| 2013-09-03 |    |
British Native and Rare Breeds Take Centre Stage at
CCM Skipton
CCM Skipton’s annual Rare & Native Stock Breeders Auctions of rare, minority and traditional breeds of cattle, sheep, goats and pigs attracted a bumper turnout of 718 native and rare breed sheep, 164 store and breeding cattle, 38 goats, nine pigs and two mares with foals at foot.
Huge crowds, both breed enthusiasts – some of whom had travelled long distances - and members of the public keen to see something unusual at their local auction mart, were again in attendance for the yearly highlight, which featured a vast diversity of the UK’s rare and native breed animals.
James Baker with his CCM Skipton Hebridean shearling ewe champion.
The championship in the native breed sheep classes fell to a Hebridean shearling ewe from a pen presented by James Baker, who has a smallholding in Tadcaster. His victor made 60 guineas, with a breed high of 100gns for a ram from C Shevelan, of Trawden, who was also responsible for the top price North Ronaldsay ewe at 60gns.
James Baker with his CCM Skipton Hebridean shearling ewe champion and Lyn Arrowsmith with her Manx Loaghtan reserve champion. Centre is show judge Darrell Pilkington, of York.
The reserve championship
fell to a Manx Loaghtan from Lyn Arrowsmith, of Raskelf, near York,
with the same breeder also responsible for the top price Badger
Faced ewe lamb at 82gns.
Dorsets from John Norcross, of Cononley, achieved four top breed
prices – a 170gns ewe, 115gns ewe lamb, 95gns gimmer shearling
and 92gns ram lamb. Mr Norcross also had the top price Suffolk-cross
gimmer lamb at £64.
White Faced Woodland prices peaked at 180gns for a ram from R&P
Baker Farms in Lakenheath, Suffolk, with Kerry Hill entries topping
at 120gns for an ewe from V Markendale, of Millom in Cumbria.
The pick of the Ryelands was a 100gns shearling ram from A&G
Pink, of Nether Poppleton, York, while GM&J Robinson, of Fellbeck,
Harrogate, presented two top breed prices – a Jacob gimmer shearling
at £100 and a Badger Faced gimmer shearling at £80.
Margaret Parkin with the first prize Shetland pen.
Michael and Margaret Parkin, of Preston, presented the first prize Shetlands, sold at 40gns, with a breed high of 45gns for an ewe lamb from A&J Winstanley, of Holcombe, Bury.
Herdwick
ewes sold
to a high of 115gns for a shearling gimmer from a pen consigned
by Ian and Angela Grisedale, of Crooklands, Kendal, with local
breeder Sam Booker, of Cowling, also selling a Herdwick ewe at
56gns.
Gotland ewe lambs peaked at 50gns for an entry from Scottish Borders
breeders R&N Gibb, of St Boswells. Black Welsh ram lambs sold
to 45gns from J Wood, of Oldham, and Welsh Badger Face shearling
rams to 38gns from the Countess of Swinton.
In the goat section, nannies and kids sold to a high of £180 for
a submission by R Holmes, of Oxenhope. Store goats made to £85
for an entry from M Starkings, of Great Yarmouth, while pigmy goats
sold to £70, this from JW&DI Wainhouse, of Esholt, who also
achieved another top price in the pig classes with a store sow
again sold for £70.
The pick of the store boars was an £80 entry from W&M Barry,
of Stranraer, Wigtownshire, while Joe and Patsy Hodgson, of Skipton,
sold a fell pony with foal at foot at 295gns.
Stores and stirks strong
In the standalone breeding cattle classes, there was the biggest Saturday entry to date of stirks and store cattle.
Beef Shorthorn bulling heifers from Alan
Greenwood, of Trawden, sold well to a high of £1,470, while the
pick of the Belted
Galloway entries was a cow and calf combination
from P Atkinson, of Briercliffe, that achieved £820.
Stirk trade was notably strong. Bull stirks sold to a high of £740
for a Saler from Wayne Tomlinson, of Trawden, with a Dexter breeding
bull from D Poulter, of Risplith, also performing well at £460.
Steer stirks sold to a high of £835 for a British
Blue from G Hardiman,
of Burnley, with Aberdeen
Angus and Swedish Red entries from Stainforth’s
Richard Caton noteworthy when both achieving £530. Hereford and
Galloway entries sold to joint highs of £460.
Heifer stirk prices peaked at £760 for a Charolais, with Herefords selling to £675 and Sussex to £650.
