A MAY Day bank holiday bonanza at Skipton Auction Mart featured multiple shows for breeding sheep, calves and primestock.

Almost 3,000 head of breeding sheep were penned for sale, comprising 747 outfits of hoggs with 1,093 lambs at foot and 1,059 geld gimmer hoggs.

Brothers John and George Stapleton, of High Skibeden Farm, Skipton, took first prize in the Continental show class with their pen of five home-bred Texel-cross hoggs with single Beltex lambs at foot.

They sold for the joint top call of £260 per outfit, with the Stapletons also responsible for the third prize pen, which made the same money. Both joined Geoff and Margaret Booth, Lothersdale.

The Mule hoggs with lambs show class fell to David and Jacqui Coates, Coniston Cold. Their five-strong Texel-cross-Beltex pen with single lambs sold for £225 per outfit to U Edmonson, Millom.

Mules were judged by Margaret Watkinson, of Hutton Sessay, who awarded first prize in the geld hoggs show class to a pen of 10 from father and son, Raymond and Robert Johnson, Felliscliffe. They sold for £135 per head to BT Bowness, Kendal.

The Johnsons also did well with their Mule hoggs and single lambs, taking second prize in show and topping the section prices at £230 per outfit with a five-strong pen which also fell to Mr Edmonson.

Generally, Texel outfits regularly made £200-plus, with the best Mules with lambs either side of £200 and some more commercial types of hoggs with lambs £160-£180.

Of the other breeding sheep, Beltex outfits from Cecil Hutchinson, Kirkby Wiske, sold to a top of £360 for a ewe with twin lambs, claimed by Mike Allen, Staithes, while the Critchley family, from Hutton sold a Texel shearling and twins for £280.