A small, but primarily quality entry of 17 fully broken field-run working sheep dogs at CCM Skipton Auction Mart’s summer sale on Friday achieved a good clearance rate, with all but three sold to a top of 6,000gns, a further quartet making 4,000gns and upwards, another trio 3,000gns and above, both registered dogs and bitches achieving solid averages.

Carnforth beef and sheep farmer Colin Birkett finished 6,000gns top dog on price with his February, 2022, black and white bitch, Netherbeck Connie, by Jedbergh handler and regular Skipton buyer Frank Hickson’s Chase, out of the home-bred Millie.

The dam’s sister, Miff, took 4,300gns second top call at Skipton three years ago, while a similarly bred dog also sold there last October for joint second top of 4,440gns, so Colin said he was very pleased to at last finish top dog on price, with Connie falling to an unnamed Scottish buyer.

Next best at 4,800gns was another two-year-old entry, a March-born black and white bitch, Sal, from Rossendale’s Richard Holt, of Helmshore. She is a daughter of Welshman Kevin Evans’ dual European Nursery and Royal Welsh Champion Tanhill Glen, whose breeding has had such a major influence on Skipton selling prices in recent years.

Out of Tess, herself by Lockerbie sheep farmer Dean Aitken’s Tweeddale Buzz, Sal goes down to Wedmore in Somerset with on-field and first-time purchaser Ben Comer and will be put to work on a mixed sheep flock approaching 4,000 head.

Tony Birkett, younger brother of Colin by a couple of years and also from Carnforth, is regularly among the leading prices at Skipton and was right up there again when claiming 4,700gns with his fully home-bred May, 2022-born Bob.

The sire, Spot, himself a son of Kevin Evans’ Red Spot, was sold by Tony for 6,000gns at Skipton’s previous field sale in May and having already won and been placed in several nursery trials Bob caught the eye of another unnamed Scottish buyer.

Matching the 4,700gns selling price was Copperthorns Liz, a February, 2021, black and white bitch from another returning vendor, Paul Bouch, who farms at Kirkoswald in Cumbria's Lower Eden Valley.

Liz is by Jonah, the 2021 English National and International Brace Champion in the hands of Ricky Hutchinson, of Littledale Sheepdogs in Lancaster, out a solid farm dog, Kim, with the same parents also responsible for an eight-month-old bitch that topped the pup pen prices for Paul at 2,400gns at Skipton in 2021, another daughter of Kim making 5,500gns at the same venue the same year.

Liz found a local buyer in a familiar face in the Skipton livestock arena, Stephen Fawcett, of Drebley, purchased as a replacement for his ‘fantastic’ work dog Nan, now 14 and set to enjoy a well-earned retirement. Like her predecessor she will go to work on pure Swaledale ewes, pedigree Bluefaced Leicester and North of England Mule flocks at Fold Farm.

Another product of Ricky Hutchinson’s Jonah, a newly broken October, 2022, black, white and mottled dog, Naver, from Co. Durham regular Jean Howes, out of H Taylor’s Redgate Midge, also caught the eye at 3,000gns when joining Northallerton’s Howard Kitching.

Red Rose sheep farmer Michael Woods, of Lathom, Ormskirk, made 4,000gns with Cydros Roy, an April, 2022, red and white son of the Welsh-bred Dreamwork Fred, out of his own Fflos, also Welsh-bred and acquired as a youngster.

The buyer was Scottish Highlands’ hill farmer Raymond Ross, who had set off at midnight from his home in Rogart, Sutherland, to make the seven hour trip south on what was his first visit to the North Yorkshire venue.

He travelled down purposely in the hope of purchasing Roy after first seeing him at work on video and being impressed with his ‘strength and style.’ Mission successfully accomplished, Roy accompanied Raymond on the long drive back north and will go to work on a 700-strong flock of Scottish Cheviots.

Two further dogs easily topped 3,000gns, the best at 3,900gns a young, up-and-coming black and white bitch, Cadi, just turned 12-months-old from Gareth Jones, of Gwelfor, North Wales. She is a daughter of Clywd Bob, from another well-known Welshman Dewi Jenkins and another dog that has had a major impact on Skipton selling prices of late.

Out of South Wales handler Eirian Morgan’s Lil, Cadi also sold locally when joining South Craven brother and sister, Terry and Beverley Fort, who with parents Graham and Mandy run an award-winning 1,500-strong flock of pure Lleyn sheep at Brightonhouse Farm, Steeton.

Making 3,500gns and also joining an unnamed purchaser was local handler Richard Atkins, who runs Atkins Sheepdogs at Four Fields Farm, Oakworth, with his three-year-old black and white dog, Malta Glen, fully bred in Northern Ireland by Carlaine Thom, of Malta Border Collies, Co. Tyrone. By Malta Bob, now used as fell dog by Cumbrian trialling legend Arthur Temple, the dam, Tess, is also mother to Ricky Hutchinson’s £29,500 Malta Gin, which established a new world record selling price two years ago.

The tri-coloured Tess, herself a daughter of Netherlands-based former World Sheep Dog Trials champion Serge Van Der Sweep’s Gary, was actually sold at Skipton in 2019 as a 20-month-old for top call of 10,000gns by North Wales dog trainer Sion Jones, who runs Cefn Eithin Sheep Dogs in Corwen.

Four further dogs sold at 2,000gns and upwards. Selling averages for nine dogs and eight bitches were: Broken registered dogs from 2000g to 4700g, av £3395, broken registered bitches from 500g to 6000g, av £3705, part-broken registered dogs from 200g to 300g, av £280.

There’s another live field sale on Friday, October 11, followed by an online sale on Wednesday, November 27, the final working sheep dog fixture of the year at Skipton.