The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal Plant and Health Inspection Service (APHIS) on Friday published a new final rule updating regulations for imports of sheep, goats, their meat and related products.

The new rule, set to take effect Jan. 3, 2022, “aligns the regulations with the current scientific understanding of BSE,” APHIS said.

When APHIS originally set up BSE-related import restrictions, “the potential risk of species other than cattle, including sheep and goats, was unknown,” the agency said.

The U.S. rules in place today prohibit imports of most live sheep and goats, and most sheep and goat products, from any countries considered a risk for BSE.

Since then, though, “scientists have learned much more about how BSE works, and their extensive research shows that sheep and goats pose a minimal risk of spreading BSE.”

U.S. regulations in place today limit imports from Canada to include just slaughter or feeder sheep under 12 months old and “certain products” from sheep and goats, as well as sheep and goat semen. They also restrict imports of meat and edible products other than gelatin from Canadian sheep and goats.

The new rules taking effect next month for sheep and goats deal instead with scrapie — a transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE) that can affect those animals. Other TSEs include BSE in cattle, variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in people and chronic wasting disease in cervids such as elk and deer.

Under the new rules, any live sheep or goat entering the U.S. that’s not headed directly for slaughter — or for a designated feedlot followed directly by slaughter — must come from either a scrapie-free country, or from a flock with a herd certification program equivalent to the U.S. Scrapie Flock Certification Program.

According to the Canadian Sheep Breeders’ Association, importers of sheep and goats from Canada for purposes other than slaughter under the new rule will have to provide documents showing the animals have “reached and maintained certified status.”

The U.S. evaluation of Canada’s Scrapie Flock Certification Program has found that farms ranked as “Level Certified Plus” in the Canadian program will meet the new import requirement, the CSBA said in its summary of the new rule.

APHIS will issue permits for sheep of certain “classical scrapie-resistant genotypes” including female sheep of genotype AARR and male sheep of genotypes AARR and AAQR, the association said.

Imported sheep and goats also have to be permanently identified with an APHIS-approved form of country mark, but APHIS “did not specify any particular method of identification,” CSBA said.

APHIS, in its new rule, said it will require official Canadian RFID eartags for goats and sheep imported from Canada, to be specified in guidance published later on the agency’s website. CSBA, however, said those official ear tags alone won’t meet the proposed country mark requirement.

Sheep and goats coming in for purposes other than immediate slaughter will also require a “permanent mark” unless they’re to be maintained as a segregated group in a designated feedlot, APHIS said. Tattoos are “expected to meet the country mark identification requirement,” CSBA said.

Past that, APHIS said, the new rule’s proposals for slaughter and feeder sheep and goats imported from anywhere in the world “are similar to the requirements for sheep and goats imported for those purposes from Canada.

“In other words, we proposed to make the provisions, which had been Canada-specific, broadly applicable to ruminants from anywhere in the world.”

APHIS, in its supporting documents, said it doesn’t expect any “significant increase” in live sheep and goat imports due to the new rule.

In the five years between 2016 and 2020, APHIS said, annual live sheep and goat imports averaged about 12,167 head — all of which came from Canada. Imports per year in that time ranged from 7,338 head in 2018 to 21,223 in 2016.

As for the meat market, APHIS said U.S. imports of sheep and goat meat today come in as chilled or frozen lamb, and “almost entirely” from Australia and New Zealand, the only two countries the U.S. currently recognizes as “wholly free” from scrapie.

APHIS, under the new rule, projects additional imports of sheep and goat meat in a range between 1,582 and 4,747 tonnes per year, which would cut into U.S. domestic meat production by between 439 and 1,317 tonnes — but would also spur greater U.S. domestic sheep and goat meat consumption, to the tune of between 1,143 and 3,430 tonnes.

APHIS said its projections suggest “consumer welfare gains would outweigh producer welfare losses,” and U.S. sheep and goat producers could also benefit from “resulting genetic improvements” by way of imported sheep and goat germplasm. — Glacier FarmMedia Network

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During the sheep sale, some of the ewes showed the structure and muscle development, however, it also clearly pointed out some of the poor areas. There appeared to be no price differences between wool and hair ewes. The cull ewes were clearly indicated by extremely lower bidding.

There was a high demand for the younger wool rams, as the bidding became exciting. Sheared rams allowed the buyers to examine the full muscle and tone. The lightweight rams received prices such as: $1.45/$1.56/$1.68 per lb. The heavier-weight rams had prices such as: $1.02/$1.09/$1.15 per lb. A 230-pound Dorper-cross ram had a standoff with the ringmaster for a moment or two. Then just as sudden as it developed, the ram decided to back off from his threat.

The heavyweight lambs had limited selection. Buyers were not interested in purchasing for holding purposes. A group of three 112-pound Dorper-cross lambs brought $1.80 per lb. A 120-pound Dorper-cross lamb brought $1.61 per lb.

The market lamb class clearly indicated that lower-weight lambs were wanted. Two 98-pound Katahdin-cross lambs brought $2.22 per lb. and three 102-pound Cheviot-cross lambs brought $1.60 per lb.

Buyers were bidding for feeder lambs, creating some strong bids. Only one group entered the arena. Twenty 98-pound lambs brought $2.20/lb.

The lightweight lambs made major efforts to maintain the feeder lamb prices. The 73-pound sheared hair lambs were of interest for the buyers and brought $2.22 per lb. The 73-pound Rideau-cross lambs brought $1.93 per lb. Three 62-pound Dorper-cross lambs brought $2.21 per lb. Eight 53-pound Rideau-cross lambs brought $2.01 per lb.

Each group entering the arena were well balanced in development and structure. The hair lambs could compete with the wool lambs in this class. The bidding was constant, in the fashion that heavier lambs received lower price bidding.

Young goat does were of major interest for the buyers at this sale. Even the young dairy goat does competed fairly well with the young meat goat does. The older goat does were viewed as culls, which was represented by the lower bidding.

The goat bucks were equally represented by dairy and meat classes at this sale. The dairy goat bucks brought the higher bidding. Three 87-pound Alpine-cross goat bucks brought $1.75 per lb. Two 103-pound Boer-cross goat bucks brought $1.34 per lb.

The goat kid class has not reached the past year’s standard prices. Possibly, those prices and bidding are history. A group of six 64-pound Nubian wethers brought $2.30 per lb. Another group of 19 64-pound goat kids brought $2.02 per lb. Once again, the buyers had no interest in the very young and low-weight goat kids.

The Ontario Stockyard Report indicated the auctioneer had some difficulties in selling the goats, to reach a basic standard for each class. The buyers were not creating a very loud noise with their bidding, as the sheep and lambs prices had dropped.

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That’s when producers, busy with summer farm projects and other activities, withdraw from the market and animal numbers fall. Generally prices take a breather and decline a bit during this period too.

At the May 1 sale, Winnipeg Livestock Auction received just 68 sheep and goats.

The sheep sale saw ewes that seemed to have some major weight, which created lower bidding. However, the prices remained within last sale range. There appeared to be a price difference between the wool and hair ewes. The price ranged from $0.95 to $1.11/lb. for the hair ewes. Prices ranged from $1.08 to $1.12/lb. for the wool ewes.

A 195-pound Katahdin-cross ram brought $197.20 ($1.36/lb.).

A 165-pound sheared Suffolk-cross lamb and a 165-pound sheared Cheviot-cross lamb both brought $1.45/lb. A 115-pound Dorper-cross lamb exhibited showmanship quality, but was a little too fat. This lamb could have been a product of a handling project.

The bidding was quite strong for the lightweight lambs. The 71- and 74-pound lambs brought $2.76/lb.

A 60-pound Dorper-cross lamb brought $2.55/lb.

Goat buyers had limited choice within the goat doe class, with only dairy (Alpine-cross) goats on offer. Better body conditioning could have possibly improved the bidding.

Two 98-pound Saanen-cross goat wethers entered the arena in a professional manner. These two goats acted as a team, exhibiting showmanship. They were very impressive in their groomed appearance. The bidding was exciting and reached $1.80/lb.

Following the pattern of past sales, the goat kid class saw less buyer interest, especially for the low-weight goat kids was not present. The prices have really dropped, a usual summer pattern. Even those spotted goat kids, which normally create some bidding excitement, could barely raise a stir.

The Ontario Stockyard Report showed that interest was in good-quality lambs, which created higher prices. All other classes remained constant and unchanged from the last sale.

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There were both individual animals and large groups on offer this sale, and the sale was locally dominated as the proximity to the holiday ruled out any timely transportation to Eastern Canada.

This may account for the major drop in prices from the last sale.

In the sheep sale, quality ewes brought strong bidding, but still much lower than the last sale. Prices ranged from $1.13 to $1.17/lb. for possible herd improvement uses. Questionable ewes brought a price ranging from $0.89 to $0.90/lb. The sheared ewes received no advantage, but rather showed the deficiencies.

The hair rams represented the majority of the rams. There was a slight drop in the bidding. A 225-pound Suffolk-cross ram got some attention by the buyers and some excitement until the bidding reached $1.23/lb.

Seven 103-pound Katahdin-cross lambs brought $1.88/lb. A 95-pound wool lamb brought $2.73/lb.

The selection of feeder lambs was very limited. The focus for the buyers was Easter and not to replace animals and fill the feedlots.

The lightweight lambs created some active bidding, as these lambs met with the local Easter buyers. The price ranged from $2.40 to $2.86/lb. An exception was two 73-pound Rideau-cross lambs which brought $2.93/lb. After this weight class, the bidding was based upon the buyer’s choice. There seemed to be no pattern — only based upon the choice.

The 60-plus lambs saw a large margin between two price groups. Five 66-pound Dorper-cross and Katahdin-cross lambs brought $1.91/lb. Thirteen 62-pound lambs brought $2.53/lb.

The 50-plus lambs copied this pattern. Three 53-pound Suffolk-cross lambs brought $2.15/lb. Twelve 50-pound Dorper-cross lambs brought $2.68/lb.

The 30-plus lambs provided 13 35-pound lambs which brought $1.31/lb. A 30-pound lamb brought $1/lb.

The new-crop lambs arrived for the first time of the year. Twelve 60-pound Suffolk-cross lambs brought $2.85/lb. A group of 10 61-pound Clun Forest-cross and Suffolk-cross lambs brought $2.99/lb.

Buyers seeking goats saw a much smaller supply than the last sale. There appeared to be an influx of Pygmy-cross goats, of all classes. The bidding was a struggle for the auctioneer. There was clearly no interest in the Pygmy goats’ smaller structure.

One dairy goat doe was of small structure, with some Pygmy bloodline along with Alpine-cross. The Pygmy-cross goat does, just did not get any strong or exciting bidding. The price ranged from $0.86 to $0.99/lb.

The goat buck class had a combination of wethers and natural bucks. The prices ranged from $1.66 to $1.92/lb. An exception was a 90-pound Pygmy goat buck that brought $2.56/lb. Another exception was a group of two 68-pound Pygmy-cross bucklings which brought $2.21/lb.

The prices for the goat kids could not maintain the level of the last sale. There was quite a decrease at the sale. There seemed to be no obvious reason in the quality and weight of the goat kids.

The Ontario Stockyard Report had positive bidding on the sheep and goats that were for immediate selling. There were some higher prices as well. The new-crop lambs did not follow, but slightly dropped.

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More than 250 animals went through the ring and goats were strongly featured in the sale. Buyers seeking goat kids found an excellent choice and some other classes of goats were found to be in short supply, though buyers did have the opportunity to bid in all classes.

In the sheep sale the ewes showed up in fashions ranging from early sheared to bearing a full fleece. Two groups of wool ewes likely found lower prices due to their obvious lack of a clean environment. The three groups of sheared ewes appeared to fetch a higher price from buyers, but that could also be due to their lower weight compared to some of the other groups of ewes. A 120-pound Suffolk shearling brought $205.40 ($1.675/lb.). Overall the bidding was strong, continuing the trend observed at the last sales.

The demand for the rams was sure apparent from the strong bidding. The average price bidding was from $1.18 to $1.35/lb. There were the exceptions of a 205-pound Suffolk-cross ram and a 205-pound Rideau-cross ram, both which brought $1.41/lb.

There was very limited selection of market lambs, which spark some differences in bidding. Local buyers with immediate use of the animals in mind appeared to drive higher prices in some cases. A 105-pound Suffolk-cross lamb brought $2.45/lb. A 100-pound Rideau-cross lamb brought $2.05/lb. Five 109-pound Suffolk-cross lambs brought $2.09/lb.

The feeder lambs saw some exciting bidding as the buyers were looking forward to the Easter season. The selection was limited, the quality of the lambs was good — so buyers were interested. The higher price bidding ranged from $2.80 to $2.96/lb. The lower price bidding ranged from $2.56 to $2.57/lb. An exception were two 83-pound exotic/fancy lambs that brought $2.97/lb.

There was a major price difference between wool and hair lambs, with the lighter-weight class. Five 72-pound hair lambs brought $2.55/lb. The two 78-pound wool lambs brought $2.86/lb.

Eight much lighter lambs did not maintain the price bidding at this sale. It was possibly too early for those local individuals wanting a smaller lamb for Easter.

A 55-pound Rideau-cross lamb brought $2.125/lb., while an exotic/fancy-cross lamb brought $2.175/lb. and three 48-pound Dorper-cross lambs brought $2.475/lb. There were no clear indications that new-crop lambs were delivered or entered into the arena.

Turning to the goat sale, once again the younger goat does were of serious interest, possibly for increasing a herd. There were culls, quite noticeable, which caused the lower bidding. The dairy-cross goat does were represented by the Alpine breed.

The breeding season has been completed and the goat bucks were given the opportunity to regain the loss weight. Thus, an opportunity to sell the goat bucks. Next season, a new bloodline will be used to improve the herd. The spotted goats have never lost the interest of the buyers. A 105-pound spotted Boer-cross buck brought $2.69/lb. There were numerous wethers included in this buck class, which based upon the weight could not be included in the goat kid class.

Many of the goat kids were very short and plump, some indication that some Pygmy bloodline was in the breeding. Also, viewing the wool, there appeared to be some evidence that Angora was in the breeding.

Even with these factors, there appeared to be negative issues in the bidding. The bidding for the goat kids seemed to return to the 2018 usual price bidding. The demand or interest for goat kids have remained strong, possibly due to the Easter season.

Some of the Angora-cross goat kids could become part of the wool industry. Diversity on the farm might be returning.

The Ontario Stockyard Report had concluded that all lambs had major interest and sold high. The heavier sheep had difficulties securing sale.

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There was no evidence of buyers lacking interest in the ewes. Prices still reflected strong bidding from the last sale. Even the fancy or exotic breeds such as Babydoll ewes attracted strong bidding.

The good quality of the rams was evident from the buyers’ bidding, which indicated these animals were future investments. The price ranged from $1.57 to $1.74 per lb.

The heavyweight lambs attracted continued high prices, similar to the ewes, indicating they were for immediate use. The fancy breeds were within the same range. Feeder lambs were slightly lower than the market lambs. All feeder lambs were viewed as being similar, even the exotic varieties. Quality was a major factor in the final price bidding, especially for this class.

The demand for lambs remained consistent throughout the sale. Slightly lower bidding was noticeable for the hair lambs, compared to the wool lambs. This could reflect the limited feed supply.

The 70-plus-pound lamb class showed 12 74-pound Dorper-cross and Katahdin-cross lambs bringing $1.50 per lb. A 75-pound Rideau-cross lamb brought $2.78 per lb. Four 78-pound Suffolk-cross lambs brought $2.66 per lb.

The 60-plus-pound lamb class had continued strong bidding, but there were price differences between wool and hair lambs. Six 68-pound Dorper-cross lambs brought $2.50 per lb. Five 69-pound Suffolk-cross lambs brought $2.80 per lb.

Goats

Buyers wanted the younger goat does of all purposes, and bidding seemed to continue trends from the last sale. Surprisingly, there was limited interest in a pregnant goat doe due within days.

The young goat bucks received good bidding for future investments. The older bucks could not maintain the same level. Alpine-cross goat bucks represented the dairy class. The 200-pound goat-cross buck had visible Kiko characteristics.

This sale had an increase in goat kids and the buyers were busy deciding on which to choose. Any indication of a smaller-cross body frame (such as cross with a Pygmy goat) attracted a lower price. The price levels of 2018 were not reached; 2019 may see lower prices based upon feed costs and normal maintenance.

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There have been many changes through the year, as some established producers chose to close the farm doors while others just started production for the first time and some chose this as the time to grow their business.

Most of the classes at this sale saw significant local bidding to fill local holiday demand.

With the approach of the coldest days of winter, wool ewes were of more interest at this sale, in stark contrast to summer sales. Prices ranged from $1.09 to $1.11/lb. An exception was two 133-pound Dorper-cross ewes that brought $1.44/lb. These ewes were clearly being eyed by local buyers intent on building their herds.

The ram class was represented by three large individuals that were of fine structure and frame. As each ram entered the arena their royal presence could be truly noticed. A 235-pound Suffolk-cross ram brought $1.46/lb. A 230-pound Dorper-cross ram brought $1.45/lb. A 215-pound Suffolk-cross ram brought $1.35/lb.

A group of five 169-pound Suffolk-cross heavy lambs brought $1.49/lb. Two 138-pound Cheviot-cross lambs brought $1.54/lb.

The market lambs had a better showing compared to the last sale. The local buyers had to fill their markets and that meant strong bidding. Buyers wanted intermediate weight lambs and not lightweight lambs for future use. The average price ranged from $1.61 to $1.65/lb. However, there were six 96-pound Cheviot-cross lambs that brought $1.75/lb.

The selection of feeder lambs was very limited for this sale. The local buyers were not as interested in this weight class compared to the market lambs. Even compared to the last sale, the bidding was lower at this sale. The price for 88-pound lambs was $1.79/lb. and the 81-pound lambs brought $1.88/lb.

The lightweight lambs saw bidding very similar to the previous sale. The 70-plus lambs kept the average price range from $1.86 to $1.93/lb. There was a very noticeable decline in the hair lambs presence in the lighter-weight classes.

The 60-plus lambs tried to maintain the price bidding but was slightly lower. The average price ranged from $1.82 to $1.89/lb. Three 95-pound Katahdin-cross lambs brought $1.95/lb. The attraction could have been the horns, noticeable when they entered the arena.

Four 55-pound lambs brought $1.84/lb.

The 40-plus lambs had no evident bidding pattern. There was more joking and chuckling about these lower-weight lambs being Christmas stocking stuffers. Even the lower-weight lambs were of no bidding interest to local buyers. The Christmas stocking stuffer comments kept the audience in a joyous mood.

Turning to goats, local buyers had little interest in the heavier goat does, of any class, at this sale. The younger goat cross does were a view for a possible future. The local buyers appeared not interested in any carry-over issues, rather just a direct sale. Further development of the dairy goat cross does might have increased the bidding.

The meat class goat bucks had no outstanding characters or noticeable factors. The average price ranged from $1.98 to $2.05/lb. based upon the number of goat bucks.

The goat kid class had a good selection in all weight classes for this sale. The bidding was slightly stronger than the last sale, for comparison. However, the goat kid prices are quite lower than the start or mid-year. The small goat kids, especially the pygmy-crosses, got the Christmas stocking stuffer jokes too. But many of these cute little pygmy goat kids could have fit in a person’s pocket or the typical Christmas stocking. A practical gift under the Christmas tree for any young farm child.

The Ontario Stockyard Report indicated that new-crop lambs had been delivered and were ready for selling. Quality was good for the buyers to determine that bidding was going to reach some high figures. Similar to the Winnipeg sale, the heavy lambs or immediate-use lambs created some buyer interest. The bidding was creating some better prices than what has been seen for the past few sales in Ontario. The lighter lambs could not reach or maintain these prices. Goats, as usual, just maintain a steady price line/basis.

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There appeared to be no price difference between wool and hair ewes. The average price ranged from $0.73 to $0.97 per lb. with the weight of the ewes creating the various ranges. A lack of excitement in the bidding was clearly noticeable. It could soon be that culls will be harshly determined in future bidding.

The wool rams traded in a price range from $0.77 to $0.97 per lb. The bidding on the heavier Katahdin rams showed less interest and prices were lower than average. The lighter-weight Katahdin-cross rams attracted the highest prices with bids of $1.30 per lb.

A 115-pound Suffolk-cross lamb brought $1.60 per lb. There was limited interest for the 115-pound Cheviot-cross lamb which brought $1.085. Some Ontario buyers are only bidding/wanting the Ontario heavyweight lambs.

The market lamb class received close bidding prices from $1.70 to $1.81 per lb. The various weights of the lambs created the wide spread — an indication of major differences.

There was high demand for feeder lambs, which kept strong buyers’ bidding. There appeared to be no price differences between wool and hair lambs. The price ranged from $1.81 to $1.95 per lb.

The selection for lightweight lambs was limited for this sale. There were two 75-pound Suffolk-cross lambs, sold as individuals. The buyers viewed these similar lambs, bidding $1.90 and $1.93 per lb.

The 60-plus-pound lambs continued this strong bidding. Three 68-pound Cheviot-cross lambs brought $1.85 per lb. A group of 21 62-pound lambs brought $1.95 per lb.

Two 55-pound Suffolk-cross lambs brought $1.775 per lb.

The auctioneer struggled to get more interest for a 35-pound Rideau-cross lamb. The winter weather that just arrived might have been a factor. This lamb reached $1.21 per lb. Two 80-pound new-crop lambs brought $1.90 per lb.

Goats

A 70-pound Alpine-cross goat doe represented the dairy goat class. There was more interest for dairy rather than meat goat does with very limited selection at this sale.

The goat bucks had the reverse bidding effect to the goat does. The 185-pound Alpine-cross goat buck was a real gentle giant, even with full structure/frame development. He enjoyed the full attention from being petted. Possibly this buck could improve a future herd. An 85-pound Pygmy-cross goat buck brought $0.89 per lb. The spotted Boer-cross bucks seem to attract all buyers. These young spotted Boer-cross bucklings would make a good breeding program.

The quality of the goat kids have remained good but the bidding on all the various kid weights has declined over the past few sales. Generally, the demand is over the supply of the goat kids although the very lightweight goat kids have not created any major interest. Management practices should be viewed and planned with the winter conditions arriving.

The Ontario Stockyard Report indicated fewer sheep and goats were available, with stable prices but no noticeable high bidding.

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However, 600 goats and sheep arrived at Winnipeg Livestock Auction for the September 5 sale. In some cases the animals appeared to be culls, but the size of the sale represented a general reluctance to carry or hold extra animals.

The sheep sale saw a sharp drop in prices offered by bidders. The last sale had a strong demand for various ewes. Many of the ewes were sheared, but showed no price differences. There appeared to be no price differences between wool and hair ewes. The culls were immediately affected sharply by the low bidding.

Rams appeared to remain similar to the last sale. Although the class was limited in selection — the demand was not apparent. A low-framed, ‘bear-like’ ram entered the arena creating some interest. This ram was a Babydoll-Southdown cross. Another ram that had unspecific characters for identification was viewed due to the large horns. The horns were more of an interest than the ram. This ram appeared to have the horns of a Merino-cross ram.

The heavyweight lambs were of less interest from the last sale — due to the festival wrap-up. Two groups of sheared lambs had a large price drop. Two 120-pound Suffolk-cross lambs continued the stronger bidding, reaching $1.93/lb.

The market lamb class had limited lambs in this class. However, there was a serious price difference between wool and hair lambs — with the wool lambs being the winners.

The feeder lamb class indicated a major difference between the light lambs versus the heavier lambs. Some circumstances showed 10 to 20 cents less for the difference on the hair lambs as well. But the price difference was on the heavier lambs with more buyer interest. The price ranged from $1.92 to $1.97/lb. (for the heavier lambs) and the price ranged from $1.71 to $1.81/lb. (lighter lambs). A group of eight 89-pound Icelandic-cross lambs brought $1.27/lb.

The lightweight lambs had a special surprise for the audience, to recall those early moments of raising the first lambs. A young boy was selling a seven-pound Suffolk-cross and a Cheviot-cross lamb. The bidder was proud to give this boy the top bid ($2.02/lb.) of the day for this weight class. The price generally ranged from $1.72 to $1.89/lb.

The 60-plus lamb class could not maintain the bidding of the 70-plus lambs. There appeared to be no price differences between wool and hair lambs. The price ranged from $1.695 to $1.76/lb.

The 50-plus lamb class created two price ranges. The upper price range was $1.62 to $1.80/lb. While the lower price range was $1.30 to $1.55/lb.

During the goat sale does remained fairly constant, as they did at the last sale. Buyers were interested in the younger goat does at this sale.

The bidding on the goat bucks was strong, due to the limited supply.

The last sale had supplied many more goat kids than normally available. The decline in bidding clearly indicated a fair drop in the prices. Through the past sales the prices of goat kids of various weights had remained fairly constant. Exotic goats (Angora goat cross) received limited interest at this sale.

The next sale there will be a herd dispersal of Boer-cross nannies (at various stages).

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Slated for August 15 it fell just before the Eid holiday and buyers brought their lists to fill festival demand for this Muslim holiday celebrating sharing and giving.

The semi-trucks were waiting and ready for loading and one special lamb order was constructed to ship directly to Montreal.

In the sheep sale there was a readily available supply for all buyers and the appearance of the animals was what drew buyer attention. There appeared to be no price differences between wool and hair ewes. Even the sheared or the heavy-wooled ewes stayed within the average price range. Majority of the ewes had a price range of $0.77 to $0.98/lb. Another price range developed between $1.03 to $1.12/lb.

The hair rams dominated the ram class likely due either to being lightweight or more available — the price range was $2.18 to $2.38/lb. The heavier rams reached a price range from $1.25 to $1.38/lb.

The heavyweight lambs were represented by two 130-pound Clun Forest-cross lambs. These lambs brought $421.80 ($1.86/lb.).

The bidding on the market lambs appeared to be quite variable with a wide range of prices. Grain-fed lambs showing good development did remain in the upper price range. The upper price ranged from $2.42 to $2.46/lb. Even three 103-pound ewe Clun Forest-cross lambs did not create the normal interest they possibly would have at another date. The bidding remained strong for wool and hair lambs.

Feeder lambs could not maintain the strong bidding as the market lambs at this sale. There appeared to be no price differences between wool and hair lambs. The price ranged from $2.17 to $2.34/lb.

The lightweight lambs clearly showed a lower bidding interest. The hair lambs dominated this 70-plus class. These lambs were viewed as a future investment. The 70-plus lambs had a price range from $1.91 to $2.15/lb. There was a small group of 78-pound lambs that brought $2.35/lb.

The 60-plus lambs had a slightly lower bidding average, ranging from $1.80 to $2.06/lb.

The 50-plus lambs showed that the wool lambs were preferred, maintaining price as well as the 60-plus lambs or better. The price ranged from $2.03 to $2.12/lb.

The 40-plus lambs were viewed as a long-term project or an immediate butchering purpose. A 40-pound Rideau-cross lamb entered the arena, expressing full lungs.

A large group of 39-pound Cheviot-cross lambs were of some interest for future purposes at $1.95/lb. The smaller groups could not reach this price bidding.

Turning to goats, the prices clearly reflected meat demand, with little interest in dairy does. This reflects the demand of the festival season.

Dairy goat bucks however, maintained within the price range of the meat goat bucks. There is interest and demand for the dairy bucks for future purposes.

One thing that was notable was how sellers met the market demand, offering a large supply of meat and dairy kids for all buyers. In contrast, most sales see only a handful of goat kids available.

The Ontario Stockyard Report indicated that the buyers could easily pick what was of interest. Thus, even the lightweight new-crop lambs were difficult to sell and saw lower bidding. The heavy lambs were of major demand and brought higher prices. Good goats produced high prices, while other goats could not maintain the prices.

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