Pen of 3 Commercial Carcass Competition

Supported by the Wisconsin Sheep Breeders Cooperative, the Pen of 3 Commercial Carcass Competition is designed to provide both a live evaluation and definitive carcass data to any producer wishing to improve flock genetics. Join producers, processors and industry representatives for a marketing roundtable on Sunday following the live evaluation.

HOW THE PEN OF 3 WORKS!

• Exhibitors enter a pen of 3 lambs at Wisconsin Sheep & Wool Festival.
• Lambs are judged in their pens at 10:00 am Sunday.
• All lambs will be harvested and carcass data taken at UW-Madison Meats Lab.
• Carcasses judged as a PEN OF 3 (Payments for lambs harvested are made directly to exhibitors.)
• Live placings will be announced 1:00 p.m. Sunday.
• Carcass awards, along with data and indexing, will be listed online - www.wisbc.com.
• Payments for lambs and premium awards will be mailed directly to recipients.

1. PEN RESERVATIONS - Deadline September 3 or until pen limit (6 pens) is reached. Entry Fees $25 per pen. Entries accepted on a first-come-basis until pens are filled based on online entries. Limit – two pens per flock/farm making entry. Only those sheep for which pen fees have been paid will be permitted to be penned. Individual exhibitors receive one (1) gate pass to the festival.
2. ELIGIBILITY - Pen of Three Commercial Carcass Competition is open to wether and/or ewe lambs, commercial or purebred. The weight of each lamb at entry must be between 115 and 150 pounds.
   
   • PENNING: Lambs to be penned by 9 a.m. Sunday. Pens assigned by Coordinator.
   • FLEECE LENGTH: #1 pelts - (3/8” to 1” wool).
   • GENERAL: No muzzles, drenching, cold water baths, ice wraps, blanketing, patch shearing, coloring, or fitting permitted, (including legs). Lambs may not be tied in the pen.
3. HEALTH CERTIFICATES & INSPECTION - All sheep will be inspected prior to unloading. Sheep originating from outside Wisconsin must be accompanied by a current certificate of veterinary inspection for interstate movement, to be submitted at check-in. Sheep showing any symptoms of contagious or infectious disease (sore mouth, ringworm, foot rot, pink eye, wool or club lamb fungus) will not be permitted to be unloaded or penned. All sheep entries must be identified with official, individual scrapie eartag ID.
4. DRUG WITHDRAWAL - Persons entering lambs in the Pen of 3 Competition will be responsible for observing withdrawal times for all feed additives, antibiotics, de-wormers and vaccines. Evidence to the contrary at any stage of this competition may result in disqualification of lambs and/or carcasses and may cause an exhibitor to be banned from future competitions and the forfeiture of any and all premium or payments.
5. IDENTIFICATION - All lambs entered must have birth dates recorded upon arrival. Only lambs born in year of event are eligible. Official scrapie/premise ID required.
6. ALL PENS ASSIGNED - Pens assigned by Carcass Competition Coordinator. Plan accordingly, no tack pens available. Pen cards will be provided.
7. FEEDING/CARE - Feeding and care of lambs until they leave the grounds for harvesting is solely the responsibility of the exhibitor. Bedding (shavings) provided.
8. JUDGING - Lambs will be evaluated in their pens Sunday morning by a Judge appointed by the Pen of 3 Carcass Competition committee. Lambs are judged as a pen in both live and carcass evaluations.
9. PAYMENTS - Payment for lambs will be made by processor directly to exhibitor at the address on the entry form. Provide phone number.
10. CONTEST RESULTS -
    
    • LIVE PEN PLACING – Will be determined by the live judge based on an evaluation of all three lambs in the pen and will be announced at Wisconsin Sheep & Wool Festival.
    • CARCASS PEN PLACING – Will be based on the average carcass placing of each carcass within a pen. Carcass pen placing ties will be broken by the average carcass index of lambs in the pen.
11. AWARDS - Monetary premiums will be paid on both live and carcass pens. If the 1st place carcass pen is also the 1st place live pen, an additional premium will be awarded.
12. RIGHT TO USE DATA - The Wisconsin Sheep Breeders Cooperative reserves the right to record, photograph or otherwise utilize and/or share data and information from any and all Pen of 3 Carcass Competition entries.
13. TRANSPORTATION - Transportation of lambs to the processor will be provided by the Festival, arranged by the Pen of 3 Carcass Competition Committee, unless any disqualification shall cause an exhibitor to be required to remove entries from the Festival grounds.
14. LIABILITY - All Festival regulations shall apply.