Erratic demand at Bendigo first-cross sales as buyers picky

Buyers were prepared to pay up to $440 for first-cross ewes at Bendigo, but the market was erratic. See the prices here.

It was erratic at times with some fickle results in the opening laneway of 1-1/2-year-old first-cross ewes, but today’s blue ribbon sale at Bendigo was still able to post a new spring high of $440.

The sale was the first of the major special crossbred ewe sales held in Victoria this spring, and following a difficult few weeks with flooding and record rainfall, most vendors and buyers walked into the yards not knowing what to expect.

The opening pen of 1-1/2-year-old ewes from David and Sue Collins of Bridgewater sold for $420 on a big weight of 84kg liveweight in a solid start to the sale.

The next pen of 182 ewes from Andy Hay and family then made $400, also on a big weight of 82kg liveweight.

Andrew Hay from Kamarooka with his pen of 181 first cross ewes weighing 81.7kg at the Bendigo first cross sale.

Then the market became erratic.

The lead draft of ewes from Golden Wattle – another well known name at this sale series – sold for $342 on a weight of 81kg liveweight.

A few pens on and there were 79kg ewes at $320, and another few pens on again and the sale dropped to $286.

Ewes lacking bloom due to the difficult weather, mulesed versus unmulesed sheep, repeat buyers chasing certain name lines, buyers shifting away from super-sized ewes showing a lot of fat, people buying to dollar per head limits – these were all theories discussed as the sale bounced along.

But then the market rallied again.

Selling action from the Bendigo first-cross ewe sale.

The top price of $440 was for 96 first-cross ewes from the Rathjen family.

There were multiple instances of breeders receiving more money for their second or even third drafts of ewes to their tops. An example was the Monmore ewes bred by Evan Bayliss of Laanecoorie. His lead pen sold for $380, followed the by seconds at $410.

“We certainly didn’t have any hopes set for prices as a lot of people are still affected by water,’’ he said.

“This sale has been up and down and the numbers might have helped us with the $410 pen as there was 108 in it compared to 173 ewes in the tops.’’

Only three pens of ewes sold above $400.

There was a price spread of $260 to $380 across most of the 1-1/2-year-old crossbreds, with the majority of the better-presented types tracking above $300.

Vendor Lynda Cartwright said the market lacked consistency, which couldn’t easily be explained at times.

“It was very variable – very up and down,’’ she said.

“I thought it might have been more even, particularly in the opening laneway as the sheep were very good.’’

The Cartwright ewes sold to a top of $385 after a tough run into the sale due to flooding that meant they had to be contained and fed hay.

“I think our name and reputation carried us today as we couldn’t access our usual finishing paddocks and our ewes don’t have the bloom like they usually do,’’ she said.

In the younger ewe lambs the top money of $375 was paid for the Collins lambs, which were well grown and joinable at 63kg birthweight. The noted Melrose ewe lambs made $350.

The ewe lambs outsold the 1-1/2-year-olds, with this section of the market having more price consistency and buying depth.

There were sales as high as $294 for ewe lambs that weighed 47kg live and would need growing out before joining, which had people commenting how it made the older 1-1/2-year-olds look good value on the day.