The West of Ireland Registered Pedigree Suffolk Sheep Breeders Club will host their second sale of in-lamb shearlings and ewe lambs in Athenry Mart on Friday, November 3.
There will be over 60 female sheep at the mart in Co. Galway, which can be viewed from 5:30p.m, before the ‘Western Stars’ sale will begin at 7.00pm.
40 in-lamb ewes and 21 ewe lambs will be available for purchase on the night, and all ewes forward on the night will be scanned in-lamb and will be veterinary checked prior to the sale.
Last year, the inaugural sale saw a 100% clearance on shearling ewes, with the trend of providing sheep from many of the top bloodlines in the UK and Ireland set to continue.
The top price of last years sale went to an ewe lamb from the Summerhill flock of Mattie and Kevin Kelly, sired by the €26,000 Forkins McCoy, which took the top price of €2,000bought by Suffolk breeder Barney Carroll from Cregcarragh, Co. Galway.
Bidding will take place both ringside and online via Marteye, and transport will be available back to the vendors farm if buyers are unable to attend in person on the night.
Suffolk sheep
Founded in 1971, the club breeders have sought to enhance the breeding lines of their flocks to produce premium quality Suffolk sheep, through investing in both high profile stockrams and in the introduction of top quality female bloodlines throughout the west of Ireland.
The club have said many of the club flocks have produced national champions at society events as well as champions at provincial levels, with a number of flocks placing in the top five spots at the National Suffolk Championships in 2023.
Service sires used are from some of the highest profile flocks in Ireland including the Shannagh, Malinhead, Kells, Loughrynn, Carragh and Limepark flocks with UK service sires from Solwaybank, Burnview, Limestone and Benrafton Flocks.
All service sires used are fully registered, from various bloodlines and genotyped or with genotype in process so buyers can purchase with confidence knowing that lambs can be registered into the Suffolk Sheep Society South of Ireland.
The club says that many of the top breeders in the west of Ireland have stock forward for sale which gives the opportunity for aspiring Suffolk breeders to purchase first class foundation stock to establish new flocks or for existing breeders to add excellent bloodlines to their flock.
These breeders will be available to offer advice and assistance to prospective new breeders and to offer valuable insights into the genetics on offer.
