Farming up in the hills in Largnalore just outside Ballybofey in Donegal is David Tourish, his wife Mary, and four daughters Hannah, Katie, Rosie and Danielle. The farm is made up of 140 acres of hill land, 70 of which is owned and 70 that is rented.
David Tourish with his daughters Hannah, Katie, Rosie and Danielle. \ Swarber Photography
The Tourish family run a very successful pedigree hill flock of 170 ewes. The ewe flock is made up of 40 pedigree Cheviot ewes and 130 pedigree Longwool Perth ewes. Due to the severe weather and lower growth levels on the hills the Tourishs have found these breeds to be the best for their land and breeding system.
Breeding system
The Cheviot ewes are mated with a pedigree Suffolk ram each year to produce Borris type lambs. All of the Borris ewe lambs are sold off farm each year to a returning lowland farmer and the ram lambs are finished on farm and sent through the Donegal lamb producer group.
This year, 30 of the Longwool Perth ewes were mated with a Chartex ram to produce tight skinned, lively lambs that are easy fleshed. This is the first year that it has been done on the farm.
The top 100 Longwool Perth ewes are carefully selected each year for pedigree breeding. The top 15-20 pedigree ram lambs are sold at the Sliabh Liagg Longwool Perth ram sale each year. The top 30 ewe lambs are retained on farm for replacements and another 30 ewe lambs are sold at the Sliabh Liagg female sales.
Lambing time
Lambing commences from St Patrick’s Day onwards and it is a very busy time for the Tourishs with their flock consistently scanning in at 1.7 to 1.8 each year. The ewes also lamb very compactly each year with lambing almost finished in three to four weeks. A few weeks before lambing, all of the ewes are taken down from the hill and housed for lambing. David commented that “we would like to lamb outdoors but because of the number of predators in the area due to being surrounded by forestry and the poor weather we usually get, we now lamb all of the ewes indoors”. He also said that “lambing indoors allows us to check in on the ewes more often as well with the cameras”.
Sale success
Breeding pedigree Longwool Perth sheep has been the Tourish family’s passion for many years and it has been evident through their sale success over the years. One of the most notable sale successes was breaking the Brockagh Perth Society sale record in 2020 when they sold their leading ram lamb for €2,100 and then in 2021 going on to break it again by selling another top-quality ram lamb for €2,150.
Champion ram lamb at the 2023 Sliabh Liagg ram sale.
They also had great success selling ram lambs in 2024 claiming champion at the Sliabh Liagg Longwool Perth ram sale and then going on to sell him for €1,450.
Females have also been sold very successfully over the years with a top price of just over €900 being achieved for a ewe lamb. Each year the top-quality ewe lambs sell consistently from €500 to €700 per head.
Super show team
Each year the Tourish family are a force to be reckoned with in the show ring, producing a standout show team. Since the break from showing due to COVID, 2023 has been their most successful year. It started with winning the interbreed champion title at the Fanad sheep show for their ram lamb, then it was onto the Kilmacrennan and District sheep show where they claimed the reserve interbred title for a flashy shearling ewe and then it was followed by the success of winning the Longwool Perth champion at Clomany Agricultural Show with a sparky ewe lamb. Topping of the great success of the 2023 show season for the team was winning the All-Ireland title for a pair of Longwool Perth shearling ewes at the Brockagh sheep show.
They have also had great success each year at both their local shows Brockagh and Glenfinn claiming the confined champion title for two consecutive years at both shows.
Working dogs
Working dogs are an integral part of the team in Largnalore, with the rugged landscape and large area, farming would be a very difficult job without them.
The working dog team waiting for the next command on the home farm.
Producing a top team of working dogs for his own use David has gained an abundance of knowledge over the years and now also trains a few young dogs each year for local farmers.
Farming up in the hills in Largnalore just outside Ballybofey in Donegal is David Tourish, his wife Mary, and four daughters Hannah, Katie, Rosie and Danielle. The farm is made up of 140 acres of hill land, 70 of which is owned and 70 that is rented.
David Tourish with his daughters Hannah, Katie, Rosie and Danielle. \ Swarber Photography
The Tourish family run a very successful pedigree hill flock of 170 ewes. The ewe flock is made up of 40 pedigree Cheviot ewes and 130 pedigree Longwool Perth ewes. Due to the severe weather and lower growth levels on the hills the Tourishs have found these breeds to be the best for their land and breeding system.
Breeding system
The Cheviot ewes are mated with a pedigree Suffolk ram each year to produce Borris type lambs. All of the Borris ewe lambs are sold off farm each year to a returning lowland farmer and the ram lambs are finished on farm and sent through the Donegal lamb producer group.
This year, 30 of the Longwool Perth ewes were mated with a Chartex ram to produce tight skinned, lively lambs that are easy fleshed. This is the first year that it has been done on the farm.
The top 100 Longwool Perth ewes are carefully selected each year for pedigree breeding. The top 15-20 pedigree ram lambs are sold at the Sliabh Liagg Longwool Perth ram sale each year. The top 30 ewe lambs are retained on farm for replacements and another 30 ewe lambs are sold at the Sliabh Liagg female sales.
Lambing time
Lambing commences from St Patrick’s Day onwards and it is a very busy time for the Tourishs with their flock consistently scanning in at 1.7 to 1.8 each year. The ewes also lamb very compactly each year with lambing almost finished in three to four weeks. A few weeks before lambing, all of the ewes are taken down from the hill and housed for lambing. David commented that “we would like to lamb outdoors but because of the number of predators in the area due to being surrounded by forestry and the poor weather we usually get, we now lamb all of the ewes indoors”. He also said that “lambing indoors allows us to check in on the ewes more often as well with the cameras”.
Sale success
Breeding pedigree Longwool Perth sheep has been the Tourish family’s passion for many years and it has been evident through their sale success over the years. One of the most notable sale successes was breaking the Brockagh Perth Society sale record in 2020 when they sold their leading ram lamb for €2,100 and then in 2021 going on to break it again by selling another top-quality ram lamb for €2,150.
Champion ram lamb at the 2023 Sliabh Liagg ram sale.
They also had great success selling ram lambs in 2024 claiming champion at the Sliabh Liagg Longwool Perth ram sale and then going on to sell him for €1,450.
Females have also been sold very successfully over the years with a top price of just over €900 being achieved for a ewe lamb. Each year the top-quality ewe lambs sell consistently from €500 to €700 per head.
Super show team
Each year the Tourish family are a force to be reckoned with in the show ring, producing a standout show team. Since the break from showing due to COVID, 2023 has been their most successful year. It started with winning the interbreed champion title at the Fanad sheep show for their ram lamb, then it was onto the Kilmacrennan and District sheep show where they claimed the reserve interbred title for a flashy shearling ewe and then it was followed by the success of winning the Longwool Perth champion at Clomany Agricultural Show with a sparky ewe lamb. Topping of the great success of the 2023 show season for the team was winning the All-Ireland title for a pair of Longwool Perth shearling ewes at the Brockagh sheep show.
They have also had great success each year at both their local shows Brockagh and Glenfinn claiming the confined champion title for two consecutive years at both shows.
Working dogs
Working dogs are an integral part of the team in Largnalore, with the rugged landscape and large area, farming would be a very difficult job without them.
The working dog team waiting for the next command on the home farm.
Producing a top team of working dogs for his own use David has gained an abundance of knowledge over the years and now also trains a few young dogs each year for local farmers.
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