THE annual Rare & Native Stock Breeders Auctions of rare, minority and traditional sheep breeds at Skipton Auction Mart attracted another large and varied entry, with championship honours and top price falling to the first prize Longwool female, a 2022-born Teeswater from Ingleton’s Amy Edwards. (Sat, Sept 9)

Amy only established her small flock a year ago, her first-time shown victor being by a Mayfield sire, out of a Dallowgill dam, with a full sister also excelling in the show arena this year, standing overall champion wool on the hoof at Malton, breed champion at Wensleydale and reserve breed champion at Kilnsey.

A registered veterinary nurse, Amy also acts as a shepherd for her partner, Rowan Pickles, who with father Jeff, a familiar face at Skipton, farms Swaledale and North of England Mules at Far Gearstones, in the shadow of Ribblehead Viaduct. Her title winner made 380gns top call when finding pastures new in the Lake District on joining the Procter and Waring partnership in Ullswater.

Also catching the eye at 320gns was the first prize prime primitive male from Holmfirth’s Linda Bone, a 2022 Coloured Ryeland, Linbon Charley, by Ryeside Coloured Zest, going to Rachael Ashworth in Burnley.

Dr Hayley Bird, from Hutton Buscel, Scarborough, won both Herdwick show classes with home-breds from her Cairnsmore flock, the male making 180gns, the female 95gns.Show judge was Ian Grisedale, who runs the Swinside Herdwick flock in Crooklands, Kendal, and is himself a multiple past Skipton native and rare breeds champion.

Also on the same day’s busy agenda was the fifth annual show and sale of pedigree and pure-bred goats, when a top price of 600gns, a new record for the centre, was recorded for a three-year-old pedigree black Anglo Nubian Nanny from B Harvey, of Horbury, Wakefield. It sold locally to M Hancock, of Silsden, the same vendor also making 180gns with a second Anglo Nubian nanny, the first prize female dairy goat.

There was also a local show champion, the first prize male dairy goat, a pure Toggenburg from the Ormerod family – Philip and Patricia, and sons Joe and James - who run a 1,200-head commercial dairy goat herd at Pasture Farm, West Marton. Their champion Billy, by a Jane Miller Charnock buck, made 180gns.

Defending champion Joanne Webster, once more travelling north from Southam in Warwickshire, again shone when standing reserve champion with one of a ten-strong consignment of six-month-old pure Boer Nannys, selling her consignment to a top of 300gns.