Interest from both pedigree and commercial buyers drove the trade at the Limousin sale held by McCartneys Auctioneers at Brecon on Saturday 11th May. With a top price of 11,000gns, both the bulls sold and average were up on the year with 21 bulls going off to new homes and the average increasing by £324 to £5895.
Lot 38 Woodmarsh Tycoon was the top priced bull, and a flurry of bids saw him knocked down at 11,000gns to his new owner Wilodge Limousin, Shifnal, Shropshire. Bought forward for sale by breeders M and JC Gould, Shrewsbury, Shropshire, the November 2022-born Tycoon has an impressive pedigree and figures to match. Sired by the 50,000gns Carlisle supreme champion Wilodge Cerberus, and out of the 25,000gns Wilodge Onhigh, who goes back to Powerful Irish, this shapely bull has a myostatin pairing of F94L/Q204 with a top 1% muscle depth score, and growth, milk and beef value EBV’s in the top 10% of the national herd.
Next in the trade stakes at 8,000gns, was the pre-sale show senior and reserve overall champion Lot 8 Nealford Tinker, from JH Neale and Son, Launceston, Cornwall. An April 2022-born bull, and another with myostatin of F94L/Q204, he has a retail value of LM46 placing him in the top 10% of the breed. Bred out of the 16,000gns Ampertiane Inferno sired-Nealford Orlana, he is by stock bull and 17,000gns Loosebeare Nelson, who has bred more than 100 sons and daughters into the Nealford herd since his purchase in May 2018. He goes on to work for Messrs WI and J Adams, of the Tircanol herd in Swansea.
Tapping him out as the senior champion was the pre-sale judge Mark Davies, Pembrokeshire, who along with his wife Catherine and daughters Caryl, Sara and Lowri, established their Glencross herd in 2009. Following the purchases of their foundation female blood lines, the herd now has now increased to 70 breeding cows. Their main aim is to produce quality store cattle which they sell at 10 months old, as well as maternal females to retain for the future of their herd. Commenting on his choice of senior champion Mark said “he was a bull full of power and standing, with real breed character and good mobility. An ideal bull to produce shapely store cattle for the commercial buyer and good breeding females for the pedigree herd”.
Three bulls came under the gavel at 7,500gns, two of them from the Dyfri stable of DG and MJ Edwards. First up and catching the eye of R Lewis, was Lot 6 Dyfri Tonto. A 24 month-old with French breeding on the sire side, he is by the herds stock bull Fenomen and out of Dyfri Lola, a daughter of the 35,000gns Plumtree Deus. With a top 1% beef value of LM52, he also features in the top 1% for fat depth and milk, the top 10% for growth and is a double F94L carrier.
The other of the Edwards family bulls to achieve 7,500gns was Lot 20 Dyfri Tutor, a July 2022-born bull by the same sire as Tonto and his dam is again a Plumtree Deus daughter, this time Dyfri Jacoba. Another with standout figures, this F94L/F94L myostatin carrier registers within the top 1% of the breed for growth, 200 day milk and scrotal circumference and the top 10% for fat depth and beef value. The top bidders on Tudor were EH Hamer and Son, Llangorse, Brecon.
Also achieving 7,500gns, was a bull from EW Quick and Sons, Crediton, Devon. Lot 11 Loosebeare Tinker, tapped out as the reserve senior champion this 23 month-old, has top 1% growth figures and a top 10% beef value of LM47. A F94L/Q204X carrier and son of the 19,000gns Ampertaine Jeronimo, who was purchased by the herd in 2015 and has gone on to produce sons for them to 17,000gns, Tinker is bred out of Killerton Peska, an Emslies Horny daughter. He has gone home to work in Llangadog, Carmarthenshire for new owners RW Williams and Son of the Ffnnon herd.
Not far behind at 7,000gns was another entry from the Quick family, the July 2022-born Lot 19 Loosebeare Tyrone. Purchased by GN Dunn, of Highridge Limousin, Okehampton, Devon, he is also an Ampertaine Jeronimo son, while his dam is the Grown Cheeky-sired Loosebeare Gizelle. Yet another bull with figures featuring in the top 10%, this time for growth, beef value and calving interval, he has a F94L/Q204 myostatin pairing.
A small but quality consignment of heifers were forward at the sale, with nine selling to average £2875. The highest bid of 4,000gns, came for the female champion from Mary Cormack, Stoke Prior, Herefordshire. Lot 59 Meadowrig Una, who was bred by A Renton and HSB Redden Partners, was purchased as a calf at their dispersal sale last October. A showstopper, with myostatin of F94L/Q204X, she has already seen success at last year’s English Winter Fair National Calf Show where she claimed a red ticket. Bred out of the 12,500gns Meadowrig Octavia, who goes back to the 10,000gns Kaprico Germander, she is sired by the 24,000gns Ronick Roulette. Her new owner is Jeff Jenkins and she travels on to join his Berthlwyd Limousin herd in Carmarthen.
Other Leading Prices
6,500gns – Lot 10 Killerton Texas sold by PW & SM Greed, Silverton, Devon, to J Freeman Ltd, Gwernesney, Gwent.
6,000gns – Lot 9 Nealford Turbo sold by JH Neale & Sons, Launceston, Cornwall, to Gelliwern Associates, Felindre, Swansea.
6,000gns – Lot 32 Dafolog Talisman sold by Mr DA Thomas, Penybont, Carmarthen, to GG Lewis, Pont Ardawe, Swansea.
6,000gns – Lot 44 Cowin Trex sold by WDD & C James, Cynwyl Elfed, Carmarthenshire, to JCD Richardson & Son, Itton, Monmouthshire.
Averages
21 Bulls: £5895, nine heifers: £2875
