Addingham Sheepbreeders charity lambs raise £2,900 for Manorlands
Lambs donated by generous farmers earned more cash for charity when sold to a big-hearted ringside at Addingham & District Sheep Breeders’ Association’s ninth annual fundraiser at Skipton Auction Mart. (Wed, Dec 16)
Twenty-eight lambs, predominantly Mule wethers, were handed over and, together with other items donated for sale, raised a resounding £2,900 for Sue Ryder Manorlands Hospice in Oxenhope, Keighley, for whom the fixture has now netted some £33,000 in total.
A standalone show for Mules saw the Walker family - Patrick and Janet, and their son Thomas - from Appletreewick, pick up the winner’s red rosette, also receiving the Pearson Farm Supplies Shield, donated annually by Chris Pearson, who heads up the West Marton-based agricultural merchants.
The home-bred lamb was by a ram sired by their Smearsett Y2 tup, which was also responsible for one of the Walkers’ champion pen of ten gimmer lambs at this year’s second annual ewe lamb sale for members of the North of England Mule Sheep Association (NEMSA) at Skipton in September.
The charity show victor first made £300 when falling to Linda Beckwith, on behalf of Pearson Farm Supplies, who then offered the lamb for resale. Auctioneer Ted Ogden then knocked it down to himself, on behalf of Craven Cattle Marts, for a further £100.
The sheep will be over-wintered, before returning to the Skipton ring next Spring, when it will again be auctioned off in aid of Manorlands. As usual, CCM again waived their commission on the charity sale, at which Manorlands was represented at the sale by hospice fundraiser Carly Brunskill,
Runners-up were JC Walker & Son, of Dunsop Bridge, with Kevin and James Wilson, of Blubberhouses, standing third, and Ellis Bros, of Adddingham Moorside, fourth. Show judges were Ian Lancaster, of Wiswell, and Darwen’s Robert Tarbutt.
Joint organiser and 2014 champion Joe Throup, of Berwick Intake Farm, Chelker, said: “Yet again, the regional farming community dug deep to support a very worthy cause. It was a tremendous outcome and we can only thank all who donated lambs and other items for sale, and to all buyers and supporters of our annual event.”
The charity fund-raiser formed part of the fortnightly sale of store lambs, the final one this year, when the 1,760 head on parade were predominantly medium and long-keep types, with strong lambs short of buyers’ requirements. As a consequence, this resulted in a very sharp trade, producing an overall selling average of £50.33 per head.
Smart Continental and strong Suffolks were all around £60 or more, with better Mule wethers selling into the mid-£50s. Outside the show, Andrew Sutton, of Longsleddale in South Lakeland, caught the eye with a pen of 52 Mules selling at £57.80 per head, along with another pen of 48 at £56 each. More buyers in attendance for smaller long-keep types also helped these sell well.