Sheep

DEPARTMENT G - DIVISIONS 130-135 – SHEEP
Division 130    Class 910-930       Pay Category J
Division 131-135      Class 910-1040        Pay Category F

GENERAL SHEEP SHOW RULES

A. See General Rules and General Livestock Rules and Regulations.
B. NUMBER OF ENTRIES PER EXHIBITOR - An exhibitor may show a maximum of 4 market sheep and 4 breeding sheep. Showmanship and Pen of Three Market Lambs do not count as entries.
C. IDENTIFICATION - Market Lamb - All market lambs must be tagged with a USDA official scrapie ID. All identification of market lambs must be documented on an Identification/Ownership Affidavit and submitted to the Extension Office by June 15th.
State Fair / AKSARBEN eligible Market Sheep must be tagged with USDA official scrapie ID, owned by the exhibitor have completed the online nomination entry by June 15 and have the DNA collector envelope with hair sample submitted to County
Extension Office by June 15.
Breeding Sheep - All breeding ewes must be ear tagged with the USDA official scrapie ID, documented on the Identification/Ownership Affidavit. Ewes shown in breed classes must be registered with the breed association by entry date. Registration must be complete by fair date. The ID Affidavit must be submitted to the Extension Office by June 15th.
State Fair / AKSARBEN eligible Breeding Sheep must be tagged with USDA official scrapie ID, owned by the exhibitor have completed the online nomination entry by June 15 and have the DNA collector envelope with hair sample submitted to the County Extension Office by June 15.

D. PRE-ENTRY - All sheep exhibits, including showmanship, to be eligible to show at the County Fair must be pre-entered on a GREEN Entry Sheet (available at the Extension Office or online) OR entered online at https://nemaha.fairwire.com. Entries are due by June 15th.
E. SHOWMANSHIP – The use of showing and/or handling practices that may be considered objectionable or abusive, such as striking or slapping lambs and exhibiting the lamb with its feet off the ground, are not acceptable. The use of such practices may result in the lowering of a ribbon placing. (Lifting the lamb in a fluid motion to set the front legs prior to quickly setting the feet back on the ground is acceptable.)

F. MARKET LAMB RULES

1. See General Rules and General Livestock Rules and Regulations.
2. All market lambs (ewes and wethers) must be born on or after December 1st of the previous year. All market lambs must be completely slick shorn, including belly, to within ¼” PRIOR to arrival at show. Wool may be left on the legs ONLY below the knees and hocks.
3. WEIGHT ELIGIBILITY - To be eligible to show in the market class, Wool Lambs must weigh 100 pounds or more and Hair Sheep must weigh 70 pounds or more on entry day. No reweighs will be allowed. A lamb weighing less than requirements will show in the feeder class and is not eligible for purple ribbons or to show for champion market lamb. (State Fair Weight Requirements are the same for Wool Lambs.
4.  Both wether and ewe lambs will show together.
5. Short scrotum, cryptorchid or ram lambs are not eligible as market lambs.
6. A grand and reserve champion market lamb will be selected.
7. AGE CLASSIFICATION - All lambs must have all lamb or temporary teeth present; yearling ewes can have yearling teeth but cannot have two-year old teeth up. Lambs exhibiting two-year old teeth will be allowed to show but will not be eligible to compete for Championship.
8. BORN & RAISED CLASS – A class for market animals where the animals must have been born, raised, and fed within the operation of a 4- H’ers immediate family (family, grandparent, sibling, uncle, or aunt) in Nemaha County or in the county which the 4-H’er lives. Champion & Reserve Champ Born & Raised will be awarded and be able to come back for Grand Market Champion. The animals must be ID’d by the deadline day for the Born & Raised class. Sheep not making required market weight will not be eligible for purple ribbons or Champion Born and Raised Market Sheep and will show in the feeder lamb class no matter what class they registered for.
9. Breed Classifying - Market lambs will be classified according to the breed standard set forth by the All American Junior Sheep Show and/or the respective breed association as they are being weighed and identified. Market lambs wishing to compete in the crossbred division will not be required to go through classification, but have the option to go through classification and switch divisions based on the decision of the Classifier. Market lambs in all other divisions will be classified to the standard of the breed they were entered. If an animal is disqualified from the entered breed, the Classifier will determine the final placement. The opinion of the classifier is final, and lambs must show as assigned or be disqualified. Classification cannot be disputed after the close of check-in.

Exhibitor/Classifier Guidelines for Breed Classification
The following are descriptions of the visual appearance necessary for breed classification. Also listed are visual attributes whose presence may result in an animal not qualifying for the breed division and instead being placed in the crossbred or white breed influence division at the classifier’s discretion:

• Dorset –An open, completely white face with pink nose pigmentation. The body should be completely white and practically free of dark fibers or pigmentation. A moderate wool cap and wool below the knees & hocks should be present.

3 of the following will result in disqualification

• Any dark colored spots in the hair or wool
• Large drooping ears
• Fine textured, silky hair covering
• Absence of hair covering in typical areas
• All solid black hooves
• Dark colored septum (dividing tissue between the nostrils)
• Dark colored lining of the nose or mouth
• All-black, colored, or spotted lambs
• Hampshire –An open face with ears covered with a dark brown or black hair and free from wool. The face should be dark in color, and practically free of wool from the eyes down. A wool cap should extend from the neck over the forehead.

3 of the following will result in disqualification

• Broken wool cap
• Very fine or thin hair on face or legs
• Scurs/horns
• Excessive white hair on the jaw (more than 25%) or excessive white wool on the legs (more than 25%)

1 of the following will result in disqualification

• Excessively dark or blue hide
• Inadequate wool covering on head and legs
• Speckled face so that lamb appears to be a “brockle”
• Natural Colored – Any animal that is at least 35% Natural Colored excluding the head and legs is acceptable.
  Southdown –A moderate face and ear that can range in color from brown to grey. Wool should extend onto the face and the back of the ears, as well as below the knees & hocks. Nose should be dark pigmented.

3 of the following will result in disqualification

• Solid white hair color on the muzzle
• Pink nose
• Excessive white on face, ears, or legs
• Completely slick ears
• Pink or striped hooves
• Black spots on the fleece
• Open pool on the head

1 of the following will result in disqualification

• Speckled face or legs
• Horns or solid scurs
• Solid black lambs
• Suffolk –The head should be black, hornless, and well covered with a thick black hair coat. The muzzle should be long and deep, with legs being black. Belly should be covered with wool. Wool should not extend below the knees and hocks.

1 of the following will result in disqualification

• Excessive black fiber in the wool areas
• White speckling or splotching on the bellies, inner legs, neck, or jaw
• Wool covering below the hock and knee or on the head or face
• Scurs/horns
• White Face Influence –Includes white-faced breeds and/or speckles that range from white-faced with black spots to black-faced with white spots, with a minimum of 30% of hair areas (face, ears, legs below knees and hocks) having white coloring.
• Dorper - An ideal Dorper and White Dorper sheep should be symmetrical and balanced where the height, width, length and depth of body are proportionate. Dorper and White Dorper sheep should maintain a 60:40 ratio of height to body and legs giving the sheep maximum carcass capacity.
• Katahdin - A medium-sized sheep with a hair coat and an alert appearance; head erect, and legs squarely placed. Tail length is variable; preferably undocked, except for market lambs. A variety in facial characteristics is expected. Polled-ness is preferred, but horns and scurs are acceptable. The eyes are wide set, and ear carriage is horizontal. There is no hair coat discrimination made as to color on any part of the body. The coat shall preferably consist of hair rather than woolly fibers, though hair texture will vary.
• Crossbred –Lambs not meeting breed distinctions, characteristics, or color specifications of other classes.

G. BREEDING EWE RULES

1. See General Rules and General Livestock Rules and Regulations.
2. Grade and commercial animals will be shown together. Each registered breed will show separately.
3. All registered and commercial “meat breed” breeding sheep must be completely slick shorn, including belly, to within ¼” PRIOR to arrival at show. Wool may be left on the legs ONLY below the knees and hocks. All registered and commercial “wool breed” sheep may be shown in the fleece.
4. No individual sheep may show in both a breeding and market class.
5. AGE CLASSIFICATION - All ewe lambs must have all lamb or temporary teeth present; yearling ewes can have yearling teeth but cannot have two-year old teeth up. Ewes exhibiting two-year old teeth will be allowed to show but will not be eligible to compete for championship.

DEPARTMENT G - DIVISION 130 - SHEEP SHOWMANSHIP

DEPARTMENT G - DIVISION 131 BREEDING EWES – EWE LAMBS - (BORN AFTER SEPT 1, 2025)

DEPARTMENT G - DIVISION 132 BREEDING EWES – YEARLING EWES - (BORN BETWEEN SEPT 1, 2024 AND AUG 31, 2025)

DEPARTMENT G - DIVISION 133 REGISTERED RAMS
DEPARTMENT G - DIVISION 134 COMMERCIAL RAMS

DEPARTMENT G - DIVISION 135 - MARKET LAMBS