Livestock Rules

CLARE COUNTY FAIR YOUTH LIVESTOCK COUNCIL 2026

All clubs must be registered with the Clare County Fair. It is the responsibility of the leader to fill out the appropriate form.
Exhibitors must be residents of Clare County, enrolled in a Clare County school district or be enrolled in a Clare County Fair Youth Club.
Livestock Council membership form is due by December 1st. New members April 1st.
The Code of Conduct is due by December 1st.
Fair pre-entry form is due April 1st for hogs, no other species is required to send one in.
Fair entry form needs to be submitted by 11:59 pm July 1st.
All animal exhibitors must have a YQCA certificate on file in the fair office by May 1st. Seven (7) year old's must attend an in-person class.
No animals are allowed in the campgrounds.

YOUTH LARGE ANIMAL GENERAL RULES
Overall Superintendent: Justin Ogg
Weigh in for Beef: December 13, 2025, 9:00 am to 11:00 am
Weigh in for Sheep & Dairy Feeder: April 24, 2026, 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm
Weigh in for Swine: April 25, 2026, 9:00 am to 11:00 am

Large animals include beef, dairy beef, dairy feeder, dairy, swine, and sheep.
Members must attend one (1) Clare County Fair Livestock Council approved workshop/event. If swine exhibitors choose not to weigh in their project, those members must attend two (2).
Members are required to participate in fundraising activities, or a $100 fee will be deducted from their auction check.
No entry fee or stall/pen fee will be charged to Youth or FFA members exhibits in the Youth Departments.
Livestock must be housed in Michigan for the duration of the project and owned by the exhibitor continuously from weigh-in date until auction day of fair.
Youth age is 6-19 years old as of January 1st of the current year. Exhibitors must be able to feed,
clean pens and handle the animal or they will be disqualified.
Exhibitors in open class must pay the admission and fees as listed in the general rules. Open class minimum age is 6 as of January 1st of the current year.
Developmentally Disabled participants: youth with acknowledged with impairments may exhibit
and sell through the age of 25 years old. Youth receiving special services can participate in
showmanship class. A note from the parent or leader needs to be included with the fair entry
form. This class will not be eligible for any Overall Contest.
All animals are required to stay at the fair the entire week unless they qualify for early pickup.
The animal shown in market class must be the animal used for showmanship. lf you have more
than one market animal in a species the same animal must be used throughout the showmanship
contest.
All cattle, swine, and sheep native and out of state entered in exhibitions, expositions or fairs must
follow the MDA Health Requirements for Livestock Exhibited in Michigan.
Exhibitors must show and own their animals.
All animals are to be kept clean, fed, and watered by the exhibitor for the entire week. Exhibitors
are responsible for cleaning their stalls and pens daily before 9:00 a.m. Failure to do so will result
in disciplinary action.
lf an exhibitor sells any specie large or small animal in any other county fair, that exhibitor will not
be allowed to show in youth classes or sell in Clare County in the current or following year.
Excluding state and national shows.
No drench feeding or medication of any animals. Any species requiring drench medication must be approved & supervised by a licensed veterinarian.
Tampering and/or misrepresentation of age, ownership, and any other irregularity in showing will be considered fraud and deception.
The following grooming practices are PROHIBITED: Adding rope, graphite, or hemp to externally build up, change or alter the shape or conformation of the animal. Forced administration of fluids to create gut fill is prohibited. Any attempt to disrupt or change the normal dental development of an animal. Any substances administered internally or externally to alter the conformation of the animal are prohibited. Violation will result in the forfeiture of sale privileges and forfeiture of any ribbons/trophies/special awards earned with the animal(s) and disqualification of the exhibitor.
Animals deemed a safety risk may be asked to leave the fairgrounds.
Record keeping is required for each large animal. Record books must be submitted to the Clare
County Fair office by 8:00 p.m. on the first Sunday of the fair or they will be disqualified.
Showmanship animal must be a Clare County Fair market animal owned by the exhibitor.
Breeding animals will be accepted if a market animal is not exhibited. All exhibitors must
complete in showmanship to be able to sell in the auction.
Animals must have a USDA premise lD tag when they arrive at weigh-in or they will not be allowed
to enter.
Animals that do not participate in the auction: Pickup procedure will be announced at a later
date.
All beef, dairy feeders, and dairy, will be required to have a scannable (RFID) USDA tag, if you do not have a premise lD, please call 888-555-4626 and get one. Once you have a PIN you can order scannable tags.
Any animal arriving at the fair without a scannable tag will be turned away.
The Clare County Fair reserves the right to refuse, accept conditionally, and to cancel any entries
and awards of prizes without claims or damages.

OVERALL SHOWMANSHIP GUIDELINES
1. Overall Livestock Showmanship Contest will be broken into two age divisions. Junior Division
will be youth 6 to 12 years of age. Senior Division will be youth 13 to 19 years of age. Age is
determined as of January 1ˢᵗ of the fair year. Seniors and Juniors will compete separately.
2. Species represented will be Beef, Dairy, Horse, Sheep, Swine and Dairy Feeder.
3. Winners will show all species in the overall showmanship contest, including the specie they won.
4. First place winners of each showmanship class will compete to determine the Overall Champion
Showman. After the Overall Showman is picked, the 2ⁿᵈ place winner from the winner's class will
enter the ring to compete for the Overall Reserve Showman.
5. Seniors and Juniors will compete in their respective age brackets.
6. In the event one youth wins more than one specie, there will be a draw by 4:00 p.m. Wednesday to
determine which specie they will represent in the contest. The Reserve Showman from the same age
division will be appointed to fulfill the entry of the specie not drawn by the first-place winner.
7. All barn superintendents will select six (6) animals of each specie to be used in the contest.
Barn superintendents will provide the necessary equipment needed for each specie.
8. Contestants will draw numbers to determine the animal used for each contest. Contestants may not
draw their own animal.
9. Scoring will take place by youth receiving points for the number they placed. The lowest score
will win. Points will be: 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11.
10. Junior and Senior overall livestock showman winner will have their name engraved on the
traveling trophy and receive a plaque.
11. In the event of a tie, the Overall Champion will be selected by a committee of at least two
official judges, from the pool of judges contracted by the Clare County Fair Board. Judges may
arrive at their final decision by either forming a collective decision or by interviewing
contestants involved in the tiebreaker.
12. If no official judges remain, a committee comprised of the specie superintendents and one Clare
County Fair Board representative shall conduct said interview and/or questions to arrive at an
Overall Champion Showman. Family members and leaders in relation to contestants involved will be
excused from the committee.

HARDSHIP GUIDELINES

The hardship committee shall consist of, Overall Livestock Superintendent and the Superintendent of that species, and board members of the livestock council.
The board chair will record all hardship into a binder for future reference.
Hardships maybe be caused by the death, injury, or illness to the animal and each hardship will be reviewed individually. Weight issues are not considered a hardship.
Members with hardship will be given all opportunity to show unless the hardship committee deems the hardship to be unreasonable or neglectful.
Hardships are to be reported as soon as possible. Proof of death of the animal must be witnessed by at least 2 hardship committee members by the way of pictures (head shot, side shot, rear and ear tag) within 12 hours of death. The hardship committee then has 12 hours to review the claim and determine if physical inspection is required. The animal cannot be buried/disposed of until approval of the hardship committee.
Animals that require replacement should come from within the immediate family. If none exist, then an animal will be chosen from a group of previously tagged in animals at that year’s weigh in.
If an approved pre-tagged animal is needed, the price of the animal will be determined and negotiated by the hardship committee.
Animals picked from the pre-tagged pool will be disqualified from competing in the rate of gain contest.
If a member has a hardship (ie. Broken leg, broken arm) a letter must be written to the CCFLC explaining the circumstances of the hardship. Sporting events and other commitments are not considered to be a conflict, they are a choice.
In the event, a member has a hardship, a select youth member will be allowed to show that members animals in the market class and take the animal through the auction ring, but not in showmanship.
All the above guidelines are subject to be amended by the hardship committee in case of catastrophic circumstances.