Rearing Calves to £370 (51) 50 Calves in today’s sale with plenty of bobby calves entered. Blue Bulls avg £300. Best end of the Blue Bulls at £370-340. Top price Blue Bull and Heifer today both coming from Mr C Watson of Horton-in-Craven. Mediums £300+ Smalls around the £240-£300. Blue Heifers £270-£240 with Smaller end not much less. Black and whites avg £47.50 with top price from the Bolland family at £58. No big Native calves seen about today with Angus Bulls topping at £220 and Heifers £140.

Rearing Calves to £405 (129) The calf show today was very kindly judged by Mr Tom Heseltine who cast his expert eye over the calves on show, a Blue Bull from Mr Middleton of JP & KE Hartley was awarded Champion calf followed by Mr Shaun Sowray of A Sowray & Sons receiving reserve Champion for his Blue Heifer. 129 Calves in the sale today with a small number forward for show. The sale consisted of large runs of moderate farming calves with the very best Blues carrying age short of requirements. The sale had 15 active buyers ringside with many looking to buy them in bulk as ewes and lambs have now left the sheds. 37 Blue Heifers sold to a top £340 from A Sowray followed by £280 from Mr Longster. Many heifers could be bought around that £240-£280. Blue Bulls topped the auction once again topping at £405 from JP & KE Hartley following closely behind at £400 from Mr Longster once again. The best Blue Bulls would be bought £330-£405 with Mediums £260+ with just a touch smaller all around the same money with only a couple just under the £200 mark. 14 Angus Bulls came to an overall sale average of £182 and topped at £285. Black and White calves topped at £118 from Mr Fort of Silsden and same to an overall breed average of £62. 4 Holstein Friesian calves sold over £100.

David Booth back with a bang on Craven Dairy Auction return Several years after his last Craven Dairy Auction championship success, Lothersdale’s David Booth returned to the fray in fine style when clinching both leading honours in the show arena with home-bred heifers at Skipton Auction Mart’s opening March fixture. (Mon. March 9)

7 Dairy - A tidy show of dairies attracted a good following of prospective and successful purchasers. David Booth from Lothersdale led the prices with the first prize heifer, nicely calved 3 weeks, and at 34 litres she sold for £2000. Another fresh heifer from the same home achieved £1700. A solid average of £1673 was achieved for pedigree new calved heifers. Incalf cattle sold to £1250 form GD Home of Bolton Abbey. Next sale in 2 weeks time (23rd March) please speak to Sarah with your entries of ring the mart office, and with the ever growing ringside of buyers we can certainly sell more cattle than are currently coming forward. Thankyou.

Forward for Monday's sale were 65 Farmers Rearing Calves, and also 11 Dairy for the Twice Monthly Craven Dairy Auction.

Petch family reserve champion claims £2,450 Craven Dairy Auction top price Robin Jennings, from Hill House Farm, South Stainley, Harrogate, won his first Craven Dairy Auction championship of 2020 with his only entry, a commercial newly calven heifer at Skipton Auction Mart’s second February show and sale. (Mon, Feb 24) He did it with an eight days-calved 32-litre home-bred from his long established and milk-rich Sunray cow family, which sold for £1,980 to Alf Townsend, of Southfield, Burnley. Show judge was Alan Middleton, of the Beamsley-based Hartley farming family.

Peter Baul champion again and top price at Craven Dairy Auction Bishop Thornton’s Peter Baul bagged back-to-back Craven Dairy Auction titles at Skipton Auction Mart. (Mon, Feb 10) Fresh from a championship and reserve double at last month’s second show, he returned to claim top spot at the February opener with another newly-calven heifer, the only entry from his renowned Ravensgate herd at Watergate Farm.

10 Dairy Another nice sale at the Craven Dairy Auction with 10 cattle stalled for sale and a sharp trade for the better sorts. Messrs Baul from Bishop Thornton made top price with the champion animal, when their pedigree NC Heifer sold for £2180. Robin Jennings form South Stainley topped his run of 4 Heifers at £2100 when his milky non pedigree heifer took the eye of a local buyer. A strong average of £1841 for all heifers represents a good result and we require more to help fulfil buyers requirements with a good regular attendance of local and travelled buyers. Today’s judge was Richard Throup Dalesbrad Herd. Speak to Sarah or Ted to book cattle in for the next sale on 24th February.

Rearing Calves to £300 (36) B&W av £53 Cont av £244 Native av £160 A disappointing small entry today but it was expected due to the number of vendors not calving late December and in January around the festive period. More calves are needed week on week out with purchasers travelling distances to buy calves more are needed regularly.

7 Dairy The second sale in the month saw a couple of heifers from Peter Baul’s Ravensgate herd hit the highlights from an entry of 7 head. The first prize heifer was Ravensgate Symion Muscome, calved 20 days and on 28 litres, out of a Woodmarsh Topshot cow who’s dam had given 3 yields of over 10,000 litres she sold for £2400. Messrs Bauls second offering also came from the Muscome family with Ravensgate Elias Muscome with a PLI£283, she sold for £2300. Messrs Bell from Cowling presented a nice pedigree heifer calved 3 weeks on 27 litres selling at £1700, and Robert Crisp had a very fresh commercial heifer at £1600. A mid lactation heifer from Messrs GW Leggott, North Yorkshire sold at £1450. Next sale is in 2 weeks time, Monday 10th February, entries now being taken in the Mart Office or please speak to Sarah Liddle on 07710 795585, thankyou.

10 Newly Calved Dairy Thanks to all vendors and purchasers who kicked off the New Year with a great sale at Craven Cattle Market today (Monday 13th January) Judge Martyn Jennings chose Brian Moorhouse’s Aireburn Pety Scilla 2 as Champion and she made top price of £2380 to Brian Blezzard. Reserve Champion went to first time consignors Messrs Petch from Great Ayton with Aytonian Buttercup 389 who was bought by Mark Goodall for £2250. 8 heifers averaged £1856 and one 5th calved cow from Messrs Parkinson’s ongoing dispersal made £980. Next sale 27th January contact Sarah Liddle on 07710 795585 or Ted Ogden with entries or for more details- meanwhile private sale demand is strong with all classes of stock wanted for retained clients so get in touch.

Rearing Calves to £430 (111) B&W av. £66 Cont av. £269 Native av. £201 A good attendance of buyers ready to fill pens after the break but most buying with caution in the light of an uncertain beef market. Native breed bulls continue to be the most resilient week on week with most £250 to £325 and the heifers £130-£190. The best Continental bulls are still £360-£430 the latter the top price of the day for the Champion calf a British Blue bull from A Sowray&Son. Strong British Blue Heifers are easy to buy with plenty either side of £250 and the best £300 +. Dairy bulls a month of age a strong trade £80 to £122 and even the bobby types a fair trade at £30 to £45.

Sowrays take top honours and top call at opening CCM Skipton rearing calf show The opening rearing calf show of 2020 at Skipton Auction Mart saw regular vendors the Sowray brothers, from Bishop Thornton, consign the overall champion, just as they did at the previous year’s New Year fixture. (Mon, Jan 6) The Sowrays - Shaun, Peter and Paul - who run their Holstein Friesian dairy herd at Bowes Green Farm, secured another in a long line of Skipton titles with their first British Blue-cross bullock, born on November 25 last year.

Forward: 74 Rearing Calves. 8 Dairy.

Cowling’s Chris Bell crowned champion on Craven Dairy Auction debut Making his first-ever appearance in the dairy show arena at Skipton Auction Mart, Cowling’s Chris Bell made an immediate impact when crowned champion at the final Craven Dairy Auction fixture of the year. (Monday, Dec 16) Chris, who trades as NA Bell and runs the Mireclose pedigree Holstein herd at the farm of the same name, bagged the title on his debut with a 23 days calved, 27 litre and rising heifer, Mireclose Galxzy Chesakate, by De-Su Freddie Galaxy, out of a home-bred daughter of Regancrest-Mr Drham Sam. She sold for £1,920 to ringside regular Brian Blezard, of Ribchester.