Melton Mowbray breed sale prices

[Mark Bowles]

A strange type of sale, prices down on last year, very low prices for some cattle of poorer quality.
Top prices
Saltaire Nail Red non-short bull 1200gns
Saltaire Phlox Red non-short bull 1120gns
Snowgate Fan Heifer with first calf 1550gns
Pointon Sarah black short heifer 840gns
Linford Elderberry short black cow with short heifer at foot 1050gns
Dickshill Jermima horned red cow with heifer calf at foot 850gns

[Rob R]

Does anyone know what is the highest ever price paid for a Dexter?

[SteveM]

There seemed to be as large a crowd as last year, and the better quality animals attracted the premium prices.

As a potential buyer the quality animals were dear enough.

Whether the sellers wer happy I don't know, though there didn't seem to be very many that were unsold.

[ann]

I personally thought that if you had a good eye for an animal and checked them out before the sale there was some very good animals going cheap. the problems with sales is that you only have to have two people with deep pockets and a determination to have the same animal then you get a good price.

I think some animals where given away, but with hay being in short supply in some area's and one herd sale, some animals where probably sold where in better curcumstances they would have been taken home. At least with home sales I think you can be more choosy and you don't have to take into account all the problems if you decide to take your animals home, sales have a very important place as a good guide to prices, but in my case I think the jury is still out, as to whether I would trail anything down to Melton Mowbray to sell, and I bet most of the top quality animals have been sold privately at home. Plus I really object to marking animals in my catalogue as not forward only to find that they had not passed inspection and where thrown in at the end, surely the auctioneer could have mentioned this when he was selling that certain numbers would be sold at the end