A special sale of over 220 ewes and their lambs offered by the Cooley Sheep Breeders Association met a vibrant trade in Carnaross Mart on Saturday last.

The top price on the day of €392 per unit was paid for a batch of 10 two-year-old Cheviot ewes with 18 nice-quality lambs at foot.

Another 12 lots, from a total of 108 lots traded, sold from €300 upwards, with prices ranging in the main from €300 to €356.

This included good-quality first-crop ewes with 1.5 to two lambs at foot, three- and- four-year-old-ewes with strong twin lambs at foot and a couple of lots of quality yearling hogget ewes and nice-quality lambs.

Plenty of activity

Mart manager Padraig McElroy reported that the large entry attracted buyers from far afield, with a strong presence ringside complemented by plenty of online activity.

Another 17 lots sold from €250 to €299 per unit, with the make-up of ewes similar to those described above.

In the region of 20 lots which sold from €200 to €249 comprised mainly aged ewes offered with stronger single lambs or a lamb and a half at foot and younger ewes with young lambs at foot.

The make-up of ewes traded below the €200 mark were generally Scottish Blackface and crossbred types. Aged lots with a lamb at foot sold from €140 to €165 with twin lamb lots rising to over €190 per unit.

In pictures

Three Bluefaced Leicester-cross hoggets with single lambs at foot sold for €320 per unit.

This batch of four crossbred-type three- and four-year-old ewes with seven strong lambs at foot sold for €298 per unit.

This batch of 11 aged Scottish Blackface and crossbred ewes and 11 lambs at foot sold for €158 per unit.

Two three-year-old ewes with strong single lambs at foot sold for €240 per unit.

This batch of three aged Scottish Blackface ewes with three lambs at foot sold for €150 per unit.

This two-year-old Suffolk ewe and a young Charollais-cross lamb sold for €240.

Seven aged Scottish Blackface ewes with10 lambs at foot sold for €168 per unit.

Five Suffolk-cross hogget ewes and five lambs sold for €262 per unit.

This batch of mixed breed young ewes with a single lamb at foot sold for €236 per unit.

These three Cheviot ewes aged three and four years old with four Cheviot lambs at foot sold for €224 per unit.

A full-mouth Suffolk and crossbred ewe with three lambs at foot sold for €210 per unit.

This aged Scottish Blackface ewe and a crossbred lamb at foot sold for €138.

This purebred Lleyn hogget ewe and her ewe lamb at foot sold for €252.