Sales Reports

The first sale to disperse the “Combebow” herd of pedigree Ayrshires was held on behalf of M/s A J & S G Loud & Son, Northdown Farm, Lewdown. The top price was £2152 for Combebow Sunset 7 VG 85, a second calver sired by Roses Chatter T Red.  She had calved in March and was sold giving 41 kgs. The Ayrshires sold to a great demand with Combebow Lucinda 2nd VG 85 and Combebow Polka Dot 4th VG 85 both second calvers sired by Lord of The Ring selling for £1840. The overall average was £1454.

The Coloured Breeds Sale at Beeston Castle Auction Mart took place on 27th July.  Ayrshires opened the sale and the top price was 1700 gns for a very fresh heifer from Alan Coutts & Sons, Knutsford. Their Knutsford Flo 167th was a daughter of McCornick Nelson and had only been calved just over a week. She was sold to P Jeffries, Welshpool. Another heifer from the same home by Hunnington Mandella sold for 1400 gns to R Tipping & Son, Byley, Middlewich.

One of the biggest crowds seen at Borderway for some time assembled to see Robert Stevenson disperse a selection of his renowned Changue herd. The Changue herd is now the longest established pedigree Ayrshire herd in the UK going back to the start of the 20th Century. Animals from all the top families went under the hammer and included the Celandines, Milkmaids and Pollys.


Changue Celandine 141

The Breed record average for milkers was smashed when one of the finest herds of dairy cattle ever to grace Carlisle’s Borderway Mart was dispersed on Wednesday 4th November. The “BARR” herd of pedigree Ayrshires established in 1919, is the oldest registered herd in existence today and has always been in the Kirkpatrick family’s expert hands.

The dispersal of the Meikle Laught herd owned by David Carson took place on Friday 16th October 2009 at Borderway, Carlisle. In total just over four hundred animals were sold to buyers from all over the British Isles. The herd had doubled in size in the past three years with purchases of mainly commercial Holstein cattle; they sold to a top of 2,000 gns. This was for freshly calved heifer giving over 30 kgs with a fantastic udder; she was purchased by Healey Farms, Healey Home Farm, Riding Mill, Northumberland.

Clean sweep for Cuthill Towers at first National Sale with the top price of 2400gns going to Syke

The first Northern National Ayrshire sale took place on Wednesday 14th October 2009 and a very high quality entry ensured a packed ring side were there to witness the first National though the fact that two large dispersals of over 600 top class Ayrshires and Red & Whites are being held in the next two weeks definitely took the gloss of the trade especially for the Red & Whites.

A top call of 1820 gns was achieved at Hamfield Farm, Berkeley when Paul and Janet Andrews dispersed their organic herd under the Voyce Pullin hammer.

Lot 21, Parham Valerie 7 a fresh September second calverby Edenvale Frontpiece and tracing back to Ashmansworth blood reached 1820 guineas, £1911 selling to M R Tizzard, Dorset.

M/s Tizzard bid strongly throughout the day purchasing almost 1/3rd of the herd including Lot 31 Parham Misty 2 due early November with her second at 1620 gns.

The April Pedigree Dairy Sale at Borderway on Wednesday 15th April included a great variety of good quality Ayrshires.

The show was ably judged by Michael Dixon from Beech House, Hayton, Aspatria. The first prize Red & White was Cuthill Towers Freds Lady H2 81 sold for 2050gns, one of a very good consignment from Arthur Lawrie’s noted Cuthill Towers herd, which were making up to 2400gns. Also at 2400gns was one of an equally sought after batch of fresh heifers from the well bred Halmyre herd of the Davidson family.

The majority of the Ayrshire breeders in the UK and Ireland travelled to Borderway on the 11th March to see the famous Knockenjig herd dispersed. It had been a much anticipated event since it was first advertised and the enormous crowd witnessed one of the greatest sales in living memory, a fitting tribute to David and Rosemary Dickie for their years of dedication to the breeding and management of the Knockenjig herd

Town of Monaghan Co-op again kindly sponsored our show and sale in Kilrea. Numbers were again low but considering the milk price dropped to 16 pence per litre, trade was reasonable. Sidney Galbraith was judge and chose as champion Ravenhill May 40, a third calving Ravenhill Enterprise daughter from John Suffern. She went on to make 1350 gns, but was beaten to top price by the reserve champion, Ardmore Yellow Kate 18 by Cuthill Towers Autumn Gold from John Hunter which made 1480 gns.