Livestock

A. The 4-H & Youth livestock auction is the culmination of many members' project efforts. This is the time when the animals they've cared for are sold to the public. It is the final step in their livestock project where the educational marketing aspects come to life.

A. You will receive personal satisfaction through:
1. Helping promote 4-H & Youth "Learn by Doing" programs.
2. Obtain meat for your freezer or locker, if you so desire.
3. Free advertising you will receive as a buyer in various papers, at the fair and on next year's flyer promotions.
4. Tax deduction.
5. Extra efforts the youth go through to provide high-quality meats that are drug free.

A. Hogs, beef, lambs, goats, and veal, and the Grand Champion and Reserve Champion chickens, ducks, geese, turkeys, and rabbits.  Blue ribbon chickens, ducks, geese, turkeys, rabbits, as well as a selected number of market lambs and hogs, including overweight hogs will be sold on a silent auction just outside the show arena. 

A. It's a good idea to arrive early to view the sale animals and/or talk to the exhibitors. Livestock sale flyers will be available at the sale barn for both the live and silent auction.

A. Registration begins at 12:00 p.m. at the Show Arena. You will need to provide your name, address, phone number, and your driver's license. You will then receive a buyer's number. This card needs to be shown to the auctioneer when a purchase is made. The auction begins promptly at 2:00 p.m. The seats fill quickly.  Please make sure the phone number you provide is a number we can contact you on Friday or Saturday after the sale.

A. Yes, but make sure you provide all the names, addresses and phone numbers to the auction clerk. This allows for proper billing and recognition.  Each buyer should register for a buyer's number.  When bidding in the live auction, show all numbers of the buyers that are purchasing the animal.  In the silent auction, legibly write all numbers of the buyers who will be purchasing the animal.

A. When the animal you would like to purchase is in the live auction ring and at a price per pound you desire, signal the auctioneer by raising your hand. If you receive a final bid, hold up your buyer card so that the name can be announced and recorded. Hogs, beef veal and sheep are all sold on the live auction per pound.  Goats, rabbits and poultry are sold per head/animal.  ALL SALES ARE FINAL.  If you are bidding on livestock on the silent auction, each animal has a photo of the animal with a bidder's sheet which indicates the owner and the weight of the animal.  All animals on the silent auction are sold per head, not by the pound.  To place a bid on the silent auction, on the bidder sheet right legibly your buyer's number and the amount of your bid for the entire animal.  If you wish to split the animal with another buyer, write all buyer's numbers and the amount you will pay collectively.

A. Report to the clerks as soon as possible or at the end of the auction. At the clerk's area you will need to:
1. Indicate whether you'd like the animal processed for your personal use or resold at a livestock yard.
2. Indicate your choice of processor or livestock yard.  The sale committee attempts to accommodate all buyer requests for processors; however, some processors limit the number of livestock they will accept.  
3. Pay for the purchase by check, cash, credit card. There is a processing fee on credit cards.
4. No changes to be made to the shipping arrangements after noon on Friday.
5. All accounts must be settled the night of the sale, unless prior arrangements have been made.

A. The auction committee members who are all volunteers.

A. Free trucking is provided for all animals. They are usually transported on Sunday after the auction to the processors or stockyard.

A. Make sure the clerk is aware of your processing plant choice. You need to contact the processor on the Monday after the auction with instructions on how you want your cutting, wrapping and smoking, etc. done. Make the necessary arrangements to pick up your packaged meat from the processor as soon as it is ready. You pay for the slaughter, cutting, wrapping, smoking, etc. when you pick up your meat.

A. Yes, you can market your animal by:
1. Selling it at a local livestock yard. Trucking and reselling will be handled for you, free of charge. You will receive a check in the mail from the livestock yard, less a market fee which is determined by the livestock yard.
2. You can take your livestock home.  You can pick up your livestock starting at 8 p.m. on Saturday of the fair, but they must be removed from the fairgrounds no later than 8 a.m. on Sunday after the sale.  You are responsible for transportation from the fair if you are taking your livestock home.  If you plan to take your animal(s) home, please make sure you have indicated that on your auction card when you sign up for a bidder's number, or indicate that to the clerk when you check out after the sale.

A. 4-H & Youth members receive a premium price in recognition of the extra work they put into their project animals. The premium price or the amount you pay over the current market price varies according to the animal you buy and its weight, quality and price. The price you pay over market is tax deductible. Please contact your tax consultant.

A. Live weight is the weight as is. The hanging weight or carcass weight is the weight of the slaughtered animal as it hangs from the rail. At this stage the hide and viscera have been removed. The animal is then taken down and cut into saleable meat. The following are examples of average yields.

• A 1000 lb. steer = 615 lb carcass = 432 lbs. of saleable meat.
• A 220 lb. hog = 160 lb. carcass = 125 lbs. of saleable meat.
• A 115 lb. lamb = 57 lb. carcass = 43 lbs. of saleable meat.