[Brucklay]

Although I have sold a few Jacobs at Thainstone rare breed I would really prefer to sell privately - get to know the buyer and tell them all about the sheep they may wish to purchase.


Totally agree with Fleecewife above - the day of the wee sheep will come back - I think they are great - but I'm a smallholder not a farmer so I've never seen things from their perspective.

[kaz]

I've got Ryelands and when I first had them they were a rare breed, they are now a minority breed. They are now very popular as the last breed sale at Ludlow shows as there was some excellent prices for breeding stock.
There is a market for what I class as other than commercials. People like us (smallholders & small farmers) want something that is easy to look after and is easily handled. Don't forget the big boys deal in thousands of sheep which usually end up on the supermarket shelves, but how did they get there.
Around where I live there is some good farmers and some really bad ones who only do the very basic of husbandry and don't think anything of leaving a dead sheep in the field to save on the cost of disposing of them.
 My sheep I have known from day one except for the odd ones I buy in, but then only bought from a good source. I can choose to keep or sell as I want, but I expect a fair price for what I have. Ryelands are easy lambers if not too fat and the lambs can be finished on grass alone. They make an excellent carcass. Sell the meat to friends and family if need be or even butchers who will snap up a Ryeland, just ask them, but don't let them sell you short.
There is definitely a market for "other than commercials" just hang in there and you call the shorts.

[SallyintNorth]

Well I don't know if you'll all think this is good news or not, but the top-priced Shetland at Carlisle on Saturday was sold to a commercial Beltex farmer, who is going to use him to tup the Beltex hoggs - he says it gives them easy lambs to birth for their first time, and the lambs are full of get-up-and-go, which is very helpful with first time mothers.

And the offpsring are perfectly saleable - they'll finish a little more slowly than full Beltex but the conformation will be good and the size exactly what the supermarkets want.

The tup's breeder was pleased at the price, but disappointed that the best tup she'd ever bred was being sold out of the breed so his genes are lost to the breed.   

And here, we are excited to be intermingling some of the natives' and primitives' genes in our commercial flock - hoping for 'good skins' (important in a commercial flock - but not because of the wool price), better feet, better natural immunity, good get-up-and-go in the lambs, wider pelvis, good hardiness, short tails.  Oh and the moon on a stick, that too.   

[Mallows Flock]

Well I don't know if you'll all think this is good news or not, but the top-priced Shetland at Carlisle on Saturday was sold to a commercial Beltex farmer, who is going to use him to tup the Beltex hoggs - he says it gives them easy lambs to birth for their first time, and the lambs are full of get-up-and-go, which is very helpful with first time mothers.

And the offpsring are perfectly saleable - they'll finish a little more slowly than full Beltex but the conformation will be good and the size exactly what the supermarkets want.

I have just sold all my Commercial cross Shetlands.... they were the ones picked out first out of all my commercials and shetland x's..... they are nice, solid, soft fleeced compact darlings.. with nice rumps and hardier feet. Brilliant!

[Brucklay]

After my shetland  tup knocked me on Sunday I would quite like to see him surrounded by 50 Beltex hoggs 

[SallyintNorth]

After my shetland  tup knocked me on Sunday I would quite like to see him surrounded by 50 Beltex hoggs 

He would, too. 

[Anke]

Well I don't know if you'll all think this is good news or not, but the top-priced Shetland at Carlisle on Saturday was sold to a commercial Beltex farmer, who is going to use him to tup the Beltex hoggs

The tup's breeder was pleased at the price, but disappointed that the best tup she'd ever bred was being sold out of the breed so his genes are lost to the breed.   

And how much did he go for? Of the three white ones one did not get any bids, the second one sold for  50 quid and the third one went up to 130 but was not sold. Surely you wouldn't use a coloured one on Beltex's ? ( I left after the white tups were done, as that was what I came for...)

[mart2671]

Livestock markets can be scary places, but in this economic climate we all need to make money from our smallholdings and Markets give you an opportunity to make good money from the product we have produced . The sheep trade has dropped off alot in recent weeks due to the uncertainty of the future fat lamb trade .Often if you sell to buyers ( buying for supermarkets or large abattoirs ) if you get a chance and speak to them they will buy straight from your farm so cutting out the need to go to a market at all  .

I think perhaps that some of the reason rams can be cheap is perhaps that there are far to many around , often ram lambs that would have been better off castrated and would have made as much as a meat animals are kept entire to be sold as breeding rams . The down breeds are out of favour but have there followers, but commercial guys like lambs that grow quick and kill out as the butchers/supermarkets want them so Charolais texel beltex Suffolk are usually used .
Farmers can be grumpy buggers ( my Dad is ) but we all have off days  , but get the courage to chat to them on market day  and they ll talk about there livestock till the sun goes down and give u free advice and help.

Its always a good idea to visit your local livestock market as often as you can just to get the feel of what happens and also to get your face known , introduce yourself to the auctioneer there always good to have on your side .
Don't be put off by livestock markets they have been around for hundreds of years and are a big part of many small county towns and bring huge amounts of cash to these small towns each market day . 

[SallyintNorth]

Well I don't know if you'll all think this is good news or not, but the top-priced Shetland at Carlisle on Saturday was sold to a commercial Beltex farmer, who is going to use him to tup the Beltex hoggs

The tup's breeder was pleased at the price, but disappointed that the best tup she'd ever bred was being sold out of the breed so his genes are lost to the breed.   

And how much did he go for? Of the three white ones one did not get any bids, the second one sold for  50 quid and the third one went up to 130 but was not sold. Surely you wouldn't use a coloured one on Beltex's ? ( I left after the white tups were done, as that was what I came for...)

£200.  Yes, coloured.  I guess the guy specifically wanted Alma's breeding.  She does have nice square sheep with good backsides, I must say. 

Oh, and she bought a white tup lamb (outside the ring, one of the passed out ones) as they think they might like to be able to show in the white classes as well as the coloured ones... 

[Estellerose]

OMG!  Have just been to NSA ram sale in Builth Wells - awful weather, arrogant farmers, all round bad day .  I took four lovely Polled Dorset rams - two of which were really good - sold the best two for a ridiculous price.  There were some beautiful Hampshire Downs, Southdowns and a few more Dorsets (not one horned breed, I noticed) and they went for a song.  All the buyers were interested in were the commercial breeds - Texel/Beltex/Charrolais.  All those which, from the rear, and often from the front, resemble pigs.  Perhaps I'm just old fashioned, but I think this is a sad downturn for the native breeds.  The punters were the most unpleasant lot I've ever come across.  The guy who bought my lovely Dorsets for a pittance actually came up to me and asked for 'a bit of luck' (I assume this means I should give him some money  - could someone fill me in on this??) My OH nearly punched him.  He told him he'd already had his luck when he bought my two best rams for next to nothing.  If this is a tradition, then I think its a bit misplaced when you've bought something which is clearly well below what its worth.

Anyway - I'm mortified that such a horrible man  has bought my lovely tame, good natured rams,  so I've decided now that good homes are my priority - I'm going to give the other two away to good homes if anyone is interested - they will be good tups for someone who will appreciate them.  See my ad in the Market

Hi what area are you from?I need a Dorset tup for my new flock of dorsets.Can I have some pictures please because I cant find ad .