Blackface gimmers hit a new record high at Lanark today when Hugh and Alan Blackwood, Auldhouseburn, Muirkirk, sold a pen of 10 at £1500 apiece. The pen, by a variety of sires, including a 65,000 Auldhouseburn, a £26,000 Crossflatt, a £28,000 Dyke and a£20,000 Auldhouseburn, sold to John Pirie, Blarnavaid, Drymen.
Auldhouseburn record breaking gimmers
But despite this record breaking top price the average, in-line with many breeding sheep sales this autumn, fell back by £21.18 on the year, levelling at £154.07.
Second best of the sale was another pen from the Muirkirk parish, this time from John Murray, Crossflatt. This pen of seven sold to Robert McInnes and Stuart Heads, Aitkenhead, Fenwick, for £690/head.
Eight gimmers from Mary McCall-Smith, Connachan, then made £310 each, to L McEldowney, Northern Ireland, while at the same price, John Campbell and Sons, Glenrath, sold 10 to John Harkin, Northern Ireland, and another 10 at £305 to L McEldowney.
Following that a pen of 10 reached £250 for T Renwick and Sons, Blackhouse, selling to Mr O’Mullan, Northern Ireland, with a pen of 14 from L Welsh, Glenconnar, making £245 a head to Messrs Stewart, Crookboat. Also at £245 were six from J and J Murray, Crossflat, to R McInnes and S Heads, Aitkenhead.
J Wight and Sons, Midlock, sold 10 at £240 to J Blackwood and Sons, Dalblair, with 10 from Connachan making the same money to £240 to B Devine, Northern Ireland.
The ewes were topped by Mary McCall Smith, Connachan, Crieff, selling a pen of 17 at £420 to Andy Hunter, Northern Ireland. Next best came from the Campbells, Glenrath, with their pen of 10 which sold to their shepherd, Gordon McDougal for £310.
Top price ewes from Connachan
Others included a pen of 25 from J Wight and Sons, Midlock, which made £240 to Ewen Macmillan, Lurg, while A Paton and Co, Craig, sold a pen of 24 for £230 to J B Pate and Son, Toxside.
Making £230/head were 25 ewes from Archie MacGregor, Allanfauld, which sold to J Blackwood and Sons, Dalblair; and two lots of 10 from T D Renwick, Williamhope, which sold to R McInnes and S Heads, Aitkenhead, and J Campbell, Succothmore.
Making £215 was a pen of 25 from J Wight and Sons, Midlock, to John Harkin, Loughash, while W Ramsay and Sons, Milnmark, sold 25 at £205/head, to Andy Hunter, Northern Ireland.
In total, 4166 ewes were sold, 129 less than last year, to average £81.62, a drop of £16.76 on last year’s trade. (Lawrie and Symington).
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