GOOD MARKETS FOR LIVE STOCK

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 159, 23 July 1937, Page 7

GOOD MARKETS FOR LIVE STOCK

Dairy Cattle The Only Exception WEEK'S SALES REVIEWED Except for dairy cattle, live-stock this week met good markets, aud, despite the shortage of feed, values for store shqep continue to hold up Well. The market for dairy cows has been depressed. Hawke 's Bay is, however, not uniqne in this respeCt, as at Addington this week a drop in ^values of £5 a head is teported. The outstandifig selling of the Week was for i'at cattle on Wednesday. The very short yarding, combined With tho fact that the butchers wete holding short suppliesj saw prices Soar to almost amaaing levels." Several of the butchers were faeed with no alternative but to enter the competition; otherwise, as one butcher said, it would mean elosing up the shop. The day was certainly a bad oue for the butchers, who stand very little chance of showing a margin at the present retail prices, no matter how flnely they attempt cut-tiug-up to advantage. A heavier yarding next week of secondary and inferior unfinished sorts is not likely to meet with the boom. prices which characterised the selling this wdek, as the butchers will not be caught napping. Opportunities like those on Wednesday come* only once in a long time. Some system of regulating the weekly supplies of fat cattle into the yards, if it could be adopted, would be to the ultimat'e advantage of both the vendor and the buyer. Due to the irfegular yardiugs that have been made during the last twelve months, both have suffered, Store-Cattle Pens Deserted. The peils for store cattle were deserted on Wednesday, and it was almost impossible to recognise the day as the sale day. Prices have not been attractive enough to encourage owners of station-bred cattle to come on to the market, and cnany are holding out against the present difiicult period in the hope that a recovery will soontake place. On most of the runs weanerS appear to be holding their conditioii surprisingly well and are not perishing to the extent that was anticipated. Breeding ewes again predominated irf the yards this week. They were Chiefly aged entries which laekd quality. A uumber were described as a bit low in the mouth, which by no means over. stated the position. Some were ver y poorly mouthed and, from the shortage of fe,ed, appeared to have had a ^>articularly hard time. Eutries described as being just on the drop did not appear to be in any condition for thd rearing of lambs. Considerable attentiori will have to be given to these so that they may bring on their lambs reasonably well. * Farmers geuefklly fCpdrt that the lambs born to date are well developed and very stilrdy, but their rearing will depend upon ' the milk that their mothers give. EWeS in someWhat poor condition have frequently milked surprisingly well, but those that are down in tho mouth have tho odds against them. A taoticeable feature this week has- been the smalluess in the f rame of many of the ewes offered, Which teuded to aiake tlic'm a diilicult selling propositiou. Not Dear Buying. The better-quality linos haV6 not made dear buying, especially in' view of the prjce of wool. One well-known buyer stated that he Irad not knOwn store sheep to be so cheap when wool was selling so well. Hoggets are continuing to meet with a keen demand, with prices on the up grade. With the dying period considered to have passed, confldence has been restored in the buying of these sorts. The top lines oflered show promise of, developing into good two-tooths, and the lots shorn as lambs are likely to clip well. A large percentage of the hoggets oflered in both yards this week will be xailed to the King Country. One fafmer lifted practically all the good lines, including a big entry of 650* The ewe hoggets were small grown and backward and are not likely to be , of much use for breeding as two-tooths if they are not well cared for. Good management can achieve a great deal, as last season a line of cull ewe lambs brought down from a statidn property to Pakowhai were brOught on splendidly and went very close to topping the market at the second ewe fair. For dairy cows the bottom appeats to have l'allen out of the market. The prices for the Kutefe flerd of grade jerseys cifl'ered at Stortford Lodge yesterday wei'e cousiderably below their values. These high-quality cows, backetl by high-producing records under test, were a great proposition1 for dairymen, although some were late calvers. Tho keifers provided the best selling, and iuost of these will be railed to the Waikato. Earlier in the week three trucks of heifers were railed northwards. Jiist how long dairying hx llawke'e Bay can staud the heavy exodus of youug stoek to the Waikato remains to be oeen. A large percentage of the best of the young stoek is leaviug the province, and if continued it must have a reaetion. Te Kiltcre Hcrd. Yesterday '& offering of the Kutere herd shoWed plalnly that the saleyard is no place for a clearing sale of a dftify lJCld. The buyers do uot eflter into tho s&iiie atitiosphero as ivlieu a sale is held on a fariu. it is also very questionablc wliether fhe eotvs show up as well in the yai'ds as they do on Ihe farm, wliere tliey have not boeu reuioved from tlieir natuial eokditions and are not.empty as they aro alter liaving beeu on the road for two or three days. The special dairy sale at Waipukurau ofi JVlouday was a great disappoiutfneilt. Dairymen both as sellers and btoyers were conSpicuous by thoir ahsenco. Most Of tlio stoek ofl'ered wero a poor ot, being otl'ered chiefly on accouut of -liecpfaruicrs who took up tlairyiug during the slump and were now disposing of their cows. ,