January 5 saw a strong opening for the cattle economy in Fallon at the Nevada Livestock Marketing Feeder Sale with nearly 2,250 head of cattle going through the sale.
“We had a nice kickoff sale for 2024,” said owner Jack Payne. “We really hoped prices would bounce back after the first of the year, and boy, did they ever.”
Payne said prices hit $4.00 on light cattle, and the high mark happened on heifers. “A nice set of long weaned green heifers out of Jordan Valley hit $4.14.”
Attendance by buyers was high, and there were plenty of consignors on hand to watch their cattle sell.
“Nothing feels better to an auction owner than customers sitting in the seats in disbelief of what their cattle are selling for,” said Payne. He said this late fall and early winter had opened much better than last year.
According to Corbitt Wall, a livestock market analyst at DV Auction, the cattle market is positive and headed in the right direction. “Three-weight steers averaged $3.66 with a top price at $3.95,” he reported on the Fallon sale.
Nevada Livestock will hold another Feeder Sale on Friday, January 19, and expects over 7,000 head of cattle to run through the sale. Usually, the sale begins at 11 a.m., but it will likely start earlier to get a jump on getting through the day but will roll into Saturday.
Cattle are expected from across the state and will include Crawford Cattle out of Paradise Valley, NV with 270 head steers/heifers, Evan’s Ranch Inc. out of Lakeview, OR with 67 steers and 22 heifers, Giovanni Giordano out of Winnemucca, NV, Hank Vogler from Ely, NV, Cody Coombs out of Ely, NV, Jay and Georgia Black of LJ Livestock out of Reese River, NV, Memory Ranches out of Clover Valley, NV, with 350 head steers/heifers (heavy to steers), Jake and Lydia Dempsey out of Winnemucca, NV, Jones Boys Ranches out of Railroad Valley, NV, Robert Steele out of Alamo, NV, Scilacci Farms LLC out of Lovelock, NV, Wade Rosenlund of WB Farms out of Lund, NV with mostly Angus/Hereford cross, Travis Berg, out of Smokey Valley, NV, and the Tomera Ranches out of Battle Mountain, NV with 500 steers.
Because the January 19 sale continues to grow by a couple of loads daily, Payne has scheduled another special Feeder Sale on February 2 for consignors who don't want to wait until the February 15 sale.
At press time, Payne said, “Our January 19 sale is not closed, and we are still accepting consignments; however, if you're up in the air about coming now or on the 2nd or the 15th of February, I would advise waiting because in our opinion the market should at minimum stay steady and could possibly get higher.”
He explained, “The futures have been going our way, and additional rain and sunshine in California sure won't hurt. We would love to have you join us this week on the 19th and the 20th for a huge run of cattle. Come check out the market and Nevada Livestock Marketing.”
Additionally, the auction is available to watch online at DVAuction.com. The January 5 auction had over 300 viewers online.
Photos by Jack Payne/Nevada Livestock Marketing.
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