Sheepdog pup sale smashes record in North Yorkshire
28th May 2021
A nine-week-old, untrained sheepdog has sold for £7,600 at Skipton Auction Mart, beating the previously held record of £6,100.
High-selling pup. Credit: Daveswinburn.myportfolio.com
The prior record was established at Skipton’s previous online sale in January for an 11-week-old black and white bitch, Bet, from another well-known Welshman David Evans.
The average price for a working dog is believed to be approximately £2,000.
The distinctly coloured lilac and white sheepdog puppy was born on the 12th March 2021 on Glynne Jones’ farm in Wales. Described fondly as ‘no ordinary border collie’, Pentir Lassie is now settling into her new home with owner Damian Barson.
Farmers Guide caught up with Damian this week to find out more.
Glynne Jones of Pentir Sheepdogs with Graylees Cêt and Pentir Lassie. Credit: daveswinburn.myportfolio.com
This was “no impulse buy” for Damian, a gundog trainer and dog behaviourist based in Lancashire.
He has lived in a rural location for 20 years and surrounded by farms, has always wanted to start his own smallholding.
After the disruption and challenges of the pandemic, Damian decided it was time to get on with following his dream and has started his own flock of Ryeland sheep.
With a pack of gundogs including a mix of spaniels and labradors, Damian was not short of four-legged assistants for his new Tessleymoor flock but decided that owning and training a border collie would be a rewarding experience.
After following the progress of the well-known shepherdess, Emma Gray who featured on BBC’s This Farming Life, Damian was interested to hear there was a first litter coming from her dog, Reiver Gray.
This led him to Glynne Jones of Pentir Sheepdogs, near Bangor in Gwynedd, who has bred the litter with his own Graylees Cêt, producing stunning pups, including some in the rare lilac colour.
Reiver Gray. Credit: daveswinburn.myportfolio.com/
Damian has upped security at his farm in Lancashire in preparation for bringing Pentir Lassie home this week, a serious concern shared with many farmers over recent years.
Alongside increased security, there is a new brand for Tessleymoor Gundogs, proving Pentir Lassie is a fine investment and welcome addition to the Tessleymoor family.
Damian paid a high price in recognition of her top quality breeding from the best DNA tested bloodlines in the UK.
As he says: “This is a pup with everything. She’s part of the foundations of the farm I am building and I can’t wait to get started with training her.”
New owner of Pentir Lassie, Damian Barson of Tessleymoor Gundogs. Credit: daveswinburn.myportfolio.com.
Pentir Lassie’s family name will be ‘Skye’, Damian said: “it’s a name that sits well with my other whisky themed dogs and shows her Celtic roots. The Isle of Skye has its origins in the Norse words for clouds, so the true meaning is Island of Clouds.”
“With her blue eyes and misty coat, we think Skye is a name she’ll live up to.”
She is settling in well to life on the farm and is described as a “healthy, confident and lively pup.”
