A Powys sheepdog has been sold for over £6,000 to a Japanese sheep farmer at a recent auction.

James Jones from Rhayadar sold his 22-month-old black and white bitch, Brondrefawr Misty, at the CCM Skipton online working sheepdog sale.

Going for an impressive £6,200 Misty is from a sought-after bloodline, being the daughter of fellow Welshman Kevin Evans’ trialling legend, Tanhill Glen – a dual European Nursery and Royal Welsh Champion who has had a major impact on selling prices at Skipton in recent years.

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Misty was closely followed online from the outset and successfully claimed at the close by a Japanese bidder, sheep farmer Shinjro Kigawa, of Deergrove Sheepdogs in Shizouka, a city on the south coast with views of Mount Fuji.

Whilst sheep are not prevalent in Japan he runs a 70-strong mixed hybrid sheep flock, including Suffolk and Cheviot, and also trials – having competed in the 2017 World Sheepdog Trials in Gloucestershire.

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“In Japan, trials were not held for several years due to the influence of Covid, though they are about to be re-opened,” said Mr Kigawa. “Before I knew it, all my dogs were 10-years-old and it became urgent to raise the next generation of dogs.

“I'm very happy to have a deal with Mr. James Jones and am grateful for the opportunity to raise the next generation of dogs. I prefer to be able to feel the growth of dogs rather than competition. And I like to help people who are having trouble raising dogs.”

Triallist Kevin Evans, of Llwynfedwen near Brecon also did very well with a £3,800 sale of his July, 2020, tri-coloured bitch, Gyp. Mated last month to Mr Evans’s own Red Spot, a solid German import now doing well as a stud dog, Gyp himself found a German buyer in Ulrika Stromer, of Barum in Lower Saxony.

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CCM’s general manager and auctioneer Jeremy Eaton said the sale had been a very successful, well beyond what would be expected for this time of year.

“It was a good result given that trade for unbroken and part-broken dogs is traditionally slow as lambing time approaches and this sale bucked that trend,” said Mr Eaton.

The next sale at Skipton is set to take place on Friday, May 19, followed by another online-only sale on Friday June 13. Respective closing dates are May 3 and May 26.