These 16-17 month-old commercial Ballatherie Poll Merino ewes sold for a record $480 in the Hillston store sale on AuctionsPlus this week.

UNJOINED commercial Merino ewe hoggets sold for a national online record price of $480 in the Hillston store sale on AuctionsPlus on 6 September.

The 300 16-17 month-old April-May drop mid-June shorn Merino ewes from the Ballatherie Pastoral Co, Hillston, were offered by Nutrien Livestock Hay agent Geoff McDougall and beat the previous best Merino hogget price on AuctionsPlus by $65.

Mr McDougall’s assessment of the annual draft of Ballatherie young ewes was that they were “in terrific ready to join order”.

“These ewes are the top draft of 1000. If you are looking for top line of quality young ewes, these girls will be hard to pass over.

“Frame, fertility & fibre they have the lot,” he wrote.

In December last year, unjoined Merino hogget ewes sold for $415, and the previous online record price for Merino ewes of all ages was $469 set in August this year.

The record-priced Ballatherie ewes sold through Nutrien Livestock were among seven lines in the sale that made $400-plus. Balatherie Pastoral also sold another 250 16-17 month-old Merino ewes for $468, 500 12-13 month-old ewes for $420, 211 12-13 month-olds for $362-$370 and twl lines of 300 5-5.5 year-old unjoined ewes for $292 and $296.

The Hillston sale offered 6114 ewes in 27 lots. Click here for full sale details.