- Location
- Northumberland
f off to the brexit section!
Kelso tup sale.
- Thread starter Greythundercloudys
- Start date
- Location
- Montgomeryshire
It’s not the societies job to push in any particular direction. Different types of rams are in demand in Scotland, in the east of England, the SW and in Wales.
There is a type of sheep that comes from Aberdeen, seemingly regardless of breed. They are generally strong headed, plenty of bone, plain as lambs but can eat like buggery and grow into big mature weights. Not what I’m after using over my commercial flock!
In the West there tend to be thicker, fleshier types, and if I was to try to sell one of those bald headed Frenchy types here, i’d Be laughed at.
Variety is the spice of life, as they say.
Kelso has never been a great trade for selling Charollais, unless they are the big framey types with strong heads and plenty of wool, hardly a ‘typical’ Charollais.
sheepwise
Member
- Location
- SW Scotland
- Location
- Dumfries & Galloway
My point was maybe muddied.
I wasn't suggesting it was the societies job to 'dictate' type... what I meant was that you'd think the Scottish breeders within the society would try the other types is they are better and try to steer their version of the breed in that way. There is a reason the breed is losing ground and IMO they are holding the breed back themselves...
Outside Lanark, Kelso is THE Char sale in Scotland - they used to have 2 tents full of tups... now it's half of 1 tent.
sheepwise
Member
- Location
- SW Scotland
We used to sell 15 - 20 shearlings there every year but sell them all ex. farm now. Expensive place to sell is Kelso!
- Location
- Scottish Borders
I was wondering when the Scottish saviour of Charollais rams was going to appear ?
Were you at Kelso today ?
Were you at Kelso today ?
sheepwise
Member
- Location
- SW Scotland
Stayed at home to finish combining as great day forecast, p*ssed down at 11.00am
- Location
- Scottish Borders
Can’t like thatStayed at home to finish combining as great day forecast, p*ssed down at 11.00am
!
- Location
- Montgomeryshire
The best Charollais tups in Scotland are sold ex. farm.
I had you down as more in my ‘West’ category, as opposed to the Aberdeen types.
sheepwise
Member
- Location
- SW Scotland
Ok will rephrase that to, the best Charollais in the West of Scotland are sold ex. farm.I had you down as more in my ‘West’ category, as opposed to the Aberdeen types.
Utter nonsense.
livestock 1
Member
A good one will get great results. There’s plenty of the others though.
- Location
- Mendips Somerset
the char is a essentially cross between leicester and southdown (with other things added along the way ) the obvious choice for breeders and farmers is one based on the leicester side of family , bigger stronger looks the part in ring and farm but can be a bit nesh and harder to finish , but the best % of finished lambs often come from the southdown side , shorter legs better shape much tighter wool coat maybe even some wool headcover and since the texel and beltex has been "put in on the quiet " there are a lot more options with whiter heads .
whether you get on with them is often the choice of ram you tend to pick out , rather than the breed as a whole . its a incredibly varied type of sheep and needs more care in matching a type with your ewes .
livestock 1
Member
I just pick the really square well shaped tups. I have had some decent success with them on mule ewes. All the stories about them being soft at lambing time seem to be from people that haven’t tried one. They seem to come forward fat infront of the Suffolk and Texel here but not the Beltex. They don’t look very attractive as far as their heads if they go onto the mule. A bit Leicesterery looking which adds up after what you’ve told me. So not ideal to go through the stores. That’s not the tups fault after all