The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
North Country Cheviots fetch top price at store lamb sale
DINGWALL: Day of steady trade but average down slightly on last year’s figure
Lambs met a steady trade at Dingwall and Highland Marts’ first major store lamb sale of the season yesterday.
Mart manager Ian Tolmie said a total of 13,251 lambs went under the hammer to an average of £50.91, which is back slightly on last year’s average of £52.54.
“The sale was better than expected,” said Mr Tolmie.
“Lambs from most areas were shown in good bloom, selling at rates similar or slightly ahead of last year. Around 95% of sellers would have been happy.”
He said smaller lambs, in particular those that didn’t grow so well due to the harsh weather in the spring, had struggled and the usual contingent of Welsh buyers to take these lambs south for fattening were not there due to shortages of grass down south.
“We had a lot of regular buyers there from Aberdeenshire, Dumfries and Cumbria,” added Mr Tolmie.
The top price of the day was £90 a head for a pen of 60 North Country Cheviot ewe lambs put forward by Ken Sinclair of Dingwall.
Other top prices included £70 twice for North Country Cheviot wedders. First was a pen from W Ross of Edderton, and second was an entry from Messrs Mackenzie of Park Farm, Strathpeffer.
Suffolk crosses sold to £79 for an entry from Park Farm, while Texel crosses sold to £84 for a pen from Ewan Simpson, of Edderton.
Beltex crosses had a top price of £74.50 for a pen from Messrs Simpson of Tullyglens, Dunphai; and cross lambs sold to a top of £67 for a consignment from RH Matheson, of Dornoch.
Lastly, Cheviot mules sold to a top of £65.50 for some from John Mackenzie of Rogart, and Charollais crosses to £65 for a pen from Andrew Smith of Dunlichity, Farr.