Department B – Beef

A huge thank you goes to Enders & Shirley for their sponsorship of our Beef Barn this year.  

BEEF

Showmanship August 14, 2024 at 12:30 pm in Show Barn

Open & Breeding Show half hour after showmanship ends

Market Beef Show 6 pm

Sponsored by Enders & Shirley in 2024

FITTING RULES ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE UPON RELEASE OF 2025 STATE FAIR RULES

General Rules

1. All open show entries due to the Beef Chairman or online by August 5th of the year before the show. There will be a $5.00 ENTRY FEE for all exhibits in the OPEN BREEDING Show.  Registration papers to be shown upon arrival at Fairgrounds, along with entry fee payment. All animals in 4-H/FFA heifer classes may compete in OPEN HEIFER Classes.  A google form will be available online at the fair website for registration.
2. All beef entries must be in place no later than 12:00 noon Fair Sunday.
3. Tie-out for beef cattle shall be 8:00 p.m. All trailers must be parked in designated areas.  Trailers should not be parked along the gravel road leading in and out of the livestock barn area.
4. If a 4-H or FFA exhibitor has two (2) animals in the same class, only another 4-H/FFA Junior Exhibitor in the current year at the Clarke County Fair may show one of them.
5. All bulls born before January 1 of the year of the show must have a bull ring or nose lead in their nose at all times while on the fairgrounds. All bulls must be registered.
6. All bedding and manure shall be placed in designated areas.  All bedding in barns and tie outs must be cleaned out by the exhibitor before the end of fair clean up day. Failure to do so will result in forfeiture of premiums.
7. To show in specific breed classes, animals must have breed registration papers, be 50% or greater of that breed, and may only be shown in one Breed division. Steer certification certificates will not be accepted. 
8.  Showmanship classes will be divided into Novice, Junior, Intermediate and Senior. Novice Showmen will be those youth who have not shown beef as a 4-H/FFA project previously at the Clarke County Fair and are the age of 12 or under as of September 30, 2023. Junior Showman will be those exhibitors who will be between 9 and 12  years of age as of September 30, 2023. Intermediate showmen will be those exhibitors who will be between 13 and 15 years of age as of September 30, 2023 and Senior Showmen are those exhibitors who will be between 16 and 19 years of age as of September 30, 2023.
9. Entries are accepted in good faith that feeding, management, and care of the animals have been conducted as part of 4-H/FFA projects by the exhibitor. If an animal is not housed on property owned or rented by an immediate family member, then the exhibitor must notify the Livestock Committee in writing and explain why to receive committee approval. From time of purchase, the member must have personally managed, cared for, and fed the project animal he/she enters, except in the case of illness or other circumstances beyond the owner’s control and not covering a total period of more than 30 days. All exceptions made shall be determined by the Beef Committee.
10. All beef projects must be in possession and ownership of the exhibiting 4-H/FFA member by the December weigh-in.
11.  All registered heifers must meet the minimum requirements of  their breed associations. Registration papers for each heifer must be brought to the show and checked by one of the show’s chairmen and all pending pages will not be accepted. Tattoos must match registration papers. A copy of registration papers must accompany entry forms.
12. In order to participate in the breeding show; heifers must not be registered with any breed association. Both straight bred and crossbred heifers are acceptable in the junior and open commercial beef heifer shows.
13. Cow-calf exhibits are not eligible for the champion female class.
14. During the fair, market beef entries for open and junior competition will be graded by the Monday of the fair. The beef cattle committee will determine the classes by breed and by weight within each breed if necessary. Each breed will exhibit separately. Classes will also be established for British Cross and Continental Cross entries. All entries grading select minus will be shown in a feeder class near the conclusion of the breeding show in the afternoon and will not be eligible for the sale. Market heifers may be shown in the market beef show.  Market heifer entries must be spayed by a licensed veterinarian and proof of spaying must be provided to the beef committee before December weigh in.
15. Animals unacceptable because of lack of quality, lack of finish, or other defects including being a stag/free martin  will not be sold or processed through the fair.   They will be ineligible for any shows and must leave the fairgrounds by Sunday evening.
16. Each junior exhibitor may show two (2) market beef entries in the Junior Beef Show, and they can sell both entries in the sale provided they meet sale requirements. One dollar ($1.00) per head may be deducted from the sale price for the beef referendum.
17. The Grand Champion and the Reserve Grand Champion of the live show must be sold.
18. All market beef entries eligible to be sold must weigh at least 900 pounds and grade select or better. NOTE: Entries grading select minus will not sell. Any questions will be referred to the Beef Committee.  They must leave the fairgrounds by Sunday evening.
19. During the judging and selling of the beef entries, only exhibitors and members of the Beef Committee or someone designated by the committee may enter the show ring or sale ring.  The Beef Barn and the path to the show barn will be shut down to the public from 4 pm until the end of the Market Show on Wednesday evening.  Only committee members,  exhibitors, and their immediate family will be allowed in the fenced off area.  There will be no exceptions.
20. Exhibitors who sell their entries are expected to care for them until they are removed from the grounds.
21. Market entries shown in the Open Market Beef Class are NOT eligible to be shown in the Junior Market Beef Class or sold in the 4-H/FFA Youth Livestock Show.
22. All exhibitors will be required to participate in the Showmanship Show using their own steer or heifer.
23. The Beef Showmanship classes are open only to Clarke County 4-H/FFA exhibitors.
24. There will be no fitting for the 4-H/FFA Beef Showmanship competition. Animals will be cleaned and brushed down only. No prize money will be awarded to 4-H/FFA members in Clarke County unless they participate in the beef showmanship classes.
25. The following fitting practices/products are prohibited regardless of breed or division:  a. Use of paints, paint products and colored adhesives or other color altering products  b. The addition of any hair or hair like substances, including false tail heads and false polls  c. The cutting, tearing or gluing of the hide or underneath the hide or removal of tissue in an attempt to alter the shape of the animal  d. The injection of any gas, solid or liquid under the hide to alter the normal conformation 
26.  Any product/solutions/liquids administered internally or externally to alter the conformation of the animal is prohibited. This includes the use of steroids, illegal or unapproved growth promotants, and the act of artificially filling animals internally, which would include stomach pumping, drench tubes, or any other method.
27.  Aerosol cans used for grooming are not permitted in show ring or make-up areas.
28. All exceptions made shall be made by the Beef Committee.  

Open Beef Show Rules

1. The Junior Heifer Open Show is open to all 4-H/FFA members of Clarke County and surrounding counties.
2.  All heifers exhibited by 4-H/FFA members must be owned and registered by and in care of the exhibitor by the following dates shown in the schedule below:

Shows

Awards