Limestone flock lands €4,000 for champion Blue Texel

The Irish Blue Texel sheep society held its first fully export-qualifying ram sale on 20 July in Carrick-on-Shannon. All lots had been selected earlier in the year at the Blue Texel All-Ireland Championships in Athlone in June.

Numbers were small, but the trade was strong, with an average of €1,350/head and a 90% clearance rate.

Top price on the day went to the Walsh brothers from Ballintra in Co Donegal for their ram, Limestone Indigo.

Limestone Indigo was crowned male national champion at Athlone Show earlier in the summer.

A son of Matts Gforce and out of a Cleenagh-bred ewe, Indigo sold for €4,000 after a flurry of bidding to NI breeders Lesley Bradley and Clive and Adrian Richardson, in a joint purchase.

The Powerful flock of Philip and Louis Crowe from Ballinagh, Co Cavan, enjoyed a strong day’s trading, with a top of €2,050 for Powerful Irelande, selling to Emma Allen (NI) – an outcross pedigree with a Eurostar index in the top 1% of the breed.

Next highest was Powerful IQ, reserve champion male from the national show earlier in the year. IQ was by Cracking Blues Hunter, out of a Belgian-bred imported ewe.

This double five-star lamb sold to the Johnstown flock of Jennifer and Francis Donohoe, Mullingar, for €1,550. Powerful Ibill was the next highest price at €1,300 and he sold to new breeders Mark and Jack Gillanders, Co Monaghan. Other top prices included a ram lamb from the Walsh brothers at €950, a ram lamb from Christina Faredan at €800 and a ram lamb from Declan McCaffrey at €800.

The next Irish Blue Texel Society sale will take place in Carrick-on-Shannon again on 16 August, with 100 lots of males and females up for sale on the evening.