| Jr. Livestock Sales Stay Solid Amid Tough Times | |||
| By Vernon Robison Moapa Valley Progress Published April 15, 2009 Despite the dark skies and constant drizzle on Saturday, a faithful crowd gathered at the Glen D. Hardy Livestock Pavilion at 1:00 p.m. for the beginning of the Clark County Junior Livestock Association (CCJLA) auction at the Clark County Fair. Included in the crowd were the youngsters who had exhibited animals in the show, their parents and many buyers interested in bidding on the animals. The stormy economic conditions in the region had caused fears that the CCJLA auction might struggle this year to find buyers for the animals |
 Livestock judge carefully inspects Kenna McMurray’s lamb at the CCJLA showmanship competition at the Clark County Fair on Friday. McMurray’s lamb was awarded the Grand Champion Market Lamb. She came in third place in her division for the Showmanship Contest. |
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| at a market price. “People were really worried this year,” said CCJLA Fair Liaison Stan Hardy. “Some thought that there might be animals that wouldn’t sell.” This year’s auction buyers guide included only 186 entries. That was down from 206 entries last year and 223 entries in 2007.
But despite the rough economic times, the auction found a strong market for all of the animals being sold. “The sale actually went really good,” Hardy continued. “We had great support from all of the buyers and so, even in these rough times, we did great.” The auction is the final event in the weeklong livestock show that takes place each year at the fair. Youth exhibiting animals begin the process many months earlier by purchasing the highest quality animal possible. They devote a lot of time nurturing and raising their animal, feeding it only the finest feeds, exercising the animal consistently and mixing in plenty of tender loving care. Only the best of the best make it through the long process and are exhibited at the show and sold at the auction. “The result is the finest quality beef, pork, lamb or goat in the country,” said CCJLA President Scott Wade. The auction began with the Grand Champions and Reserve Champions in each category. The Grand Champion steer exhibited by Mikayla Morgan weighed in at 1,215 lbs and sold to Ken Black at $7.50/lb. The Reserve Champion Steer exhibited by Rowdy Walch weighed 1,310 lbs and sold to Legacy Construction for $4.00/lb. In the swine category, the Grand Champion was exhibited by Sydney Widdison. The animal weighed in at 254 lbs and sold to Combs Brothers, LLC for $6.50/lb. The Reserve Champion pig was exhibited by Olivia Hall. It weighed 266 lbs and sold to Legacy Rock and Wiser Construction for $6.50/lb. The Grand Champion lamb weighed in at 150 lbs was exhibited by Kenna McMurray. The winning bidder was Clark County Farm Bureau at $10/lb. The Reserve Champion Lamb, exhibited by Carly Alexander, weighed 152 lbs and was purchased by County Commissioner Tom Collins for $9.00/lb. The Grand Champion goat belonging to Kimberly Lewis weighed in at 103 lbs and sold to Wiser Construction for $6.50/lb. The Reserve Champion goat was exhibited by Carly Alexander. Weighing in at 100 lbs, it was sold to Steve Ross Las Vegas City Council for $6.50/lb. The proceeds of this year’s auction totaled $335,000 this year. That total was significantly less than in recent years. But Hardy attributed this mainly to fewer animal entries. The average price per animal remained fairly high, Hardy said. “I think that the take-away story for this year is just that there wasn’t a negative story,” Hardy said. “It wasn’t as outstanding as we might have seen in the past, but it was consistent and good. Everything sold at a decent price. I think that says a lot about our buyers.” |
