The group, formed as the ‘North West Mule Breeders association’ are holding a sale of breeding ewe lambs and hoggets in Coolaney Mart, just a short distance outside Sligo town, on Friday 13 September at 6pm.

The group total over twenty farmers and they are hoping to take advantage of the trend emerging in recent years of increasing demand for good quality ewe lambs and hoggets with a high maternal value for breeding.

All sheep on offer in the sale are Mules (Blackface ewe & Bluefaced Leicester ram) bred on the hill and mountain terrain of the area and also on more marginal lowland.

ADVERTISEMENT

Teagasc B & T adviser Tom Coll is the group’s B & T adviser for the Sheep Technology Adoption Programme (STAP) and comments that the background of the sheep offers benefits to potential customers.

He says that ewes are selected with careful consideration to suit different grazing environments and need to possess hardy characteristics and good maternal qualities for outdoor lambing. These traits are passed onto their progeny making them ideal replacements.

In addition, many farmers in the group explain that as the sheep are reared on more marginal lands, or ran at higher stocking rates; they are a perfect fit for lowland producers as their performance should improve when transferred onto lowland farms.

Quality guaranteed

The group are hoping that they can build on a successful sale in year one and develop the sale into an annual event. Interest and commitment is high within the group and the emphasis is to guarantee that customers coming to the sale will have access to good quality sheep.

All sheep will be inspected by an independent inspector prior to the sale and only Mule sheep assessed fit for breeding and weighing above a minimum weight of 38kg will be accepted into the sale.

Approved sheep for the sale will also receive a green ear tag denoting with the tagline ‘north west mule breeders’ to denote animals were bred by farmers in the group. At present, there are in the region of 350 ewe lambs and ewe hoggets predicted for sale. Further information can be got by calling 086 3196713.