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Reserve Swale makes £3,100 at Hawes

IT was the reserve champion Swaledale that headed up the Swale and Herdwick offering at the Hawes Honey sale when the ewe from R.S. Harker and Son, Kendal, sold for £3,100.

The two-shear Grayrigg Hall ewe by the Bull and Cave Icon ram and in-lamb to a Hebblethwaite Hall tup sold to John Tully, Barnard Castle.

Mr Tully also bought Robbie Hallam's champion from his High Birkwith flock, Ribblesdale, for £2,000. Sired by the £105,000 Ghyll House, this gimmer sold in-lamb to a home-bred ram.

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Making £1,900 was a gimmer from Wayne and Karen Hutchinson, Coach House flock, Hawes, which sold to D.C. and K.L. Hutchinson, Barnard Castle. It was by a Trevor Blades and in-lamb to a Murton Hall.

Mr Hallam received a further £1,500 from Max Hutchinson for a 2023-born ewe in-lamb to the Ghyll House tup.

Young Jessica Harrison, Brotherilkeld, Cumbria, claimed the Herdwick champion ticket and top price of £2,200 with a 2023-born ewe by a home-bred sire and served by a Brockstones ram. It sold to Neil Marston, Cockermouth, along with several of the top prices lots.

These included the reserve champion,Ìý a 2021-born ewe from Andrew Harrison, Brotherilkeld, for £600. It is by a Cockley ram and in-lamb to a Bank ram.

AveragesÌý– Swaledale – Aged ewes, £1,358; gimmer shearlings, £1,280; Herdwick – Aged ewes, £485; gimmer shearlings, £460; gimmer hoggs, £410.

Auctioneers:ÌýHawes ²ÝÁñÉçÇø Auction Mart.

Friesian cow heads up Penrith sale

BRITISH Friesians met the best of the trade at the monthly sale of 60 dairy cattle at Penrith.

Leading at £3,200 was a second calver from R.W. and J. Bell, Kirkbride, which sold, giving 30kg, to Messrs Beard, Carlisle.

Messrs Bell's consignment also reached £3,000 for a cow and £2,950 for a heifer giving 27 litres having calved just 14 days prior.ÌýÌýMessrs Bell's run of six cashed in to average £2,683.

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Holstein Friesians consistently achieved £2,100 and above, peaking at £2,350 for a heifer from Skirwith Hall Farms, Penrith, which sold to Messrs Connel, Flimby.

In-calf females hit £2,000 twice for a duo of British Friesian cows from S. Jackson and Sons, Penrith.

Auctioneers:ÌýPenrith and District ²ÝÁñÉçÇø' Mart.

Cull cows make more than £4,000 per head

CAST cattle sold to a trade never seen before at Darlington where a British Blue cross cow from F. and R. Simpson, Quebec, topped the entry.

Weighing in at 952kg, it sold for £4,207?head or 442p/kg.

Not far behind was a 946kg Limousin heifer from W. and M. Knaggs and Sons, Sadberge, which made £4,029/head or 426p/kg.

Native-bred cows also sold well with a seven-year-old Aberdeen-Angus from C. Dawson, Ferryhill, selling for £2,971 while an entry from Mayfield Beef Shorthorns, Wolsingham, made 346p/kg.

Heading up the dairy-bred cows at £1,812/head and 260p/kg were Fleckviehs from Deerness Valley Dairy, Durham.

Auctioneers: Darlington ²ÝÁñÉçÇø Auction Mart.

Strong opening dairy sale at Carlisle

MILKING heifers averaged £2,680 at the first Border and Lakeland sale of 2026 at Borderway, where 10 animals sold for £3,000 or above.

A top price of 3,500gns was paid for Stowbeck Chase Mavis, a heifer bred from high production dams from Len and Chris Wilson, Skirwith Hall Farms, Penrith. Going back to an EX-rated Shottle cow, it sold to Messrs Turnbull, Penrith.

Messrs Wilson also secured the pre-sale championship with Stowbeck Chase Dewdrop, which was bred from a strong line of cows with production awards and large lifetime production. It made 3,300gns selling to Messrs Forshaw, Penrith.

The run of heifers from Messrs Wilson averaged £3,132 and included Stowbeck Sizzler Hilary, also at 3,300gns when sold to Messrs Turnbull.

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The Booth family sold six heifers from their Feizor herd, Lancashire, to average almost £2,900, and to a top of 3,200gns. Selling to Messrs Borland, Ayrshire, that was Feizor Doc S Delia.

Selling for 3,00gns to Mr Forshaw, Preston, was the winning senior heifer from Alan Cannon, Appleby. His Espland Dealmaker Melody goes back to several noted EX-rated dams, including one that produced 180-tonnes in its lifetime.

Also making 3,100gns when sold to Messrs Adams, Stranraer, was Errolston Max Tessie, a Red Rocks Mask Red daughter from B. and V. Davidson, Gretna.

AveragesÌý– 14 cows in-milk, £2,506.87; 79 heifers in-milk, £2,680.08; 2 heifer calves, £700.

Auctioneers:ÌýHarrison and Hetherington.

Limousins lead at Barnard Castle

A LIMOUSIN bull from Messrs Reed and Hill, Hexham, topped the entry of cattle at Barnard Castle when it sold for £2,900.

The 14-month-old was one of a run that also reached £2,880 twice as well as £2,820 three times.

Store steers reached £2,550 twice for the champion and reserve from the pre-sale show. Champion was a Limousin bullock from Messrs Teasdale, Bishop Auckland, while in reserve was another Limousin bullock, this time from C.R. Raine and Son, Middleton-in-Teesdale.

Messrs Raine also topped the heifer entry at £2,520 with a British Blue, while a Limousin from J.F. and F. Hutchinson, Barnard Castle, made £2,500.

The sale saw bulls average £2,366.47 with bullocks at £2,048.67 and heifers at £1,944.76.

The entry of 40 over-30-month cattle levelled at £1,996 or 283p/kg having sold to £2,958 for a Limousin from J.B. and J.A. Fenwick, Marwood, as well as 358p/kg for a Limousin from T.M. and A. Bellas and Son, Cross Lanes.

Auctioneers:ÌýC and D Auction Mart.

Aireburn Holstein heifer heads up Gisburn

A PEDIGREE heifer from G.B. Moorhouse's pedigree herd of Holstein Friesian's topped the Gisburn dairy offering at £3,400.

The Rager Red daughter from their Skipton-based Aireburn herd is backed by a string of Excellent-rated dams, and stood first in its class at the pre-sale show.

Messrs Moorhouse also sold a Sheland Parfect Lock daughter for £2,950.

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Close behind the sale leader of £3,350 was a Crushabull heifer bred from a Stantons Adorable dam from T. Cowell's Whitecarr herd, Kirkham.

Whitecarr Mitchell Andrew 3 sold for £2,980 giving 35kg as the three from Whitecarr averaged £3,020.

Pedigree cows sold to a top of £3,200 for the first-prize winner from A. Bretherton and Sons, Preston. The Nortonhill Sumerian-sired second calver changed hands giving 46kg.

Non-pedigree heifers reached £2,600 three times including for the first-place entry from G., E. and J. Donaldson, Middlesburgh, whose heifer sold giving 30kg. Also at £2,600 was a 27kg heifer from H.J. and K. Blackwell, Gargrave, and a 34kg heifer from R.W. and M. Walker, Bradford.

In-calf heifers sold to £2,480 for A.R. and C. Parkinson, Preston.

AveragesÌý– Pedigree calved heifers, £2,717; pedigree calved cows, £2,800; non-pedigree calved heifers, £2,109; in-calf heifers, £1,970.

Auctioneers:ÌýGisburn Auction Marts.