Ground conditions may not have been the best following some torrential rain on Friday, but town and country folk alike rallied to support the Caithness County Show, which, despite the forecast, enjoyed a good dry day and an abundance of spectators.
The event, staged this year at Wick, attracted the usual strong entry of cattle, sheep, ponies and poultry and with it being a week earlier than Sutherland Show this time, also drew in more exhibitors from the south.
While the sheep section was undoubtedly the largest, it was the supreme horse that led the proceedings to secure the overall “best in show”. That was Isabel More’s Ryehall Viscountess, a 12-year-old pony, ridden by her daughter, Emily Campbell, Mansefield, Watten.
Bred by the Ryehall Stud, Bedfordshire, and bought in October 2013, this Royalswood Prince Charming-sired pony, out of Gade Viola, has been shown at the Horse of the Year Show on several occasions and last year stood third at the Royal Highland Show and won a lot at Latheron and Canisby Shows.
Overall champion of champions judges, Clair Harper and his wife, Helen, said the horse champion was “very well made with great conformation and well mannered”, but it was a close decision between the pony and the top cattle champion, the commercial leader from Ian Sinclair, Clyth Mains, Lybster.
Taking him and stockman Kris Sutherland all the way to the main ring for the overall champion of champions, was Pentland Lady, a black Limousin cross heifer bred in Orkney by Balfour Baillie and purchased at the Thainstone Spectacular, for £3,800. This 17-month-old heifer was supreme cattle champion at Latheron the previous week.
Supreme beef judge Liam Muir, of Orkney, found his reserve cattle champion in the Beef Shorthorn leader, John Scott’s massive five-year-old bull, Dakota of Upsall, of Fearn, brought out by Jimmy Laing and his daughter Helen. Sired by Broughton Park Thunder, he was bought at Stirling in 2012 for 10,000gn and stood native champion at Grantown Show and inter-breed best in Ross-shire at the Black Isle, last year.
For the second time in three years, the team at Lynegar, Watten, dominated the top awards among the sheep, taking both the champion and reserve honours with home-bred sheep.
William Barnetson and sons James and William, took the silverware for overall sheep with a home-bred Texel cross gimmer out of a Texel cross Half-bred ewe. “She’s so bright, alert and correct. I knew she would be hard to beat as soon as I saw her,” said inter-breed sheep judge Brian Buchan, of Clinterty, New Aberdour, who found his reserve winners in the commercial champion – a ewe with twin lambs at foot, also from Lynegar.
This winning team comprised a home-bred three-crop Suffolk cross Half-bred ewe with February-born twin Texel lambs at foot. They were on their first outing from the Barnetson’s 750-ewe flock.
Yvonne Spence also had a great day among a large continental sheep section, winning the championship and the inter-breed group of three honours with a trio of home-bred Charollais from Gowan Brae, Skye of Curr. This was made up of the section champion, Benmore Oops A Daisy, a gimmer, along with the second prize gimmer and first prize tup lamb, all from Gowan Brae.
Standing runner-up to that trio was the Suffolk group from William Manson, Skaill, Thurso, which comprised the champion, a home-bred ewe, along with the second prize ewe and first prize shearling ram.
Reserve overall horse was the Highland pony best, Donald of Muck, a six-year-old dun ridden stallion, from Amanda McLennan, Garth, St Ola.