Stephens County Junior Livestock Show this week

The barns at the Stephens County Ag Center will come alive later this week as local 4-H and FFA members prepare to exhibit months of hard work during the 68th annual Stephens County Junior Livestock Show and Sale. 

The show will be held Thursday, Jan. 8 through Sunday, Jan. 11 at the Stephens County Ag Barn at 145 County Road 245. Animal validations and entry dates have been held from June through December. 

The contest is open to all active 4-H club members who are nine years old or are in the third grade on the day of validations. Additionally, the contest is open to active Breckenridge FFA members who are full-time students and have not graduated from high school. 

Each 4-H or FFA exhibitor must show their own entry during judging but may have another exhibitor assist only when exhibiting two or more animals in the same class. All exhibitors will be assigned a number to wear at all times exhibiting their animals. 
In divisions where there are five or more entries, grand and reserve champion awards will be presented. For divisions with fewer than five entries, only grand champion awards will be presented. In divisions or classes with only three entries, ribbons only will be awarded. 

The event begins Thursday, Jan. 8 with the Range and Pasture Identification Contest at 2 p.m. and the Public Speaking Contest at 3:30 p.m. Weigh-in will be held from 5-6 p.m. for rabbits, 5-6:30 p.m. for poultry, 5-7:30 p.m. for goats and sheep and 5:30-6:30 p.m. for swine. Ag mechanics and art projects will also be checked in from 5:30-6:30 p.m. 

Judging will follow with breeding rabbits from 6:30-7:30 p.m., market rabbits from 7:30-8:30 p.m., county-born and-bred rabbits from 8:30-8:45 p.m. and rabbit showmanship from 8:45-9:15 p.m. 

Friday will be filled with judging, beginning with poultry and poultry showmanship from 8-9 a.m. Judging of ag mechanics and the art show will begin at 9:30 a.m., alongside judging for breeding goats, market goats, bred and born goats and goat showmanship. 

From 11:30 a.m. through 1 p.m. will be judging of breeding sheep, market sheep, bred and born sheep and the sheep showmanship award. Cattle weigh-in will be held from noon to 1 p.m. 

Judging will resume from 1:30-5:30 p.m. for market gilts, market barrows, bred and born swine and swing showmanship. The Pee Wee show will follow the swine competition. At 6 p.m., the livestock judging contest will be held. 
Then from 6:30-7:30 p.m., the judging of breeding cattle, market cattle, bred and born cattle and the cattle showmanship award will take place. 

The last day of the show, Saturday, Jan. 10, will begin with herdsman interviews at 8 a.m. for seniors and then juniors. The Jacob Jackson Master Showman Contest will be held at 10 a.m., followed by the buckle awards presentation at 11:30 a.m. The Buyers’ Luncheon will begin at noon, and the live sale will start at 1:30 p.m. to close out the three-day livestock show. Each exhibitor will be allowed to sell only one market or breeding entry in the general sale. 

The sale order will be overall market champions, overall breeding champions, overall reserve market champions, overall reserve breeding champions, breed champions, showmanship champions, herdsman winners and bred and born champions. 

Animals will be sold alternating between cattle, swine, sheep, goats, rabbits and poultry. After the champions have sold, the sale will continue in the order of divisions as listed by class placings. 

A mandatory cleanup for all exhibitors will be held at 1 p.m. Sunday to receive sale checks in full. Unexcused absences from the cleanup will result in $100 of the award check being contributed to the SCJLS Scholarship Fund. 

To qualify for the scholarship, applicants must be in their graduating year of high school and must have shown in the livestock show either through 4-H or FFA for a minimum of three of four high school years, including their graduating year. Students must also maintain a 3.0 GPA.