[Fleecewife]

How many Groats in  a Shilling?

I used to think groats were something you made thin gruel from.........


I think mites are the tiny ones as in 'the widow's mite'?

[Me]

How many Groats in  a Shilling?

now that's tricky. a groat was once worth 4 pence- meaning 3 groats to a shilling but then a groat became worth 1 shilling and eight pence meaning that there was 1.67 shillings to a groat or roughly 0.6 of a groat to a shilling- I thank you 

Finally Guineas make sense.

[Crofterloon]

Highhorse, if you're sold on the idea of rare breeds, try to get along to one of the rare breed sales

good advice in theory although iv found at thainstone it is often the crap unregistered ones that are sold there, all the best ones are sold privately often with a waiting list, if they are rare. though the good ones at the mart will often get a decent price if they are the better known breeds. it does give you a shop window though to see what you like. buying from a private breeder at leisure is a better investment.

dont do what we did in our first year - buy all the cheap ones and wonder why they had no teeth or dropped dead.
i remember buying a hebridean ram for a fiver once to be told by a farmer id been ripped off! he did drop
dead too. 

I think this is really good advice.

[Womble]

Ah, I didn't say I'd BOUGHT any stock at the sales, just that I'd window shopped to get an idea of breeds I'd like, and what to look for  . For example, it was the first time somebody had really explained the basics to me like teeth, feet and udders, and what 'a leg at each corner' actually meant in practice. The sale in Stirling combines a pre-show with the sale, so if you do buy in the auction, there is at least the option of bidding on something with a rosette, knowing it is unlikely to be junk. (And, being a little bit devious, if somebody has entered a pen of really good sheep, you can always avoid overbidding by making contact privately and buying their sisters straight from the farm  ).