The Cooley Sheep Breeders Group held their sixth annual sale last Saturday. The one-day sale is unique as it is granted permission by the Department of Agriculture to take place in a field with a temporary sales ring in Carlingford in county Louth. The sale has become well established in recent years and attracts buyers from many counties across Ireland.

The Cooley Breeders market their sheep as possessing good breeding and capable of improving in performance when transferred from hill grazing to better land type. This year there were in the region of 2,000 hoggets and ewe lambs on offer across a range of breed types.

Hoggets met practically a full clearance with Suffolk Cheviot and Suffolk Lleyn cross lots selling on average from €165 to €195 per head. The top pen of Mule sheep sold for €208 while lighter hoggets sold back to €150. As is the case across many parts of the country, Scotch hoggets were also in demand selling from €160 to €170 with a pen of excellent quality Lanark hoggets reaching €200.

Ewe lambs had a clearance of 95% with the general run from €90 to €120. Some top quality Suffolk Cheviot lots rose to a top price of €148 while at the other end or the price range light Scotch and hill cross ewe lambs sold from €70 to €90.