Hawes Female Sale – 18th January 2025

The crowds descended on Hawes once again for the Bluefaced Leicester female sale, with an increased entry and some great sheep on offer. Trade was sharp and buyers were keen, and with a packed ringside, the atmosphere was red hot.

Topping the days trade was a cracking hogg from the Hewgill flock. This smart, sharp hogg is the full sister to the champion from Carlisle earlier this month, the full embryo sister to the tups sold through the Hawes ring last autumn, by the £3000 Sealhouses, which is beginning to look a lot like the bargain of the century, and out of R39 Hewgill, one of this illustrious flocks top ewes. Bidding was brisk for her and the hammer fell to the telephone bidder, Mike Anderson from the Hardhaugh flock based in Aberdeen. He is buying a few foundation ewes to build up his Crossing flock, and is going for the very best, and had to shell out £11,000 for this beauty. Its full sister sold for £3000 to an undisclosed buyer, completing a cracking days trade for the Lord family.

The days champion, as judged by James Lawson, Gragareth, came from the Kirkby Redgate flock, from Richard Hutchinson. This gimmer hogg is a powerful type of sheep, full of power and style. She is by the £6500 S1 Skeughdale and its mother is by the £14,000 H1 Skeughdale, out of a great line of sheep, with plenty of tups sold from it. The grandmother to the hogg was sired by the D17 Hewgill, which was one of the best crossing tups at Kirkby Redgate. This was bought for £7000 for Millie Richardson, Ghyll House, to add to her small but growing flock.

Midlock always bring out a strong team and their lead gimmer was first prize in the pre-sale show and went on to sell for £4500, once again to Mike Anderson. This smart sheep was by the homebred R26 Midlock and in lamb to the £14,000 T3 Steel they bought out of Hawes last Autumn. It has some great breeding behind it, with its grandmother breeding sons to £16,000. The Midlock pen had 7 sheep forward, all fetching four figures, so covering their fuel bill for a long drive down from Crawford.

Martin Allen from the Greenhow flock took the days reserve Championship with a smart gimmer hogg out of the £8500 Hewgill hogg that he bought out of Carlisle, and by the R1 Harkerside which has been doing so well for them. This was knocked down for £2800 to Stephen Sutcliffe, Horton in Ribblesdale.

Yore House produced a cracking pen, with some strong, clean sheep on offer. They topped at £2500 for a corker of a sheep by the R25 Giants Causeway and out of a ewe by a Carry House in lamb to the £40,000 Midlock Commander. This again headed north of the Border to Mike Andersons. They also sold a ewe by Commander to Messrs Hutton, Setmabanning for £2000.

The ewe trade was topped by the Metcalf’s Silver Hill flock with the first prized ewe by the N18 Dawyk carrying a single to the T2 Howgate, a lamb they bought last year. This one headed to Messrs Coates, Leck Fell for £2400.

Leading Prices:
Hoggs – Messrs Lord £11000, £3000; WM Hutchinson & Son £7000; Knock Hall Farm (M Allan) £2800; JA&R Caton £1800; J Wight & Sons £1600 x 2; B Wight £1600; AC Pye £1400   Av. £1659
Ewes – C&R Metcalf £2400; AR Edmonson £1800, £1200 x 2; AC Pye £1800;   Av. £1680
Shearlings – J Wight & Sons £4500, £1700, £1600; JC&E Pedley & Sons £2500, £2000, £1800, £1600; AC Pye £2000, £1400; B Wight £1600   Av. £1673