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STORE CATTLE PRESS - WEDNESDAY 25TH APRIL 2018

Skipton Spring cattle shows well supported Skipton Auction Mart’s pedigree British Blue cattle showcase was staged alongside the fortnightly Wednesday store and breeding cattle sale, which attracted another solid turnout of 848 head, with large entries in all departments and a fast selling trade throughout. (Wed, Apr 25) It also featured Spring shows for store cattle and beef feeding cows. In the former, judged by Brad Thompson, of Middleton, Pickering, the red rosette-winning British Blue-cross heifer came from mart regular Brian Lund, from Walshaw, Hebden Bridge.

 

It also featured Spring shows for store cattle and beef feeding cows. In the former,  judged by Brad Thompson, of Middleton, Pickering, the red rosette-winning British Blue-cross heifer came from mart regular Brian Lund, from Walshaw, Hebden Bridge.
 
His home-bred 13-month-old, by a Welsh-bred sire from Rhys Millichap’s Rhymill herd, and the second calf of a Limousin-cross cow, sold for the day’s leading heifer price of £1,400 to John Wood in Trawden. Picking up second and third prizes were the Fawcet family, from Drebley, with Blue-cross heifers both sold at £1,250.
 
The beef-bred feeding cows show attracted 55 entries, and with some nice pure-breds among leaner cross-bred cows there was a larger company of buyers ringside. The three rosette winners did best on price, though in reverse order.
 
Trade topped at £1,460 for the third prize winner, a young British Blue cow from John and Gill Huck in Hubberholme, with the runner-up, another Blue from L Driver & Son, of Oakenshaw, making £1,450, and the class winner, a Limousin from Heywood’s Paul Fletcher, netting £1,350. The section achieved an overall selling average of £972 per head.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  An exceptional turnout of 222 young feeding bulls, with vendors released from lambing and a ring full of eager buyers, saw a total of 19 bulls under 12-months-old sell for over £1,200 to a top of £1,290 and the overall average for this grade was up £40 to stand at £1,028. The top individual call was £1,390 for a Limousin-cross.
 
Back in the store cattle lines, the entry of 546 head attracted increased bullock numbers, with buyers arriving from far and wide to make a start on their summer grazing requirements. Yearlings were the strongest trade seen for some time, while heifers found new homes at prices ranging from £1,050 to £1,250, with some exceptional sorts up to £1,400.
 
As usual for the time of year, some larger runs of matched grazing cattle also found a keen ringside. Among many eye-catchers were Tom Boothman, of Linton, with a pen of six Galloway-cross-Limousin bullocks at £1,340 each and another pen of three making more at £1,460. Stuart Verity, of Whirewell also sold five separate pens of 18-month-old British Blue bullocks up to £1,210.
 
All but one of the 11 breeding cattle outfits on parade sold into four figures, peaking at £2,100 for a Limousin-cross heifer with Limousin-cross bull calf at foot from James and Deborah Ogden in Austwick, claimed by a Welsh buyer.