The Donegal Friesian Breeders Club held its annual show and sale at Raphoe Mart on Wednesday (March 1) where an average sale price of €2,455 was achieved.
A total of 34 high-quality lots were on offer on the day, which included heifers with yields up to 36L/day. A strong demand on the day resulted in a full 100% clearance.
Donegal Friesian Breeders club
The Donegal club’s show and sale is a long-established and highly successful annual event and is an opportunity to bring to market quality calved heifers from some of the leading herds in the county.
This year’s sale saw 18 of the heifers on offer achieve prices in excess of €2,500.
Judge of the pre-sale show was Alexander Tinney who runs the Drumcairn herd in Co. Letterkenny.
Top price at this year’s sale was Lot 33, Ballyelly Malachi Pietje. Bred by Trevor Lockhart, this lot sold for €3,250.
Calved since mid-February and aged just 23 months, she is yielding 29L/day.
She was bred from the Pietje family with her grand-dam Ballyelly Massey R Pietje (VG88) recorded over 10,000kg of milk and 795kg of milk solids in her second lactation of 298 days.
The second-highest priced animal, which also came from the Ballyelly herd, selling for €3,150 was Lot 21, Ballyelly Cyprus Blue.
Reserve Champion at the pre-sale show and calved one month, she is yielding 32L/day.
Her dam Ballyelly Allround Bleu (VG88) recorded over 10,000kg of milk at 4.63% fat and 3.50% protein, producing 843kg of milk solids in her second lactation of 305 days.
The next highest price went to the pre-sale champion heifer, again from the Ballyelly herd.
Lot 12, Ballyelly Pepper Wonder 2, calved 50 days is yielding 32L/day.
She is projected to produce 8,200kg of milk and 590kg of milk solids in her first lactation.
From left to right; Honourable Mention, Champion, Reserve and fouth placed heifer
Image Donal Carey IHFA
Sample prices
Some more of the top-end prices from this year’s sale include Lot 39, Culcara Carlino Joy, bred by Charles McCandless.
Selling for €2,900, she was calved 40 days and is yielding 31L/day.
Her grand-dam Culcara Rubens Joy (VG88) achieved a lifetime longevity of ten lactations and attained Irish Holstein Friesian Association (IHFA) Gold award status for surpassing 3,000kg of protein production.
Next was Lot 3, Monien Jesteen 8 bred by Alan Macbeth, who sold for €2,740.
Her sire is Mountfarna Celebrity EX90 and her dam is Monien Jesleen 5 (GP84), who recorded 9,123kg of milk and 634kg of milk solids in her first lactation of 305 days.
She was closely followed by Lot 38, Monien Titan Rosina, also bred by Alan Macbeth.
Selling for €2,700 and calved two weeks, she is yielding 31L/day.
Lot 29, Inishowen Pivotal Cindy, bred by Ian Mc Keague, sold for €2,500. Calved one month she is milking 28L/day.
She was sired by Kilfeacle Pivotal (FR4728) and has an economic breeding index (EBI) of €249.
She is bred from six generations of VG/EX dams. Her Dam Inishowen Reliable Cindy (VG88) who recorded 10,074kg of milk at 4.58% fat and 3.62% protein.
Producing 826kg of milk solids in her second lactation of 305 days.