Ballymena
AT the annual show and sale of Mule ewe lambs through Ballymena Livestock Market, the entry of 2100 lambs levelled at £105.13, an increase of £3 per head on the year. 
A single show lamb from Seamus O’Kane, Carnlough, topped the entry at £200 followed at £190 per head for the third prize pen – as judged by Ayrshire’s Alan Sheenan – from Graham Loughery, Limavady. 

LEADING awards:

Mule ewe lambs – 1, J Mills, Larne, £146; 2, O Loughran, Cookstown, £165; 3, G Loughrey, Limavady, £190; 4, J Loughrey, Limavady, £155. 

LEADING prices:

Mule ewe lambs – S O’Kane, Carnlough, £200, £170; G Loughery Limavady, £190, £140; O Loughran, Cookstown, £165, £160, £150, £138, £135; T Wray, Carnlough, £155, £132; J Loughery, Limavady, £155; R Loughery, Limavady, £148; J Mills, Larne, £146; W Adams, Ballymena, £134, £132; D Woodburn, Broughshane, £132, £130; C Magill, Larne, £132; M Smyth, Limavady, £130; R Workman, Larne, £130. 

Lanark
SOME 3972 Scotch Mule and Texel ewes, gimmers and ewe lambs were forward for Lawrie and Symington’s opening sale of breeding sheep where Gary McDonald, Stobo Home Farm, judged the Mules at the pre-sale show. 
He awarded the red ticket among the gimmers to a pen from Crookboat which went on to sell for the equal top price of £168, a price matched by two pens of Mule gimmers from Nether Abington. 
In the ewe lamb section, first prize went to a pen from Lochlyoch which realised £122 per head, with another pen from the same home leading the section at £124. 
Ewes reached £97 for Scotch Mules from Wardhead. 
Overall, the 1338 Scotch Mule gimmers levelled at £144.16 with 289 Texel cross gimmers at £140.47, 1071 Scotch Mule ewe lambs at £88.97 and 603 ewes at £81.15.

LEADING awards: 

Scotch Mule gimmers – 1, Crookboat £168; 2, East Dykes £164; 3, Nether Abington £168. 
Scotch Mule ewe lambs – 1, Lochlyoch £122; 2, Shawhead £96; 3, Crookboat £96. 

LEADING prices:

Ewes – Scotch Mule – £97, £95, £92 Wardhead; £92, £91 Sornfallow; £87, £80 Fullarton; £86 Greenshields. Char X – £96 Westview. Tex X – £92, £88 Strichen Mains; £86 West Millrig. 
Gimmers – Scotch Mule – £168 (x2), £164 Nether Abington; £168, £164, £160 Crookboat; £168, £160, £158 Cloverhill; £164 Tollishill; £164, £160 Dykecroft; £164, £154 East Dykes; £162 (x2) Allanton; £152, £150 Cocklaw; £152, £150 Lupus. Tex – £165 Craighead; £164, £162 Nunnerie; £160, £144 Townhead; £154, £148 Strichen Mains; £154 Liscleugh. Chev Mule – £152 Hillhead. 
Ewe lambs – Scotch Mule – £124, £122, £118 Lochlyoch; £110, £100 Townfoot; £98 Skirling Mains; £96, £90 Tinnis; £96 Crookboat; £96 Shawhead; £95, £90 Nisbet; £95, £90 Dreva; £94 Greenfield. 

Dingwall
BREEDING sheep met a selective enquiry at Dingwall and Highland Marts, last week, at a sale which incorporated the annual offering of Highland and Islands Sheep Health Association (HISHA) accredited females. 
Averages dropped on the year in all sections as 581 gimmers levelled at £98.22 (-£2.72), with 311 ewes at £47.50 (-£4.74) and 472 ewe lambs at £63.72 (-£3.95). 
The sale peaked at £170 for a pair of Texel gimmers from Woodside Park, Ardersier, with ewes to £92 for a pen of Cheviot Mules from the dispersal from Fanblair Farm, Kiltarlity, and ewe lambs to £90 for a pen of Suffolk crosses from Muirton Mains, Muir of Ord. 

LEADING prices:

Gimmers – Tex – Woodside Croft, £165, £140. Tex X – Smerral Farm, Bower, £150, £125 (x2); Clamhan Lodge, Bonar Bridge, £140. Suff X – Smerral Farm, £150; Woodside Croft, £140. CHM – 1 Newmore, Muir of Ord, £148 (x2), £145 (x3); Tombreck, Dallas, £132. Mule – 1 Newmore, £135; Tombreck, £126. Cross – Fanblair Farm, £115. Aber X – Lower Geanies, Fearn, £100.     
Ewes – Suff X – Fanblair Farm, £72; 67 Balvraid, Dornoch, £53. Tex X – Fanblair Farm, £68; 12 Borve, Skeabost, £64; New House, Balvaird and Fanblair Farm, £55. Mule – 12 Borve, £50. BF – Fanblair Farm, £58; 12 Borve, £47. Chev – Sandamhor Farming, Isle of Eigg, £49, £48. 
Ewe lambs – Tex X – Achnamoine, Watten, £87; Springburn, £76; Tullyglens, Dunphail, £63. CHM – Wester Craiglands, Fortrose, £81; Tombreck £81, £80 (x2). Tex – New House, £72, £65 (x2). Mule – Invereen, Tomatin and Achnamoine, £70; Balvonie of Daviot, Daviot, £66. Belt X – Tullyglens, £65. BFL – Achnamoine, £60. Char X – Achnamoine, £56. 

Ayr
A SMALLER show of Blackface and Scotch Mule ewe lambs was forward for Craig Wilson's annual sale due to consignors keeping more for stock.
With fewer forward all types sold dearer on the year with overall average of £76.91 showing a rise of £1.62 compared to the 2017 sale. 
The entry of 376 Blackface ewe lambs reached £120 for a pen from J and W Kay and Son, Sclenteuch, which sold to Miss Michelle Wright, Ballymena, County Antrim. 
Mule ewe lambs were easily cashed with smaller, gimmering lambs selling to a top of £99 per head from M and F Burns, Glenside. The 906 head averaged £80.65 (-11p on the year). 
A mixed show of 1002 Mule gimmers were harder to sell and averaged £110.19 (-£9.69). These were topped at £134 per head for a pen from Messrs Craig and Son, Rankinston. 
Of the 320-strong Cheviot and Texel gimmers forward, Texels reached £200 for a pen from Andrew Paton and Co, Craig, while Cheviots hit £108 for a pen from A and J Wright, Pinmore Mains. 

LEADING prices:

Ewe lambs – BF – £120 Sclenteugh; £95, £90 Knockdon; £92, £90 Gass; £84 Knockeen. Mule – £99 Glenside; £94, £86 Shawhead; £90 (x2), £86 (x2) Garpel Farms; £87 (x2) Pinvalley; £87 High Woodston; £86 Shawhead; £85 (x2), £84 Craig; £83 (x2) Harplaw; £83 Fechan. Tex – £85, £84 Laigh Alticane. 
Gimmers – Mule – £134, £128 (x2), £126, £124 Rankinston; £130 (x2) Fortacres; £130 Caprington; £128, £126 Gowlands; £126 (x3) Glastron; £124 (x3) Barneil; £124 Dunjop. Char X – £120 Laigland. Chev – £108 Pinmore Mains; £102 Seaview. Rous – £86 Knockeen. 

Newton Stewart
BREEDING sheep were harder to sell on the year through Craig Wilson's sale, last week, where a pen of Mule gimmers from W Barrie, Barholm, topped the trade at £106 per head. 
Ewes lambs reached £85 for Mules from W Gemmell, Holm, while Aberfield cross Cheviot lambs sold to £80 from G Paterson, Kildarroch. 
Averages included 17 Mule gimmers at £105.50; 192 Mule ewe lambs, £73.67; 30 Aberfield cross ewe lambs, £80 and 26 Blackface ewe lambs, £50. 

LEADING prices:

Gimmers – Mule – £106, £96 Barholm. 
Ewe lambs – Mule – £85, £76 Holm, Kirkcowan; £84 Bents; £83, £81, £76 Gass, Kirkcowan. Aberf X – £80 Kildarroch. BF – £50 Little Tongue. 

Forfar
MARK THOMSON, Tillyrie, was the pre-sale judge of Mule and Cheviot Mule gimmers at Lawrie and Symington's sale on Tuesday, where trade peaked at £225. 
The champion pen of Mules from David Black, Minard, realised £138 while the best of the Cheviot Mules were from SK Knox, North Balloch. Top price in this section was £148 from Over Finlarg.
Leading the gimmer trade at £225, however, were Texels from Tullywhanland. Top priced ewe lambs at £85 were Cheviot Mules from Ashmore and Strone. 

LEADING awards:

Mule gimmers – 1, D Black, Minard; 2, R McNee Ltd, Over Finlarg; 3, John Morrison and Sons, Margie. 
Cheviot Mule gimmers – 1, SK Knox, North Balloch; 2, Over Finlarg; 3, Ashmore and Strone Ltd.

LEADING prices:

Gimmers – Tex – £225, £222, £212, £210 Tullywhanland. Tex X – £198, £195 Minard; £152 West Jordanstone; £150 Over Finlarg. Tex X Chev Mule – £152 Minard. Chev Mule – £148 Over Finlarg; £148, £142, £140 Ashmore and Strone Ltd. Mule – £140, £128 Over Finlarg; £138 Minard; £138, £132 Middlehill; £122 Carroch. Chev – £108 Newton. 
Ewes – Chev Mule – £120 Huntingfaulds. Chev – £90, £50, £75 Kinnaird. 
Ewe lambs – Chev Mule – £85, £80 Ashmore and Strone Ltd. Tex – £69 Whitehills.