SHEEP farmers are looking forward to their first Mid Wales get together with the return of the NSA Wales and Border Early Ram Sale next week.

It will be the first time that sheep farmers are gathering at the Royal Welsh Showground since 2019. The event will be held on Monday, August 2, and will be the first high point of the farming calendar at the Builth Wells venue.

Several hundred top rams will be offered for sale. It generally sets the standard for the year and, at the last sale in 2019, a Texel shearling sold for 1,400 guineas. Farmers will be glad to meet and catch up with friends, but are asked to respect Covid precautions. There will be masks, sanitisers and other Covid protocols in place.

One farming family that will certainly be in attendance are Gwyn and Hazel Davies who farm in the Black Mountains.

An exceptional view from the Black Mountains in the west, over the Brecon Beacons and Pen y Fan forms the backdrop to the production of pedigree sheep at Caebetran Farm, near Brecon.

There, Gwyn and Hazel breed pedigree Texel sheep, while son Chris breeds Blue Texels. They also run a flock of 300 Texel X commercial ewes, with the lambs sold into the Waitrose scheme at between 40 and 44 kilos. Gwyn and Hazel have been selling at NSA Wales & Border Ram Sales for about 30 years.

“The most we’ve taken has been about 25. The standard has got higher now, so we take about a dozen or so. We take a few less and just make sure that they’re the best quality that we’ve got,” said Gwyn.

“Sellers come from all over the country and buyers as well. So you’ve got to take your best sheep there. We went to our local markets last year, which was very nice but you only got a small group of people from the local area to buy.

“Previously, we’ve sold lambs as far as the north of England, north and south Wales, the eastern counties, all over. You get a better price with a big crowd of people.

“And the buyers have got a lot of choice and they can buy in one day. A buyer will come to our pen and then go off to the Charolais and then off to another breed. They can get what they want all in one day.”

The family also enjoy the social aspect and the opportunity to go around and look at other sheep. They catch up with friends they may not have seen since the previous year.

Gwyn, Hazel and Chris sorely missed the sale last year – not realising how reliant they were on it until it wasn’t there. Gwyn said prices were definitely down as a result and Hazel agrees. “It’s nice to compare the sheep and look around,” she said. “It’s such an important shop window. And we also buy stock rams while we’re there. So it’s a two way thing.

“People will travel from a good way to Builth Wells, because of the number of sheep there and the quality of sheep as well, all under one cover. And of course, it’s so good to talk.”

The family breed for the commercial buyer, who wouldn’t pay the very high prices for the most select lines. It makes life simpler, because they don’t have the added costs of embryo transfer to aim for elite breeding. The rams are ideal for crossing, but probably not the quality demanded by the top breeders.

The rams are fed, but not excessively. They’re on grass as much as possible and always out, lambing in from the end of February, with the ewes carrying twins getting creep. The lambs are fed creep after weaning and are out on grass again in the spring until about eight weeks before the sale.

Chris began his Beacons View Blue Texel flock in order to improve his trimming skills. Their dense fleece lends itself to trimming, which isn’t allowed in the Texel breed. He has developed a 30-strong flock, from the initial four ewes he purchased seven years ago.

“They’ve got lovely markings and colours and are a very attractive breed,” said Chris. “So it was good to start with them and my interest just grew.

“Then you meet people along the way in the breed and you make friends for life on the pedigree circuit.”

The140-acre farm is 1,000 feet above sea level, and Gwyn says it’s important to make the very best of everything. And so, they decided to specialise in producing pedigree Texel rams. They now have a flock of 70 pedigree ewes and the rams are an important income stream. There are also 30 Limousin X Belgian Blue suckler cows, with the calves sold at 10 to 12 months in the Brecon Store Cattle Sales.

The family show at local events, to build up and reinforce the reputation of the flock. They have enjoyed success too, including a championship at the NSA Wales & Border Sales society show.

Hazel also runs self-catering units from the farm and says guests take a keen interest in the stock.

The entries for the sale can be viewed here: https://www.nationalsheep.org.uk/nsa-ram-sales/early-sales/catalogues/.