Dumfries

A SCARCITY of prime cattle saw two animals sell to 240p per kg for a Limousin cross heifer from J Jardine, Yett, at C and D Auction Marts' weekly sale at Dumfries which saw the remaining 71 OTM cattle meet a stead trade.

Beef cows (51) averaged 96.9p per kg selling to 156p for a Limousin from Edingham and £1000 per head for the same from Herries. Dairy types which levelled at 80p, peaked at 195p for a Holstein from Brownrigg and £951.30 for the same from Kirktonfield.

Top price amongst the 746 prime lambs was 200p per kg for lightweight lambs from Hill or £92 for heavyweight Beltex from Cleughbrae, while a sharper trade for the 537 cast ewes peaked at £93.50 for Texels from Barbush.

Cockermouth

TOP price amongst the cattle at Mitchells' prime sale of 39 cattle and 2405 sheep was 209.5p per kg and £1294.49 per head paid for a Limousin bull, from J Pattinson and Son, Uldale Hall, Wigton

A larger entry of cast cows sold to 237.5p for a Limousin from Riggingill and £880.22 for the same from Elva Plain, while Holsteins hit a top or 100.5p from Barnyard and £706.23 from Watson Hill.

Texels led the prime sheep at 257.8p and £116 per head for lambs from Low Garth while cast ewes from Woodside Cottage topped the ewes at £111.

Forfar

LIMOUSINS led the way at Lawrie and Symington's sale of 34 prime cattle and four cull cows, taking the top four prices, where bullocks averaged 242p per kg and heifers cashed in at 234p.

Seven bullocks sold to 248p for a 608kg entry from Gask, with the same home selling the top gross priced bullock with a 636kg stot at £1558.20.

The 27 heifers peaked at 268p for a 532kg lot from Nethermyres and £1500.79 for a 673kg entry from Stoneyhill.

A Limousin from Meikle Tullo led the four cows at £1050 and 123p per kg.

Nethermyres also led the price per kg section amongst the 602 prime lambs at 200p and £88 with others from Gathercauld also making £88. The overall average was 165p with the SQQ at 174.5p.

Texels from Balcormo topped the 122 cast ewe and ram trade at £109.

Thainstone

PRIME cattle values improved on the week at Aberdeen and Northern Marts sale of 41 head where 14 bullocks averaged 210.8p (+9.7p on the week) and 14 heifers levelled at 216p (+7.6p).

Bullocks peaked at 223p for a 620kg Charolais cross from Waterside, Alford, and £1413.70 for a 670kg Aberdeen Angus cross from Nether Aden, Mintlaw. Leading the heifers at 239p was a 550kg Limousin cross from Burnend, Forglen with a 640kg Charolais cross from Waterside making £1395.20.

Young bulls (five) averaged 142.2p and sold to 187p for a 680kg Limousin from Doonby, Glassel and £1297.20 for a 920kg Aberdeen Angus from Mains of Tonley, Alford.

The cast trade in contrast slipped 7.3p on the week, with 226 beef cows cashing in at 110.3p having sold to 154.6p per kg for a 705kg Limousin from Corsairtly, Keith and £1350 for a 1,030kg Charolais from Messiegate, Tankerness.

The co-operative also sold 647 prime lambs to average 158.7p (-2.4p), which peaked at184.2p per kg for 38kg Continentals from Auchness, Dallas and £80 for 63kg Texels from Pittenkerrie, Glassel. The SQQ for 321 was 167p (-1p).

Stirling (Cale)

TOP price at Caledonian Marts' sale of 81 prime bullocks, heifers and young bulls and 115 OTM cattle was £1637 paid for a Limousin heifer from D Dickinson, Brockwoodlees, Canonbie, or 262p per kg for a similarly bred heifer from W Dandie and Sons, Learielaw, Broxburn.

Bullocks sold to 248p for a British Blue from JT Owen, Easterton, Kirkintilloch and to £1489 for a Limousin from Learielaw.

Leading the young bull entry at 215p and £1612 was a Limousin from R Graham and Son, Airthrey Kerse, Bridge of Allan.

A mixture of OTM cattle forward saw beef types average 107p having sold to 198p and £1430 for a Limousin from Ferguson Bros, Gillandersland, Linlithgow.

Dairy cows averaged 79p selling to 106p and £820 from Messrs Patterson and Sons, Stenhouse, Kirkcaldy and to £820 for the same beast.

On Tuesday, the firm sold 2342 prime lambs, ewes and rams where a large show of heavy lambs (838) sold similar to the previous week with lighter types again in demand. The overall average for 1842 head was 163p (+0.6p on the week).

Top price was £96 per head paid for Beltex and Texel crosses from P McIntosh, Strageath and C Smith, South Flanders, respectively. Strageath also led the price per kg section at 209p for 44kg Beltex.

Texels let the entry of 500 cast ewes and rams with a ewe from R Wardrop, Easter Coates, making £84, while G Harley, Craiglaw sold a tup at £96

Stirling (UA)

MORE than 6000 prime sheep comprising of 4427 prime lambs and 1661 ewes and rams were forward for United Auctions' sale at Stirling where lambs averaged 165.37p per kg.

Beltex led the trade at £90.50 for lambs from Harviesmailing and 210.00p per kg from St Mungoes.

Texels topped the cast section with ewes from Kipperoch making £100 and rams from Lude selling for £120.00.

Longtown

BELTEX from Jimmy and Christine Taylor, Easter Ochtermuthill, topped C and D Auction Mart's prime sale of 3885 lambs at 283p per kg and £113 per head at Longtown where the overall average worked out at 175.7p with the SQQ at 182.5p (+7p on the week).

Another massive entry of 4818 cast ewes and rams saw trade in general dearer for hill ewes, with the best Beltex and Texel ewes selling at a premium. Top price was £158 paid Texel ewes from M and MA Ridley, Haltcliffe, Wigton, while Texel ewes from Ochtermuthill made others to £156.

Ayr

ON MONDAY, Craig Wilson sold 2221 prime and cast sheep, where the entry of 1664 lambs saw lean types dearer on the week to produce an overall average of 167.3p and an SQQ for 1004 of 174.9p.

Top price was £94 paid for heavy Beltex crosses from T Hainey, South Cairnweil, and 207.9p per kg for light Texel crosses from R Hazel, Beoch (Maybole).

The 557 cast sheep sold dearer on the week, peaking at £133 for a Texel ewe from Messrs Robb Chalmerston while rams sold to £124 for a Suffolk from R Goldie, Harpercroft. Overall, 211 light ewes averaged, £35.61; 331 heavy ewes, £60.24 and 15 rams levelled at £71.03.

Tuesday's sale of seven dairy cattle and 197 prime and cast cattle saw a buoyant trade with milk cattle peaking at £1980 for a Holstein heifer from RH Chalmers, Little Ittington.

Clean cattle (13) saw heifers sell to 256p per kg or £1463.20 for a Limousin from Messrs Young, Girvan Mains, with bullocks peaking at 225p and £1136.25 from Boreland Farm.

Leading the 183 head sold through the rough ring at £1180 or 162.8p per kg was a Charolais cow from Messrs Young, Brownfield, with dairy types peaking at £930 for a Holstein from Messrs Briggs, Kilhenzie and 119.5p from Messrs Simpson, Culscadden. Overall, 69 beef cows averaged 101.7p with 101 dairy types at 80.1p.

Lanark

Heifers peaked at 270p per kg on two occasions while bullocks sold to 252p at Lawrie and Symington's prime sale of 125 cattle on Monday which included 2028 lambs and 665 cast ewes.

Messrs Taylor, Heatheryhall and D Dickinson, Brookwoodlees, both achieved 252p for Limousin heifers, while a similarly bred bullock from A Lindsay, Kepscaith, led the bullock entry.

Top prices of £1526 and £1541 from Brockwoodlees and Collielaw, were paid for heifers and bullocks respectively.

Cast cows sold to 133p and £955 per head for a beef entry from South Mains and £905 and 104p for dairy animals from Carlindean and Langside.

A larger show of prime lambs saw export lambs dearer on the week with the overall average cashing in at 173.5p with an SQQ of 178.5p.

Top price was £96 for Texels from R and M Struthers, Collielaw, or 225p per kg for Beltex from E Cochrane, Richardton.

Texels from A Struthers, Greenbank, led the cast ewe trade at £152.

Orkney

SOME 676 prime lambs and 159 cast sheep were sold on Orkney on Monday where lambs sold to 173p per kg for 44.5kg Texels from D and K Morgan, Bryameadow, Twatt and £79.20 for 47kg Texels from JW Slater, Yarpha, Orphir.

Leading the cast trade at £89 was a Texel from WS Garson and Son, Huan, Sandwick.

The 13 prime and 39 OTM cattle sold the same day saw heifers sell to 232p or £1461.60 for a 630kg Limousin from Messrs Spence, Norton, Dounby.

A 605kg Charolais topped the steers at 226p from N and B Isbister, Feoloquoy, Stromness.

A 580kg Simmental from AB and HI Kirkness, Fribo, Westray, led the cow trade at 123.3p per kg.

St Boswells

A BUSY day at St Boswells, saw Harrison and Hetherington sell 82 clean cattle, 70 cast cows, 1502 prime lambs and 239 ewes on Monday, where the beef trade in general slipped on the week and lambs improved.

Prime bullocks (28) sold to 239p per kg to average 209.25p (-2p).

The entry of 53 heifers topped the trade at 261p per kg from Bee Edge, to level at 215.46p (-1p). Top price per head was £1657.98 from Thrunton.

Cast cows averaged 108p (+1p) having sold to a top of £1252.80 from Corsbie and 177p from Glenrath.

Increased demand for export types resulted in the prime lamb average rising 4p to level at 174.04p from lead prices of £100 and 230p for Texels from Blackadder Mains and Beltex from Threeburnford, respectively.

Leading the cast ewe trade at £109 were Suffolk cross ewes from Colmslie, with the overall average for 239 ewes cashing in at £60. Heavy ewes averaged £76 and lights at £41.

Castle Douglas

ON Tuesday, Wallets Marts sold 1315 prime lambs to average 169.83p per kg with an SQQ of 173.31.

All classes sold sharper on the week especially top end export lambs, which sold to £92 for Texel lambs from TD and T Veitch, Low Creoch, Gatehouse of Fleet and 211.5p for similarly bred lambs from the same home.

Low Creoch also topped the entry of 327 cast ewes and rams at £110 paid for Texel ewes.

Newton Stewart

JUST shy of 1000 prime lambs sold to average 169.2p with an SQQ of 174.2p for 688 head at Craig Wilson's sheep sale on Wednesday where a top price of £83 was paid for heavy Texels from Messrs McHarrie, Duchra.

Top price per kg was 203.9p paid 39kg Texels from J Clark, West Glengyre.

Cast ewes were dearer on the week with Texel crosses from A Johnstone, No2 South Balfern, selling to £100 and rams from J McMillan, Carse O Clary making £91 for a Beltex.

Overall, 105 heavy ewes averaged £58.60; 113 light ewes at £40.80 and five rams at £72.40.