Montana Ram and Ewe Sale Results

The weather was wonderful in Miles City, Sep. 16-17, for the annual Montana Wool Growers Association’s Ram and Ewe Sales. Crowds filled the stands both days, and online bidders showed up in record numbers. Buyers were from Montana, South Dakota, Idaho, North Dakota, Washington, Wyoming, and Nevada. All sale averages were up from 2019.

95th Annual MT Ram Sale

Targhee Ram Average on 210 head: $1,608 (Low $650, High $6,750)

Rambouillet Ram Average on 31 Head: $1,652 (Low $1,000, $3,500)

Rambouillet Cross Ram Average on 10 Head: $1,890 (Low $1,500, High $3,000)

Suffolk X Hampshire Ram Average on 14 Head: $911 (Low $600, High $1,050.00)

Suffolk Ram Average on 16 Head: $888 (Low $600, High $1,200)

Hampshire Ram Average on 2 head: $775 (Low $750, High $800)

Auctioneers Collin Gibbs and Kyle Shobe sold 283 lots for an overall average of $1,542, up from $1,010 in 2019. The sale grossed $463,250.

The high selling ram was a Targhee consigned by Skull Creek Targhee of Brockway. It sold for $6,750 to Turner Sheep Company of Gillette Wyoming. Eight Targhee ram lots sold for $3,500 or more. The Targhee sale average was $1,608/head.

Rambouillet bucks sold exceptionally well, with an overall average of $1,710/head. Helle Rambouillet of Dillon had the top selling buck, purchased for $3,500 by Jim Page of Garneill, MT.

Dawe Suffolks of Big Timber topped the blackface portion of the sale, selling 2 of her lots for $1,200 each, one bought by Lisa Toth of Havre, MT, and another selling to the Bair Ranch Foundation. The overall blackface average was $891/head, more than $200 above last year’s average.

7th Annual Montana Ewe Sale

Montana Sheep Company of Fort Shaw, MT, topped the ewe sale again this year, selling 10 head for $450/each. Wang Ranch of Baker, MT, was the volume buyer off-site, buying 200 head. Wanda Pinnow of the Baker area was the volume on-site buyer, taking home 39 head.

Sale Gross on 638 Ewes: $187,615.

628 head of white faced yearling ewes averaged $314/hd

10 head of black faced ewe lambs averaged $350/hd

Pens of 10 averaged $323, Pens of 20 averaged $315

Off-site Ewes averaged $278/hd

Donation Ewe:

John and Betty Sampsel of Hughes Newford donated a yearling Targhee Ewe, with proceeds used as scholarships to sponsor young sheep producers to attend MWGA’s annual convention in December. Ten buyers donated a total of $3,400. Thank you to Cora Best of Dry River Law, Jon Beastrom, Burdell Johnson of Food and Fiber Risk Managers, Mick Weist, Wanda Pinnow, Jack McRae, Randy Tunby, Duane and Debbie Talcott, Sam Ortmann, and Hollenbecks of Blue Bell Sheep Co, for contributing.

MWGA would like to extend a big thank you to auctioneers Collin Gibbs and Kyle Shobe for their hard work during the sale. Thank you to all of those who placed bids and all the buyers! We also thank Frontier Stockyards for conducting the sale. We appreciate your support and look forward to seeing everyone next year with more quality yearling ewes and rams at the 96th Annual MT Ram Sale and the 8th Annual Montana Ewe Sale on Sept. 15-16, 2021!

For more coverage and pictures of both sales, please check out Montana Wool Growers Facebook page.