Boothmans lead the way at inaugural Skipton Hereford females fixture
The Hereford cattle breed received a timely boost at Skipton Auction Mart with a brand-new weekend show and sale for females. (Sat, Nov 2)
Claiming principal honours in the show class for the best haltered heifer on what was their first-ever appearance in the cattle show arena at the mart where they both work were local husband and wife, David and Iris Boothman, of Home Farm, Halton East.
Sales officer admin manager Iris and her stockman husband, David, clinched both first and second prizes with a brace of 2018-born entries from their Halton herd.
Both were by their former stock bull, the Blakelow 1 Calzaghe son, Coley 1 Josh, bred in West Yorkshire by Heather Whittaker and since sold as he was coming back on to his own calves.
Taking the inaugural championship for the Boothmans was their March-born Halton 1 Emily, out of the Solpoll 1 Haymaker daughter, Beckwith 1 Primrose, while standing second in class was Halton 1 Erin, whose dam Tunstall Joanne was by Auckvale Hero.
The frontrunners, both scanned in-calf to the Boothmans’ new stock bull, Hoghton View 1 Cameron, bred near Blackburn by Stephen and Lizzie Walker, sold well and for the day’s leading prices.
The victor made 1,600gns, bettered at 1,700gns by the runner-up. Both found a new home in Kirklees when falling to the same buyer, DA Butterfield, from Liversedge.
The Boothmans established their pedigree herd eight years ago when Iris purchased the first of their Hereford cattle as a birthday present for her husband. They now have 22 head on the ground.
Standing third in the Skipton show class were another husband and wife, George and Amanda Redmayne, who run the recently established Ings herd at Gowan Bank Farm, near Kendal. Their Ings 1 Dawn 18B, a July, 2018, daughter of Romany 1 Lumberjack, bred near Kelso by Robert Wilson, sold for 950gns to Josh Lawn, of Cullingworth, Keighley.
“It is important that breed sales such of these keep going and we were more than happy to travel down from Cumbria to support it,” said Mrs Redmayne.
Local show judge, Barnoldswick breeder and Hereford Cattle Society member, Josh Dowbiggin, noted: “There is growing interest in the area among Herefords breeders seeking to produce high quality grass-fed beef - and there’s certainly plenty of grass in this part of the world!”
Skipton Auction Mart staged the inaugural Hereford show and sale in response to what it deems a growing call for pedigree fixtures of this nature, following it up the same day with a special sale of three pedigree Galloway cattle on behalf of J Fiddler, of Hutton, Preston, for whom a cow and calf made 950gns, a cow 800gns and a bull 560gns.