Aberdeen Christmas Classic champion sells for £5,000
It was a clean sweep for Blair Duffton, Huntley and Rebecca Stuart, Insch, when they secured the champion and reserve honours in the prime cattle at the Aberdeen Christmas Classic at Thainstone.
Angela Calvert
Taking the overall honours when tapped out by judges, Jamie Chapman of James Chapman Butchers, Wishaw and Frank Yorke of Yorkes of Dundee, Dundee, was their May 2018-born 640kg Limousin cross heifer bred by Gordon Cameron, Acharacle.
Purchased at Thainstone after it stood champion at the weaned calf sale, it is by Maraiscote Lothario and sold for the top price of £5,000 to Scott Watson on behalf of B.T Kitson Butchers, Hutton Rudby, North Yorkshire.
Their reserve champion, Gazza, a 666kg Limousin cross bullock sold for £3,000 to Mr Yorke.
Making £3,500 was the Young Farmers’ champion, Merida, a 630kg Limousin-cross heifer from Thomas Hall, Peterhead which sold to Forbes Raeburn Butchers, Huntly.
The champion butchers’ animal, She Za Diamond, a 592kg British Blue cross from Wilson Peters, Crieff, made £3,100 to Bruce Of The Brough Butchers, Fraserburgh.
Averages - 34 heifers, 330.9p/kg (£1,948.75); 14 steers, 278.7p (£1,741.67).
Blue Texel ewe lambs sell to £600
A top price of £600 was achieved at the show and sale of prime lambs for 49.5kg Blue Texels from Faye Wilkie, Skene which sold to Grant Dinnie, Alford.
Next at £500/head were the reserve overall champions, a pair of 55kg Beltex cross ewe lambs by Woodies Chaos from Ellie Miller, Midmar.
The show was dominated by Rory Gregor, Thainstone who was the first exhibitor to rule supreme in all three sections - the open championship, the Young Farmers’ section and the butchers’ classes.
His open champions, a pair of 51.5kg, home-bred Beltex cross ewe lambs by a home-bred sire and out of three-quarter Beltex cross ewes, made £300/head. The buyer was the judge, Tom Hutchon of J.B. Penman Butchers, Crail who also paid £300/head for Mr Gregor’s pair of similarly bred 55kg butchers’ lambs.
Anna Forsyth of W.T.S. Forsyth Butchers, Peebles, bought the 51.5kg Young Farmers’ champion pair for £300/head.
Average - 128 head, 263p/kg (£122.62/head).
Limousin leads pedigree bulls at 4,600gns
Pedigree bulls met a selective trade topping at 4,600gns for the Limousin champion from Andrew Burnett, Blair Drummond, Stirling.
This was Spittalton Oban, a February 2018-born bull by Ampertaine Gigolo, out of the Haltcliffe Vermount-sired dam Spittalton Gerti which sold to Ballintomb Farms, Grantown-on-Spey.
Next at 3,600gns was the overall champion, a British Blue bull from Garry Patterson, Aultmore, Keith. By Bluegrass Cyclone, out of Aultmore Honey, this February 2018-born bull was knocked down to D. Whyte, Hindstones, Fraserburgh.
Selling for 3,400gns to D. and A. Bruce, Alford, was the similarly aged Limousin bull Murrays Oscar by Lodge Hamlet from Ian Murray, Banchory.
The Simmental champion from Brian and Stuart Grant, Inverness, made 3,000gns to D. and P. Petrie, West Maldron, Torphins, Banchory.
Centre record of 4,500gns matched for Texel gimmer
THE centre record of 4,500gns for a pedigree female sheep was matched by the reserve champion Texel gimmer, a Garngour Alabama daughter out of a Glenside Razzle Dazzle dam from Kenny Pratt’s Hilltop flock, Peterculter. It sold, scanned with twins to Sportsmans Chieftan to Jemma Green, Corskie.
Next at 4,000gns was the champion Texel, a gimmer by Mullan Armarni, in-lamb with twins to Deveronvale Aftershick from Graham Morrison of the Deveronvale flock, Cornhill. It sold to Roy Adams, Dee Valley flock, Banchory.
George and Melvin Stuart’s Birness Suffolk flock, Ellon, peaked at 3,800 for the champion from the pre-sale show, a gimmer by Limestone Legacy scanned due with twins to Castleisle Capaldi. It sold to telephone bidder, Paul Delves of the Bridgeview flock, Powys.
Martin Bignel, Islay, paid 3,000gns over the phone for the third prize ewe lamb from Birness. This was a daughter of the 7,000gns Castleisle Gareth.
Jimmy Douglas, Cairness, received 2,800gns from Lee Dunn, Muir of Ord, for a Suffolk gimmer by Cavanagrove Catalyst scanned with twins to Cairness A Star.
Averages - 30 Suffolk ewes, £345.67; 38 Suffolk gimmers, £761.84; 16 Suffolk ewe lambs, £700.63; 65 Texel gimmers, £749.85; 8 Texel ewe lambs, £641.25; 8 Bluefaced Leicester gimmers, £537.50; 4 Beltex ewes, £482.50; 20 Beltex gimmers, £528; 3 Beltex ewe lambs, £773.33; 3 Blue Texel gimmers, £900; overall 199 head, £641.01.
Auctioneers: Aberdeen and Northern Marts.
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