TOP Welsh breeder and trialist, Kevin Evans, of Llwynfedwen, Brecon, was again top dog on price by a country mile at £12,200 at CCM Skipton Auction Mart’s timed online winter sale of working sheep dogs. (Wed, Nov 29) The Powys handler led the way with his fully broken 17-month-old black and white bitch, Cefneithin Gyp, a smooth-coated, prick-eared daughter of his own Hendre Sam, a Welsh Nursery Champion and multiple Open trials trials winner who is line bred to Kevin’s dual European Nursery and Royal Welsh champion, Tanhill Glen.

Gyp’s dam is Cefneithin Jet, from fellow North Wales dog trainer Sion Jones, who runs Cefn Eithin Sheep Dogs in Corwen. She is herself a daughter of Clwyd Bob, from another Welsh trialing legend, Ceredigion’s Dewi Jenkins, with exceptional bloodlines going back to multiple champions on both sides, and himself by the handler’s main stud dog Jock, the 2022 International Supreme Champion and 2023 Reserve Supreme Champion.

The solid nursery prospect was claimed by Levi Joensen, of Klaksvik on Bordoy, the northernmost Faroe Island some 200 miles north-northwest of Scotland. It’s the second time the Faroese handler has made an online Skipton acquisition from Kevin Evans, also going to a very similar £12,100 in 2020 for a 19-month-old bitch, Barcroft Sophie, sired by the Welsh wizard’s European Nursery and dual Welsh and International Brace Champion, Derwen Doug, whose own sire was Tanhill Glen. Both dogs have made a major impact on selling prices at Skipton in recent years.

Kevin also sold a brace of red, white and tan unbroken youngsters just ten-weeks-old, a dog and a bitch from the same litter and by another of his stud dogs, Midderry Frank, an Open trials winner. Regally named, King made £1,800 and Queen £1,600. The former goes to Ballymena in Northern Ireland to join John Maybin, the latter even further across the seas to Viken in Norway with online purchaser Sjur Søndrål.

Next best at £5,600 was Moss, a part-broken 12-month-old black and white dog from David Wood, of Derwent, near Bamford in the Derbyshire Peak District's Hope Valley, bred out of his own Polly, who finished runner-up in the 2019 English National. Exhibiting plenty of natural power and ready to bring on further, Moss heads north of the border to Ewen Macmillan, of Lurg, near Fintry in Stirlingshire, a noted Highland cattle and Scottish Blackface sheep aficionado.

David Wood also claimed top price of £2,050 in the unbroken section with his black and white Ben, a six-month-old son of Kemi Bert, this, too, from Kevin Evans and another well-bred son of the prolific Tanhill Glen.

Making £3,700 was Rock, a fully broken June, 2021, tri-coloured dog from Northern Ireland’s Padraig Doherty, of Ardagh Sheepdogs in County Donegal, out of his own Ann and by PJ O’Sullivan’s Scot. Rock remains in Ireland and County Tyrone with Omagh’s Martin Duffy.

Hitting £3,500 was Philip Mellin, of Moor Lodge Farm, Oakworth, with his three-year-old fully broken black and white dog, Hendy Jack, the local handler’s main stud dog for over a year. Fully Welsh-bred, the talented all-rounder, who has won tickers in nursery trials, goes to the Derbyshire High Peaks with Jim Brocklehurst.

Another local vendor from North Craven, Langcliffe’s Philip Towler, achieved £3,100 with a fully broken four-year-old tri-coloured bitch, Kate, by well-known shepherdess Emma Gray’s 2019 English Nursery Champion, Telf Joff, himself a son of the 2016 English National Champion, Tweeddale Jamie, out of East Yorkshire-based K Acres’ Malta Bess, bred by Carlaine Thom, of Malta Border Collies in Co Tyrone.

She, too, found a Scottish buyer in Susan Russell, from Lauder in Berwickshire, who also made a second acquisition at £2,200, this for a Scottish-bred February, 2022, black and white bitch Moleside Spot, from Hawick’s R Weir. The sire is Kevin Evans’ Red Spot, a German import who continues to make his mark at stud.

This sale again demonstrated the versatility and flexibility of the online sales format in being able to meet the needs of both national and international, even global vendors and buyers, with 30 of the online entry of 43 dogs - 16 fully broken, 13 part-broken, 14 unbroken – successfully sold, another very solid clearance rate.

It once more catered for all tastes and pockets, whether those seeking established well-proven working dogs or others to further bring on either for work and trial. As well as the five £3,000-plus sales, dogs to break could be had from as little as £250, with 10 selling at three-figures prices, eight at £1,000-£2,000 and seven at £2,000- £3,000. Skipton working sheep dog sales are due to return in the New Year on Friday, February 23.