The Blelack herd name can be found in the back breeding of many top pedigree cattle the length and breadth of the UK and Ireland. This isn’t limited to one breed. Instead they leave there mark on three – Angus, Charolais and Shorthorn. With a change in circumstances and children not wanting to farm full-time, the decision was made by the Massie family, based in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, to reduce its Angus herd, as well as dispersing fully the Charolais and Shorthorn herds.

The first of these herds to go under the hammer was the renowned Blelack Angus herd. With numbers currently in at around 100 calving down, this is hoped to be dropped to 60, so a sale of all the spring-calving cattle took place. This didn’t disappoint, with the 83 head of cattle on offer selling to average over 6,000gns a piece for everything from six-month-old calves to senior cows. In short, the sale brought in a cool £500,000 for the Massie family.

This was topped by the 2009-born Blelack Lady Eraline J258, which sold for a new breed record of 35,000gns, breaking the previous record of 32,000gns set by the same family at their dispersal four years ago. She sold as a total outcross for UK breeders having being bred from an embryo which came from the Oneills farm in America. Sired by Oneills Renovator, she is out Oneills Lady Eraline 100, and sold to Hannah Heerman of Balavil Estate, Kingussie, Inverness. Balavil Estate went on to buy a further 25 animals to total 181,000gns.

Some of these purchases included the five-year-old cow Blelack Miss Bangle L613 by Blelack Duke at 15,000gns plus her calf at 5,000gns and another five-year-old Blelack Eyrie L816 by Oakchurch Dominator at 13,000gns with her calf adding another 4,500gns.

The estate were also successful in acquiring the top-priced calf on the day, Blelack Toplass S655 at 11,000gns. Sired by Haymount Wavarlo, she is out of Blelack Duke daughter Blelack Toplass M899 who Hannah Heerman also obtained at 11,000gns.

Selling directly after the record-breaker was her last days of March calf Blelack Lord Eston S649. Sired by stock bull Hallington Principal, he went on to sell for 10,000gns to Norbreck Genetics.

Overall, if we look at cow and calf prices together we get a better reflection of how good trade actually was on the day. Nine cows and calves made a combined 15,000gns or more, while a further eight pairs went on to sell between 10,000gns and 15,000gns.

Calves, both bulls and heifers from March, April and May of this year, ranged between 2,000gns and 11,000gns, averaging at over £5,000 apiece. Cows with younger calves at foot, in-calf cows and heifers ranged from 2,600gns to 35,000gns, averaging at nearly £7,500.

Charolais

On to the Charolais herd and the highs of the previous day weren’t to be repeated. The Charolais breed have been at Blelack over 40 years but over the last few years the family have being slowly downgrading from the once 100-cow herd. Just last year the herd sold off the autumn-calving part in Carlisle to a record average of 7,475gns.

However, Tuesday’s average only came to half of this with 85 lots averaging 3,585gns. There were very few standout prices, with the main highs coming in the last few lots when the herd’s stock bulls came through the ring.

Topping trade on the day was the three-year-old stock bull Oakchurch Igor ET, this Goldies Eddy son contained Blelack breeding on three sides of the grand ancestry and attracted a flurry of bids before the hammer finally dropped at 30,000gns. Successful buyers on the day were Swalesmoor Farm, Yorkshire. It was again a stock bull who achieved the second top price of 12,000gns, this time Caylers Hustler, a Thrunton Dominator son.

Overall, cows with calves sold from between 2,500gns and 6,500gns, in calf cows 1,600gns to 8,000gns while maiden and in calf heifers came in at between 1,200 and 5,500gns.