County Fair Meat Animal Auctions

[steermaker]

There has been alot of talk on here lately about local/county fairs since it is that time of year.  I am curious if all/most fairs have auctions.  If yours does, do all of the market animals get sold.  What are your average prices for market steers.  For those that don't have a sale what do you do with your animals?

 

[sjcattleco]

I think most fairs do have sales... at our fair 4H or FFA members  can only sell 1 animal through the auction.  Ususally no steer will sell for less than $1500.00.  Most of our steers are bought and kept for Freezer beef...

 

[DLD]

We have a bonus auction at our county spring stock show (just before the OK Youth Expo). The exhibitor gets a bonus bid, plus add ons, and gets to keep their animal to show at OKC and/or to sell for meat. Most counties in OK use this same format, with a few having their sale at their fall fair, instead of their spring show. At ours we sell 27 steers, 27  lambs, 56 pigs (I believe) and 5 goats - all market animals only. Each exhibitor may have only one animal in the premium sale, so the last couple of years it's worked out that every market steer exhibitor got something in, but most years some don't make it.
Grand steer will bring $1800, reserve $1200, and from there on down it's a game of who you know, but all the steers generally bring in the $600 - $800 range. Some counties here do bonus heifers and prospect steers, but not ours.

 

[pigguy]

we have a auction you can only sell 2 animals of differnt species. if it makes weight you can sell it. steers and market heifer usually bring 4000-6000 no diffenrnce between grand and last. some keep them but most people floor them

 

[Clubcalfshowgirl]

yes my county fair only STEERS get sold. ALL animals get sold as long as u show him in the show. The price for market steers go from anywhere 2.00-5.50 a lb! The grand champion steer sets the highest anyone can bid, u can only get 10 cents cheaper. Our grand a few years ago went for $14 a lb. Most county fairs around here SELL the shows u dont sell at are prospect shows. I've never seen a market heifer calss and for the heifers to be sold, all we have is breeding classes

 

[Turkey Creek Ranch]

At ours you can only enter 1 animal. We usually enter our calves. This year we got 2.65/lb for it. The buyer has the option of putting it in the barn so they get the meat or they go on the truck to the feedlot. Animals that do not sell are either taken home, or can be put on the truck at market price. We usually take ours home and sell the meat.

 

[showcattlegal]

our county sale is very poor. The grand steer only bought 2.00/lbs. and the rest of the steers bought that or a lil more. In our part of the country it's more about who you are and who you know, depends on how you sell. I know a kid that has worked very, very hard and just because some of his family is very well off her animals won't bring anything (even though it's not her parents that have the money). Her family even buys a lot of other kids animals in the sale. I asked her one time why she don't have them buy her animals and she said she would rather them help other people then her just because shes there cousin.

 

[karlie]

Our county has a "blue ribbon auction". Only market animals that win a blue ribbon can enter. It is beef, swine, rabbit, poultry, and sheep. It is a premium only action, the buyer does not get the calf. Most beef sell for around $200. Champion or last does not matter, it's all about who you know. It's not much, but it's better than nothing.

 

[SKF]

We show and sell at three different fairs our county one averages around 2.75lb with grand around $5.00lb sometimes higher. The other two fairs average 2.75-3.25lb with grand and res. getting around $5.00 sometime though they sell as high as $10.00lb. Our county fair allows people to do ad-ons on top of what the calf sells for and  my kids have averaged between $1000. to $1500 in ad-ons.

 

[farmboy]

ours is tommorow, steers first and I sell 4th.
market price I believe is 83 cents a pound in my area

 

[AAOK]

As DLD, our Premium Sale is at the end of our Spring Junior Livestock Show.  Our County Fair is in September, and has both Open and Junior shows.  There is no auction in the Fall, and Steers show as prospect only.  In the Spring and Fall, we show all ages of heifers as well as all the other species.  The Spring Premium Sale includes 21 Market Steers (7 from each class, light, medium & heavy) , 8 Heifers (Breed champions are automatic if 5 or more in the breed), 20 market barrows, & 2 guilts , 10 market lambs, 10 market goats, & 2 does. The goat numbers will greatly increase as soon as more bidders are acquired.  Our county junior Goat Show is exhibiting over 250 goats.

Prices are getting better each year with the Grand steer bringing $2000-$2500. Grand Heifer is around $1000, Pig $800, Lamb $1000, Goat $1500.  We auction the Grand Carcass Steer at the sale too, usually bringing $3000-$4000.  Prices for the other animals are mostly in the $300 to $600 range.

We also have add-ons which can vary from $100 - $1000.

 

[farmboy]

at ours, EVERY market animal sells, 200 some hogs, 70 lambs, 40 goats, and the meek 26 steers