The McGee family hosted their inaugural online-only sale of production heifers last weekend, in conjunction with Mid-Tipp Mart and MartEye.
The sale consisted of 41 “elite” breeding heifers and witnessed a 100% clearance.
Bidding took place online via the MartEye app from Friday, November 26, to Monday, November 29, and according to statistics from the online sales platform, a total of 3,240 bids were placed by 224 unique bidders from both Ireland and the UK.
The sale attracted huge interest with the sales catalogue being viewed over 143,000 times and over 5,000 people watching the close of the sale on Monday night.
Every heifer in the sale sold for over €2,000 and the top price went to Lot 1 ‘She’s the one’ with the successful bidder taking the heifer home at €18,000.
The top-priced heifer in the sale was a March 2020-born Limousin-cross (LMX) heifer of a Belgian Blue cross (BBX) dam sired by Empire.
The heifer’s sire was a hybrid bull (75% Lim/25% BB).
According to the sale description of the heifer, Lot 1 was described as “combining the very best of both Pearse McNamee’s and Derek Forde’s breeding”.
“This heifer has it all. Depth of breeding, visual appeal and of an age ready to work straight away.”
The heifer was also described as “naturally born off an ‘Empire’ heifer, in turn a daughter of Pearse’s ‘Gizmo’ CHX cow (52xepi) and sired by our stock bull, a hamlet son of Derrick’s famous ‘Elisa’ LMX cow”.
The description concluded: “We believe this heifer will make a fantastic foundation female for someone wanting to breed those top show calves. She is scanned correct and right and in fantastic fettle to flush this minute.”
Other notable prices from the McGee’s sale was Lot 20 ‘Foreign Affair’ a January 21-born Belgian Blue cross heifer.
This heifer – also sired by a Belgian Blue-cross hybrid bull sold at €8,500.
The McGee family’s online sale drew to a close on Monday evening on a lot-by-lot basis.