Image copyright Wayne Hutchinson/farm-images.co.uk Image caption Trueman Jagger, pictured after his sale with former owners Henry Savage and sons

A pedigree bull reared on a south Armagh farm has fetched a record-breaking £147,000 at auction.

Trueman Jagger, a Limousin bull, was bought at Carlisle mart by a syndicate of five buyers.

He was sold by Henry Savage and Sons, who breed pedigree cattle on their Cullyhanna farm.

"From when he was a calf, he was a superstar - we knew that he was a really special calf," says Henry Sr.

When registering the bull, they had to pick a name to live up to his star quality, and Mr Savage says that as his family are big music fans, Jagger was the obvious choice.

'No weaknesses'

At just 12 months old, the bull stole the Balmoral Show in May, winning reserve overall champion, and Mr Savage says that since then, he continued to grow at a staggering rate.

"He weighed 690kg at that stage, and when we weighed him again on the Saturday before the sale, he was 1,065kg," he says.

"He'd put on 2.47kg every day from the Monday before Balmoral, so that just shows you what sort of an animal he was - he's basically the perfect animal."

The price fetched by the bull was a new UK and European all-breeds bovine record.

It was also a new world record price for Limousin bulls.

'Another superstar'

Mr Savage has been working with pedigree breeds for 18 years, "and every year you're trying to improve the quality of cattle on the farm".

"We are very lucky in that his granny is a terrific cow - we still have her - the daughter was even better, and this bull was the finished article," he says.

"He had no weaknesses, he was good in every area - great length, great shape, nice head, nice colouring and good growth."

Mr Savage says the buyers will be hoping that these attributes will be passed to Trueman Jagger's progeny.

"The more cows that he puts in calf, the better chance there is of him producing another superstar," he says.

Mr Savage says that while the bull will be missed around the farmyard, "we know he's away to five fantastic homes".