SHEEP WITH LAMBS AT FOOT

The weekly sale of Sheep With Lambs at Foot saw young breeding sheep in big demand and eagerly bid for. Older splitting families were however, not just as dear on the week. The consignment of shearlings from G & KM Atkinson, Colby saw Texels with twins sell to £302, with Mules with Texel twin lambs achieving £285. The consignment of Mule shearlings with Texel twins sold to £285, £275 twice and £270 from J & T Hunter, Sedbergh. Aged Continental ewes with twin lambs sold to £220 from RA Gibbons, Flookburgh, with other Continental ewes and twins selling to £220 from W & J Penny, Kirby-in-Furness. This week saw more hill sheep being sent to market; with Swaledale ewes with twins selling to £145 and £140 from H Cook, Grange-over-sands.

Don’t forget there is no sale of sheep with lambs at foot next Tuesday, as the Annual Show and Sale of Hoggs with Lambs at Foot Followed by Dry Hoggs and the weekly Sale of Sheep With Lambs at Foot takes place on Thursday 13th May. Over 500 families have been pre-entered, with more welcome.

SPRING LAMBS

The weekly sale of Spring Lambs at North West Auctions J36, saw an increased entry of 153 forward, selling to a flying trade. There was an overall market average of 358p/kg. The SQQ of 368 saw lambs weighing between 32-39kg averaging a very impressive 385p/kg. All Spring Lambs forward averaged £147.93.

50kg Suffolk lambs sold to a top of £172 from JA & JA Harper, Killington this was followed by other heavy weight Suffolks to £170 from Helen Newton, Levens and £168 from JN &DJ Bowes, Crook. Texel lambs sold to £164 from Helen Newton with others to £160 from WW & D Boow, Millom and £159 from W Garnett & Son, Milnthorpe. Beltex lambs sold to £158 from HR & KA Hodgson, Barbon. Best quality lambs sold around the 400p/kg mark and topped at 414p/kg for a pen of eight Beltex cross lambs from RW & SA Nicholson, Lupton. Selling to 405p/kg and 395p/kg were Beltex lambs from JA & J Harper, Killington. Light weight lambs met with a large demand, with 32kg Continental lambs selling to £130 or 406p/kg from JA & J Harper. All specification of lambs are required next week, as more companies move onto Spring Lambs.

PRIME HOGGS

What a difference a week makes, with the quality and finish of hoggs far better than previous weeks. There was an entry of 816 hoggs forward with an overall market average of 288p/kg, with handy weighted hoggs averaging 295p/kg. Handy weighted Continental hoggs regularly selling between 315p/kg and 340p/kg with better types selling beyond that. Best Horned and Herdwick hoggs sold around the 300p/kg mark and more.

The consignment of heavy weight hoggs from DM & D Cook, Ulverston twice sold Suffolks to £159 and Texels to £151. Heavy weight Suffolks sold to £158 from Helen Newton, Levens. Blue Texel hoggs sold to £156 from GM & J Jackson, Little Eccleston with Beltex hoggs achieving £155 from PD & M Mason, Burton-in-Kendal. Plenty of pens of Continental hoggs selling in excess of the £140 mark. Cheviot hoggs peaked at £144 from JE Atkinson, Ulverston with others selling to £140 from GM & A Jackson, Little Eccleston.

Horned hoggs sold to a top of £138.50 for twenty-four 44kg Scotch Black Faced hoggs from GM & A Jackson. Herdwick hoggs peaked at £120 from GM & A Jackson, with pens of Swaledale hoggs selling to £120 three times from the same good home.

CAST SHEEP

A bigger entry of ewes were forward today with 450 passing through the ring, with all ewes being £10 dearer on the week. Texels once again led the way selling to £155 from MJ Waller, Lupton with others selling to £151 from RW & SA Nicholson, Lupton, with many of the best Texel ewes selling around the £140 plus mark, with all Texels averaging £121.

Suffolk ewes topped 3 times at £150 from E Needham, Stainton, RW & SA Nicholson, Lupton and GB Holt, Lancaster. With Suffolks having an impressive average of £138.

A great run of Masham ewes from Gibson & Berry, Endmoor sold to a top of £133 with another full pen selling to £127. Mule ewes would be the sharpest trade of the day, topping at £129 from WB Kellet, Preston with others selling to £128 from TMW & H Hodgson, Lowick with many Mule ewes selling at the £120 plus mark, with medium types selling around the £100 mark and with an overall average of £104.

Hill ewes were keenly bid for once again, with Cheviots selling to £139 from MJ Waller, Lupton who also sold a full pen to £135. Rough Fells from the Fishwick Bros, Longsleddale sold to £123 with others selling at £110 from W & J Penny, Kirkby in Furness. Dalesbreds sold to £109 from Gibson & Berry, Endmoor.

Strong Swaledale ewes were a good trade topping at £106 three times from RS & BA Harker, Holme, WJ & LA Barker, Arkholme and MW & PA Rollason, Meathop.

Cast tups were the strongest trade seen for some time at J36 with Suffolks selling to £230 from E Needham, Stainton, Texels topping at £216 from HR & KA Hodgson, Barbon and Charollais to £198 from NJ Strickland & Son, Whinfell. Hill rams sold to £188 for Teeswaters from JA Bennett, Longsleddale. Cheviots sold to £150 from SW Atkinson & Son, Crook with Swaledales to £126 from JW Hargreaves, Woodland.