- Millington Highlight sells for 50,000gns to new breeder
- Highlight’s daughter, Millington Juliet, sells for 30,000gns
- Six animals make 9000gns or more
The much anticipated dispersal sale of the noted Millington Limousin herd, on behalf of Millington Limousins, The Grange, Millington, York, lived up to expectations with a 50,000gns top price and five animals in all making 9,000gns and more in a strong sale throughout. The sale under the auspices of the British Limousin Cattle Society was held at Harrison & Hetherington’s Borderway Mart, Carlisle, on Friday 19th August 2016.
Appropriately named, the leading price of 50,000gns was paid for the four year-old-cow Millington Highlight who was sold with her heifer calf at foot, Millington Limelight. The full package, Millington Highlight combined visual appearance along with a depth of breeding and excellent performance figures. For good measure she also arrived with a lengthy show record that included two Reserve Supreme Championships at the Great Yorkshire Show. An embryo calf she is a Wilodge Vantastic daughter out of Brockhurst Option whose mother is the highly regarded Ronick McAinsi.
Purchasing the top price was new Limousin breeder Mick Gould and his wife, trading as M & J C Gould, Grange Farm, Bomere Heath, Shrewsbury, along with his brother in law, Jonathan and his nephew Tom Waring. The Goulds are in the process of establishing the Woodmarsh herd prefix, whilst Jonathan and Tom already have the Everpark herd prefix. The 50,000gns top price is the leading Limousin mark this year in what has been a strong year of pedigree sales.
Commenting Mr Gould, who also runs 300 dairy cows and a pedigree Texel flock, said: “In establishing a new herd we wanted to start with something exceptional and in my mind a cow like this very rarely comes on the market. She’s a superb cow visually and just full of breeding and quality.”
Confirming the demand for the bloodline and the quality on offer the second top price of 30,000gns was paid for Millington Highlight’s first calf, Millington Juliet. This November 2014 born calf is by the French sire Ecran and again she sported some outstanding performance figures. Purchasing this maiden heifer was John and Pat Varley for their Queenshead herd based at Myrtle Grove Farm, Queensbury, Bradford.
In all five animals made 9,000gns and more at the sale that was described in the catalogue as ‘a rare opportunity to acquire some of the best Limousin genetics in the UK’. The sale of the Millington herd, owned in the past two years by Ashcourt Farms Ltd, followed a company restructure and change in farming policy. The Millington herd was originally established by John Weatherill some sixteen years ago and Mr Weatherill, who is looking to re-establish a Limousin herd, featured in some of the purchases during the day.
Leading Mr Weatherill’s purchases was the 12,000gns that he paid for the served heifer Millington Joyous. Joyous is a Greenwell Fieldmaster daughter and out of the Highlander sired Millington Gracious. Another to go to the same buyer was the 10,000gns Millington Hiilton who was sold with her first calf at foot, the bull calf Millington Mayfair by Norman Hawk. December 2012 born, Hilton is an embryo calf by Objat and is another out of the same dam as the top price, Brockhurst Option.
At 11,800gns was another embryo heifer calf Millington Lapwing who was the same breeding, sired by Objat and out of Brockhurst Option. She was purchased jointly by the Calogale herd of Messrs Lee, Kidwelly, Carmarthenshire, along with the Frogmore herd of Chris White, Moreton-in-Marsh, Gloucs.
Early in the sale Millington Gorgeous made 9,200gns. This 2011 born embryo calf is a Mas Du Clo daughter out of Brockhurst Option and was sold with her bull calf Millington Majestic at foot, a Norman Hawk son. This outfit was purchased by Bruce Goldie, Townfoot, Mouswald, Dumfries for his Goldies pedigree herd.
Full report, averages, and pictures to follow
19th August 2016: 4.00pm
