from Richard McCulloch, near Armadale, West Lothian. He sold in a four-way split to Alan Thomson, Glasgow; Douglas Miller, Bridge House, Westfield, Bathgate and two others. Alasdair Houston’s Gretnahouse Lord, from Gretna, topped the Charolais breed, at 25,000gns selling to Brendan and Greg Feeney’s Bostonia herd, County Sligo. 

However, it was the Limousin sale at Carlisle that led the month, when Swalesmoor Liam from Danny Sawrij, made 30,000gns to Richard Harker, Grayrigg Hall, Kedall, and Matt and Craig Ridley, Haltcliffe.

Finlarg Tornado, from Robert and Hazel McNee, Over Finlarg, topped the Luing sale at Castle Douglas, when he made 17,000gns to Alasdair and David MacArthur, Nunnerie, Elvanfoot. And, on a more poignant note, Caledonian Marts’ last sale of Highland cattle at Oban, saw Angus Ruadh of Glengorm, top the trade at 8000gns for Tom Nelson, Glengorm, Mull. He went out to work on Inverinate Estate, Kyle of Lochalsh.

     Ampertaine Mozart was the highest priced beef animal sold at 100,000gns

Averages improve at Kelso Ram Sales 

GROSS takings hit a record breaking £3m for the first time, when 4452 rams averaged £710 per head – up rise £24 per head on the year and for 167 more. 

Bluefaced Leicesters again produced the lead average at £988 (+£44 on the year for 534), but it was the Texel breed that scooped the lead price when the shearling ram, Midlock You’re The One from Karen Wight’s Midlock flock, from Crawford, sold for £23,000 in a three-way split to John Elliot, Roxburgh Mains; Jonathan Watson, Bowsden Moor; and Mike and Melanie Alford, Foxhill Farm. 

The celebrations continued for the Wight family too when Allan, son Allan and his son Ben, sold the top priced Bluefaced Leicester, a shearling, at  £23,000.

Top priced lamb at £4800 was a Suffolk from  Gary Beacom, Lakeview.  

Ampertaine tops October bull sales 

The McKays’ Ampertaine Limousin herd was back in the money at Carlisle, in October, when they received 70,000gns for Amptertaine Magnum. Selling to Ian Hadley’s Gunnerfleet herd, was a bull bred from the Kype Sharon family and sired by the AI bull, Loosebeare Fantastic. 

United Auctions’ Bull Sales, at Stirling, also enjoyed a cracking trade with numerous five-figure sales and averages mostly up on the year and often for more sold.

There was also a new breed record achieved amongst the Salers, when a bull from Roy and Adam Crockett made 15,000gns. Superceding the two 12,000gns bulls, sold here in February was Bacardi Legend, purchased by the Martins’ Swinlees herd, Dalry. 

Leading the Angus trade was the overall champion, Linton Gilbertines President, from the trustees of the late Gordon Brooke’s Linton herd at Upper Huntlywood, Earlston. He went home with the Grays, of Ettrick, Selkirk, and the Orrs, at Halbeath, Dunfermline. 

It was, though, a sad day for the Lucas family when they dispersed their Cheeklaw Angus herd, from Duns, which saw two lots make 20,000gns. Their Cheeklaw Pride and her heifer calf, first sold for 20,000gns to Kevin McCoscar, Island Farm Herd, Co Tyrone, with Cheelaw Peru, a maiden heifer selling for the same money, to Albert De Cogan’s Mogeely herd, Co Cork. 

Beef Shorthorns hit a top of 12,000gns for the champion, Grovewood Jackson, from relatively new breeder, Chris Mallaber, purchased by the Marshall family’s Kincraig Estates, Lumphanan. Limousin bulls hit 11,000gns for the Dick family’s Ronick McKinley from Stirling, purchased by David Walker, Camregan, Girvan. Meanwhile, the Simmental breed sold bulls to 22,000gns for Clive Houldey’s Manor Park Hansome, purchased by Northern Ireland breeder, Garrett Behan, Cloneygowan, Ballyfin.

Simmental female records were smashed at the Hewlett family’s Sterling dispersal too, when the cow and calf outfit, Sterling Celia’s Fifi and Sterling Fifi’s Indigo made 22,000gns to Harte Farms, Co Monaghan. And later, setting a new female breed record of 28,000gns for a maiden heifer, was Sterling Bacardi’s Hawaii, purchased by the Borlase herd, Hertfordshire. 

Charolais bulls peaked at 12,000gns twice, to include Sportsmans Monarch, from the Boden family, which sold to Cornwall with PR and M Hooper, Trefawl, and Maerdy Magestic from Esmor Evans, Monfa, Mold, purchased by Colin Wight, Carwood, Biggar. 

     Ian Hunter, Dalchirla sold the top priced Blackface male and female at £75,000 and £12,000 respectively

Record setters

A BRITISH Blue bull from GW and K Williams, Lampeter, set a new Blue record at Carlisle, in May, when it sold for 24,000gns. An ET son of Tweeddale Ebony, he sold to TE Jones and Co, Bailea Farm, Powys.

There was a ‘Shockin’ Charollais record in July at Worcester too, when the tup lamb, Knockin Shockin, from Abbie Moseley, Knockin Hall, Oswestry, sold for 25,000gns. By Oakchurch Ruben, he was bought by Robert Gregory’s Edstaston flock, near Shrewsbury. 

With Beltex sheep commanding many of the top prices in the prime ring, demand for the breed also soared, with the main sale at Carlisle in August achieving a new record for a ram lamb at 27,000gns. Superceding the previous high of 25,000gns was Kingledores Crusader, from Richard and John Wood’s Kingledores flock, from Biggar. This ET bred from Kingledores Pearl and sired by Glantre Armani, was bought by Wade and Alison McCrabbe, for the Ardstewart flock in Donegal.

There were more records to come in October, when the Wights, of Midlock, set a new Bluefaced Leicester tup lamb high of £37,000. The sale, at Hawes, came for a son of the J6 Hewgill, which sold back up to Scotland with Jamie Pirie, Blarnavaid, and Andrew Campbell, Drimsynie.

Back among the cattle and Dexter Logan’s Blairlogan Highland fold from Stirling achieved a new calf record at Oban in October, when Katie Morag 13 of Blairlogan, a daughter of Logan of Muingairigh, realised 3200gns. She was purchased by Ron Riley, Chelmsford.  

Records were broken at the second Designer Genes sale of Hereford females at Shrewsbury, too, when Boomer Birch and Graham Brindley’s Sky High 1 Lâncome Lucy made 11,000gns. Highburn Rosie U166 from R Mawer, Woodhall Spa, also set a new high for an in-calf Hereford heifer at Newark, when she made 4500gns to A Carter of the Heathlands herd Norfolk. 

Best of the rest

Galloway bulls peaked at 5000gns on two occasions at the breed’s spring sale at Castle Douglas, in February. 
Louis of Balgray, from David and Rosemarie Cornthwaite, Balgray Hill, Lockerbie, was first to sell at this value, heading all the way to Germany. Later, Jim Robertson, Becks, Langholm, went to the same money for Xavi of Kilnstown, from Kilnstown Farms, Bewcastle.

Hill North Country Cheviots saw trade peak at £13,000 at Lairg, when a two-shear ram from Suisgill, Helmsdale, sold in a two-way split to the Elliots and Allens, of the Woodside and Stouphill flocks, respectively.

At Lockerbie, Messrs Bridgewater and Wood topped the hill types at £9000, while park types peaked at £5000 from Scott Davies’ Synton flock. 

South Country Cheviots reached £11,000 for a shearling from Norman and David Douglas, Catslackburn.