Border Leicester Sheep - Kelso Ram Sales 2006

Kelso Ram Sales 2007

With the current livestock movement restrictions, due to the outbreak of foot and mouth disease in Surrey, Kelso Ram sales have been postponed to a date yet to be confirmed.

In the meantime we are pleased to be able to offer outstanding Border Leicester shearling rams which were destined for Kelso.
These rams have been bred by the breeders on this website and offer all the qualities which our buyers look for year after year- superb skins, correct conformation, white hair and great carcases.

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The Doulton Flock

The Doulton Flock was founded in 1997 with the purchase of two ewe lambs from Lanark Auction Mart. Following on from that, animals were carefully selected from both dispersal sales, (Low Milton, Lynegar, Balbinny) and from several leading flocks, including Tweedside and Fordafourie, with particular care taken regarding confirmation and breeding.

Initially rams were used by sharing with other flocks, and the use of Glenside Grandee (ex stock ram in the Tweedside Flock) and his son, Doulton Daredevil, began to set a type in the flock which has been maintained through the purchase of Kilphin Gentleman Jim, Plenders Persuader (top price in Kelso in 2004) and Knockglass Knockdown, who are sires of this years Kelso offering.

The aim is to produce well grown rams with good body conformation, correctly placed on their legs, with good mouths and white hair.

The Doulton Flock has achieved the top average at Kelso in each of the last three years as well as having the pre sale show Champion in 2004 and 2006, using the same sires as the rams for sale this year.

We believe our 2007 offering of 8 rams at Kelso will show that these criteria are being met.

All rams at Kelso will be certificated as negative for CLA by testing by SAC.

The Knockglass Flock

Stranraer based John Barrowman has been dedicated to the breed since receiving a gift of four new lambs from his uncle 40 years ago. John's stock tup Didcot Touch O Class, bought two years ago at Thainstone, has all the qualities that John is keen to emphasise in the breed. He is very correct with tremendous confirmation and great hindquarters and gigots-all of which he is passing on to his offspring. It is definitely important to choose a quality sire for crossing - one with plenty of size and carcase.

This year Knockglass have 7 Shearling rams for sale.

The Lyham Flock

At North Lyham Border Leicesters are the hub of a closed flock enterprise involving North Country Cheviots, Scotch Half Bred and Vendeen. The main use of the Border Leicester here is to be crossed with a Cheviot to produce the Scotch Half Bred Ewe, queen of the commercial ewes.

The Border Leicesters are members of the Sire Reference Scheme (a breed development and improvement scheme). Different traits are measured and recorded to give E.B.V.s (estimated breeding values). The most important of these traits are:-

1. 8 week weights - the most important maternal traits which tells you how well the lambs mother milks.
2. 21 week weights - these are taken at scanning and tell you each individual lambs growth rate.

3. Muscle depth - measured at scanning - animals with high muscle depth EBV's will increase lamb muscularity and hence the lean meat content of the carcase. 10 shearling rams are on offer at Kelso Ram Sales via John Swan Limited, including the Champion Shearling Ram from the Border Union Show.

The Upperbolton Flock

Will and Avril clark, together with their sons Andrew and James, have been at Upper Bolton for over 20 years. The Clark family, however, have been here for more than 60 years.

"We started up the Border Leicester flock again because, back in the late 19th century, the Clark family was well known as Border Leicester breeders with the Hamstocks prefix flock number BL33 and because we believe that the Border Leicester breed still has an important part to play in the future of today's sheep industry."

This year Upperbolton have 4 Shearlings and a 2 shear ram for sale.

All the rams are well grown, good skinned sheep.