Borders ram sales beat £3m barrier for first time
A successful day at Kelso saw the annual ram sales gross more than £3 million for the first time ever.
Bluefaced Leicesters enjoyed the best average, with 493 shearlings levelling out at £1,009, while 41 lambs averaged £737. Texels, however, commanded the majority of top prices on the day, selling to £23,000 for one from Karen and Allan Wight, Midlock, Crawford. Overall, 857 registered Texel shearlings averaged £916, while 145 lambs leveled out at £569.
Making the big money was a shearling ram by a home-bred son of the 18,000gns Sportsmans Unbeatable, out of a ewe by Douganhill Monarch. A second prize winner at the Scottish Texel Club show in July, he sold in a threeway split, to John Elliot, Roxburgh Mains, Kelso, Jonathan Watson, Bowsden Moor, Berwick Upon Tweed, and Mike and Melanie Alford, Foxhill Farm, Cullompton, Devon.
The Campbell family from Rosebrough, Chathill, Alnwick, earned a top of £9,000 – their best price in 39 years selling at Kelso – for a Texel shearling from their Thrunton pen. Sired by Forkins Viagra, this one was knocked down to Jeff Aiken, for the Procters flock at Tatham Hall, Lancaster. Matching that price, later in the sale, Steven Renwick, Glenrath, Peebles, sold to a top of £9,000 from his Craig Douglas consignment. His son of Haddo Whisky Galore sold to AE Williams & Son, Folley Bank, Clun.
Making his best Kelso price, Iain Minto, Townhead, Dolphinton, sold to £8,000 for his pen number one, a shearling son of the Kelso-bought Scrogton Vulcan. He went in a twoway split, to Prof Penny, Harehead, Cranshaws, Duns, and Neil Harvey, Blackadder Mains, Duns.
At £7,000, the best from Jonathan Watson, Bowsden Moor, was the show champion in Ring 5, by Haymount Vava Voom. He sold to John Scott, Fearn Farm, Tain, Easter Ross.
The Wight family, from Midlock, secured the best Bluefaced Leicester price, of £12,000, for a shearling son of a £34,000 Redgate sire. He sold to Jack Kay, Hartside Farm, Lauder.
At £10,000 was a shearling from T Dick & Son, Hamildean, Peebles, bought by Messrs Lauchry from Northern Ireland, while M& C Drummond, Cassington Farms, Maybole, sold a shearling for £7,000 to Barry Nichols, Devon.
Suffolks led at £4,800, for a lamb from Gary Beacom, Lakeview Farm, Fivemiletown, Co Tyrone, which went to DJ Harvey, Erwbryn, Powy. Overall, 290 registered Suffolk ram lambs sold to average £813, while 232 shearlings leveled out at £473.
Beltex peaked at £3,200 for a shearling ram from the Buckle family, Buckles Farm, Kirkby. Buyer was JM Hall, Skipton. Some 226 Beltex shearlings averaged out at £741, with nine lambs averaging £490.
Dutch Texels also sold to £3,200, for one from P Guiry & Son, Glanton Town Farm, Alnwick, to Messrs Jardine, Upper Hardland.
Charollais tups sold to £1,700, and averaged £491 for 183 shearlings, while 23 lambs made an average of £380.
Best in the crosses was £1,800 for a Beltex cross shearling from Stuart Wood, Woolhillock, Westhill, which went to Glen Almond Farms, Perth. They averaged £566 for 577 shearlings, while nine lambs levelled at £326.
Unregistered Suffolks and Texels also sold well, with 418 Suffolk shearlings averaging £667, and 645 Texel shearlings selling to average £635.
“Bluefaced Leicesters enjoyed the best average, with 493 shearlings levelling out at £1,009”