Sheep Ireland’s 12th Annual Multi-Breed Ram sale took place on Saturday, August 27th, in Tullamore Mart. This was the largest ever catalogued ram sale in Ireland, with the highest entry criteria ever set for any Irish ram sale, making it a truly unique and elite sale.
The sale had an overall clearance of 87%, slightly up on 2021 at 84%. The average price all 9 breeds on the day was €664, up €46 from the 2021 average of €618. Rams were sold to all 26 counties, making it a truly national sale.
The level of engagement from the breeders who entered this sale was fantastic. Breeders had a lot of hurdles to cross before entering a ram in this sale, and commercial farmers are rewarding them for this. More and more commercial farmers are demanding top-quality, physically correct rams with excellent breeding values (€uro-Stars) to back it up. Each year the number of pedigree breeders’ performance recording is increasing and each year the number of commercial farmers searching for €uro-Stars before they purchase is also rising. All this bodes well for the sheep industry, and Sheep Ireland intends to keep this positive trend on the rise for next year.
Sheep Ireland is very happy with the average clearance and prices, as this shows a good balance between the supply of rams at the sale and the demand to buy them.
This years sale had the highest levels of entry criteria ever needed to enter a ram sale, making the collection of rams and breeders on the day amongst the most elite in the country.
- Every breeder was required to have a Data Quality Index (DQI) of 70%+.
- Every flock in the sale needed to be genetically linked.
- Every ram must have passed a thorough physical inspection (7% of rams were rejected on the morning of the sale based on physical inspections).
- Every ram in the sale must be 5 Star (Top 20% of the breed) on either the Replacement or Terminal Index.
- Every ram was DNA sire verified to increase the confidence to potential buyers, and 57% were also Dam verified.
- Every ram in the sale must have a Genomic Evaluation
To see the catalogue from the sale click here.
RING ONE
Belclare
The first breed through Ring one was the Belclares with 58 rams catalogued. The Belclares had the highest Replacement Index at the sale with a remarkable average of €7.27. They also had 95% of their entries fully parentage verified, the highest of the breeds entered in the sale. The Belclares had a clearance rate of 70% and an average price of €475. Prices for the Belclares ranged from €300 to €800.
Oltore Gino, bred by Tim Keady of Co. Galway got the highest price of €800 for the Belclares.
He was fully parentage verified with Replacement and Terminal Indexs both in the Top 2% of his breed.
Lleyn
The Lleyn’s had 11 animals entered in the sale with a clearance 58% on the day. The average price of €464, ranging from €400 to €600.
The Lleyns had an average Replacement value of €5.46.
The top price in the Lleyns was €600 for 24192101476, bred by David Beattie, Co. Cavan. He is ranked in the Top 5% of the breed on the Replacement Index and Top 8% of the breed on the Terminal Index.
Border Leicester
Next up was the Border Leicester who had the smallest consignment in the sale with two rams from Coote Geelan’s flock. The two rams were bought for €520 and €580.
IE043083401533D has a replacement value of €3.56, placing him in the Top 6% of his breed on the Replacement index.
Rouge de l’Ouest
Rouge de l’Ouest had 9 rams catalogued from 3 different flocks. With 89% sold and an average price of €501. These rams were very strong on the Replacement index with an average value of €5.22.
Seeorum Nobby (Pictured) bred by Oliver & Claire Keaskin went under the hammer at €1000, securing the top price for the Rouge de l’Ouest. This ram was in the Top 2% of the Terminal index and top 8% in the Replacement Index with excellent Lamb survival of 2.60%.
Vendeen
Next up was the Vendeens. They had 32 rams catalogued, double from the 2021 number of 16. The Vendeens had a clearance of 72%. The average price for a Vendeen was €513 with a range from €300 to €800. The Vendeens have done excellent work in terms of DNA Parentage Verification, with 94% of rams entered fully parentage verified.
Cheryl O’Brien took the top price for the Vendeens, with the top price of €800 going for Quitrent Alessandro. He was in the Top 2% of the breed for the Terminal index and Top 3% for Days to Slaughter. He is fully parentage verified.
Charollais
The Charollais were the final breed of the day through Ring One with 108 rams catalogued, the second-largest breed at the sale. The Charollais had a good day in terms of clearance rates, with a 93% clearance rate. The average sale price was €677 with the range from €400 to €1,500. The Charollais breed had the best average Terminal Index, with an average Terminal index of €2.21.
David Argue from Co. Cavan took the top honours for the Charollais selling a ram lamb for €1,500 (H2822059) from the Rockdale flock. He was in the Top 2% on the Terminal index.
RING TWO
Suffolk
First into ring two was the Suffolks with 58 animals catalogued, making them the third-largest breed in the sale. The Suffolks achieved an excellent average price at the sale with each ram selling for an average of €701, however, the price range was wide, going from €400 to €1,500 and a clearance rate was 88%. The Suffolks had the highest average accuracy at the sale, with an average Terminal Index accuracy of 76%.
William J. Hutchinson claimed the top spot in the Suffolks, selling a grass-fed hogget CHAPELIZOD VINN for €1,500. He is ranked in the Top 2% on the Terminal and Replacement Index.
Hampshire Down
The Hampshire Downs had 8 rams entered this year from three different breeders. They had a clearance of 75% with an average price of €380. Prices ranged from €320-€460. These rams had an impressive average Terminal Index value of €1.62.
A twin ram (Newtown Camden) from Adrian Curtin’s flock with a DQI of 95% snatched the top price of €460. This ram had an impressive Days to Slaughter in the Top 1% of the breed at -18.5 days.
Texel
The Texels had the largest number of entries in the sale with 149 rams catalogued. This didn’t affect their clearance much as they achieved a mind-blowing clearance of 97% with the highest average price of the sale at €761. The average Texel ram in the sale had a notable Terminal Index of €1.60. The prices in the Texels ranged from €340 to a staggering €1,420.
The top price went to MURPHYS FERNANDO, bred by Michael & Aidan Murphy. He is in the Top 3% of the Replacement and Top 6% on the Terminal Index with an accuracy of 76%. This ram is a double threat as he is strong in both the Terminal and maternal traits.
Finally, Sheep Ireland would like to thank everyone else who contributed to the running of the sale, including the auctioneers, the mart staff, ram inspectors, breeders and buyers.
Sheep Ireland looks forward to another successful sale next year.