A SALE of animals from one of the country's pioneers in alpaca breeding drew large crowds to the Borderway Mart, Carlisle, on Saturday.

Pat Bentley was one of the country's first alpaca breeders when she founded the Syke House herd at Newby, near Penrith, 20 years ago, but on Saturday she sold most of the herd - 96 females with calves and yearling females to geld males.

Bidding was brisk, with a top price of 6,400gns, and every animal was sold with the exception of the stud male Chisa Araquipa, born in 1996 in Chile, which was bid to 7,500gns but failed to meet its reserve price.

Mrs Bentley, a founder member of British Camelids, the British Alpaca Society and the British Alpaca Fine Fibre Co-operative, plans to take a second retirement to spend more time with her family and the sale was the fruits of her efforts over the last two decades.

"Buyers were selecting animals on their fleece quality and micron count which is a reflection that breeders are looking seriously at the commercial future of alpaca breeding," said Mrs Bentley.

The top price was paid by Jane Eden, of Askerton Castle, Brampton, Carlisle, for Titania, a two-year-old white female with her dark brown female calf, born in June this year, at foot. She was also in calf to the stud male Chisa Araquipa. Her fibre is high quality with a low micron count of 21.9u.

The highest price for a yearling female, called Tenacity, was 5,000gns and she went to the Johnsons, of Grange Barn, Sutton Grange, Ripon, who bought a further two lots.

This major reduction sale leaves Pat Bentley with a small, select group of breeding alpacas, and the retired females, old geldings and unreliable breeders which will live out their days at Syke House.

Leading prices included: Rosie, rosegrey female with dark brown male calf at foot, 5,500gns; Samantha, black female with dark brown female calf at foot, 3,200gns both to MT&JM Fowler-Jones & Partners, Water Hall Farm, Sutton, Thirsk; Piaso, black female with dark brown female calf at foot, 5,000gns, Tenacity, dark brown female, 5,000gns, Misstarta, mid fawn female, 4,700gns, all to Johnsons.

Averages: 30 in-calf females with calves at foot, £2,982; 17 in-calf females with no calves, £1,979.56; 12 yearling females, not mated, £2,725.63; 17 yearling males, entire, £634.32; 15 geldings, £288.40.