A small but high quality entry for the first sale of the year at Bristol resulted in a complete clearance and an average of £2,000+ per lot. A fine crowd of buyers turned up, many with their trailers and provided spirited bidding throughout.

Topping the sale, not for the first time, was Terry Cox from Shaftesbury in Dorset, who showed Holmead Talent Shower ET to make 2,700 guineas to an undisclosed West Wales buyer. 4 weeks calved this fine heifer is bred from 7 generations of VG / Excellent dams tracing back to the great Glen Drummond Shower EXD 11*. Shower was giving 35kg daily @ 4.8% BF.

Terry Cox also showed on behalf of flying vet David Coombes, Libertyview Zenith Raven ET VG-86. Superbly bred from 5 generations of Excellent cows this big, open, dairy second calf cow was 5 weeks fresh giving 40kg and travels to Newcastle Emlyn in Wales to join Martin Lowry’s well known Halen herd at 2,500gns.

Chris King from the Gold Cup winning Kingspool herd consigned 3 high quality heifers that all made 2,000gns, with Kingspool Samuelo Tatiana fresh giving 38.6kg, fetching 2,200gns, again off over the Severn Bridge to Wales.

Commercial heifers were not far behind their pedigree counterparts with regular supporter Adrian Ratcliffe achieving 2,200 guineas for his best heifer and David Walker from Bromsgrove averaging £1969 for his 4 with a top of 2,050guineas for a daughter of British Friesian sire Culverness Wallace.

A smart young bull consigned by Messrs Webber & Rickard from the Windy-Knoll-View Pala family made 1,400gns.

A special “Breeders Sale” is now being planned for March 27 at Bristol to run alongside the regular monthly event.

AVERAGES:                  

Auctioneers: NORTON & BROOKSBANK

with GWILYM RICHARDS & CO