🤔Choosing a species

Every species can win at the fair, and every species teaches you something. The best project is the one that fits your space, your budget, your schedule, and your size. Be honest about all four.

Side by side

	🐖 Pigs	🐐 Goats	🐑 Lambs	🐄 Steers	🦃 Turkeys
Fair weight	220–320 lb	55–130 lb	95–180 lb	1,000 lb min; paid to 1,400	15 lb min
Age limit	Born Dec 1 – Mar 1	Under 12 months, milk teeth	Under 12 months, milk teeth	Under 24 months	4–9 months
Own for	95 days	95 days	95 days	150 days	112 days
Buy by (2027, projected)	~June 11	~June 11	~June 11	~April 17	~May 25
Project length	~4 months	~4 months	~4 months	~10 months	~4 months
Space	16×16 ft pen + shade	10×10 pen + exercise yard	10×10 pen + exercise yard	20×40 ft pen + shed	Small coop/run
Daily time	30–45 min	30–60 min (exercise!)	30–60 min (exercise!)	45–90 min	15–20 min
Handler size	Any; pigs are driven, not led	Great for smaller kids	Needs some strength to brace	Big, strong kids with adult help	Any
Sold at auction	By the head	By the head	By the head	By the pound	By the head
Roughly, animal cost	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	High	Low
Roughly, feed cost	Moderate	Low–moderate	Low–moderate	High	Low
Escape artist?	Digs and lifts panels	Climbs and squeezes	Not usually	Leans and pushes	Flies a little

Weights and ages come from the NCJL Terms & Conditions. Deadlines are projected from the 2026 rules for a September 14, 2027 check-in. Confirm on the paperwork page.

Pigs 🐖

Good if: you have a solid pen, a shady spot, and a hose. Pigs are smart, funny, and grow fast. You drive a pig with a whip instead of leading it, so size doesn’t matter as much. Pigs are the most popular species at our fair, which means big classes and lots of families to learn from.

Watch out for: heat. Pigs can’t sweat. Navajo County summers mean misters, wallows, or shade are not optional. Pigs also root under fences, so anchor the bottom of your panels. Start here: Pigs: picking a good one.

Goats 🐐

Good if: you’re a smaller kid or a first-timer, or you have limited space. Market goats (Boer types) are the lightest species, easy to handle, and fun. They do need daily exercise to build muscle.

Watch out for: escapes and predators. Goats climb, squeeze through gaps, and figure out latches. Coyotes and loose dogs are a real risk out here, so plan a secure night pen. Wethers must have been disbudded before three weeks old. Start here: Goats: picking a good one.

Lambs 🐑

Good if: you want a show-ring challenge. Lambs are shown without a halter, so showmanship really matters and really shows. Lambs are calm, easy to house, and about the same size as a big dog when you buy them.

Watch out for: bracing takes practice and some strength, and lambs need an exercise program to stay lean. Sheep can’t have copper in their mineral. Start here: Lambs: picking a good one.

Steers 🐄

Good if: you’re older or bigger, you have room, you have a truck and trailer or a way to borrow one, and an experienced adult is helping. Steers are the biggest, longest, and most expensive project, and the auction check is also the biggest. You’ll spend ten months with this animal.

Watch out for: safety first. A 1,200-pound animal has to trust you, and that trust takes daily work starting the day you bring it home. Feed is the biggest cost by far. Steers must be halter-led from the trailer at tagging and double-tied at the fair. Start here: Steers: picking a good one.

Turkeys 🦃

Good if: you want a low-cost, low-space project or a second species. Market turkeys must be Broad Breasted Bronze or White, at least 15 pounds, and between 4 and 9 months old. Turkeys show Wednesday evening.

Watch out for: turkeys are the one species we don’t yet have full Handbook pages for. Ask the club leader and the turkey superintendent for a mentor.

Questions to ask your family

1. How much room do we really have, and can we build a pen that keeps this animal in and predators out?
2. Who is doing chores at 6 AM before school and again at 6 PM, every single day, including vacations?
3. What’s our budget for the animal, feed for the whole project, pen materials, and show supplies? Remember the auction check comes after the fair.
4. How will we get it to tagging, a pre-fair show, and the fair? You need a trailer or a truck with a stock rack (or a friend who has one).
5. Is the kid big enough to control this animal safely, and interested enough to do the daily work?

Rules that shape your choice

• You may show up to two animals per species, and you can show more than one species.
• You may sell only one animal per species at the auction (grand and reserve champions are the exception). See The auction.
• You must show in showmanship for a species to sell that species.
• All market animals must be males castrated (turkeys excepted) and must be in your ownership and care. You feed it, you train it, you show it.
• Every species must go to one pre-fair show (SAILA, jackpot, or livestock camp).

Still not sure?

Come to a meeting and ask kids who did each species last year. Visit a family’s pen. Better yet, go to a spring jackpot show and watch every species in one afternoon. Then read where to buy your animal.