*NEW* Tennessee Junior Sheep Expo

Date of Show: August 13-14, 2026
Location: Covered Arena (Barn Z)

Chairman: Aaron Fisher, (865) 974-7260
Judge: TBD

SCHEDULE:
Wednesday, August 12
4:00 PM - Sheep may arrive - Barn Y

Thursday, August 13
7:00-10:00 AM - Registered Ewe Check-in - Barn Z
8:00-11:00 AM - Fleece Show Check-in; Judging begins at 11:00 AM
8:00 AM-5:00 PM - Sheep Skillathon - Q Barn
11:00 AM - Registered Sheep Show - Barn Z 8:00-11:00 AM - Sheep Sales Talk and Career Development Contest - Q Barn

Competition limited to Tennessee 4-H and FFA Members. Pre-entry is required through your local Extension Agent or Agricultural Teacher.

(1) No animals are permitted in the barns prior to having their health papers checked.
(2) There will be a 15-minute break following Registered Ewe Team Showmanship, Market-Type Showmanship and Commercial Ewe Show.
(3) Exhibitor awards will be presented as soon as possible following the conclusion of the Market Animal Grand Champion Drive.

Entries are due to the UT Animal Science department by June 1.

Entry Fee: $10 per head MUST be prepaid to the UT Animal Science department.

Market Animal Grand Drive: Saturday, August 15 @ 6 PM - Barn Y

• Includes Market Lamb Breed Champions and Market Goat Division Champions
• Goat and Sheep Skillathon, Premier Exhibitor and Educational Contests winners announced at Grand Drive

All Trailers are to enter through the Tennessee Blvd. entrance

NO STRAW ALLOWED – Bedding will be provided in the barn.

Exhibitor and one driver admitted FREE. All others are required to pay Fair Admission.

All market lambs and commercial ewes MUST be tagged with a TJLE tag by June 1. Tags will be sent to the exhibitor’s county Extension office. Extension Agents or FFA Advisors MUST supervise the tagging of each animal. Registered ewes will be entered with their scrapie tag.

1. Competition is limited to Tennessee 4-H and FFA members in good standing in their counties or chapters.
2. 4-H members are required to have been enrolled in the fourth grade on January 1 of the current calendar year in order to be eligible to exhibit their sheep in this show. Both 4-H and FFA members will become in-eligible at the end of the calendar year following their graduation from high school or upon their 20th birthday, whichever comes first.
3. All entries must be validated and signed by the County Extension Agent or Agricultural Teacher.
4. Entries are due to the local Extension Agent or Agriculture Teacher and must be forwarded to Aaron Fisher, 2506 River Drive, 252 Brehm Animal Science Building, Knoxville, TN 37996. Entry forms and additional rules can be found at https://animalscience. tennessee.edu/animal-exhibitions/
5. All market lambs and commercial ewes must be individually identified with TJLE tag (witnessed by Extension Agent or FFA Advisor) and registered ewes must be individually identified by a Scrapie tag.
6. All sheep MUST be owned and in the direct possession of the youth exhibitor by June 1 of the current year. Lease agreements for registered ewes and commercial ewes must be in place by June 1 also.
7. Each exhibitor may enter and exhibit a total of 4 commercial ewes and 4 market lambs at the TJLE Sheep Expo. There is no limit to the total number of registered ewes that can be entered/shown, but only 2 per age classification can be entered/shown. Each exhibitor may only show 2 leased commercial ewes and 2 leased registered ewes.
8. Any item that comes up at the show that is not covered by these rules will be decided by the show committee and their decision will be final.
9. Exhibitors must comply with all applicable general livestock rules and livestock requirements set forth in this catalog and in Tennessee Junior Sheep Expo Handbook.
10. Showmanship Classes: Explorer; Junior; Junior High; Senior Level 1 & Senior Level 2. There will be a Registered Ewe Showmanship & a Market-Type Showmanship (commercial ewes & market lambs). Animals used in each showmanship must be from those entered/exhibited by the exhibitor in the respective show.
11. Commerical Ewes will be classified into crossbred black-face, crossbred white-face and crossbred hair divisions. Commercial ewes will also be mouthed to determine age (lamb/yearling). Ewe lambs must have lamb teeth and yearling ewes must have yearling teeth. No commercial ewe will show with 2-year teeth. Commercial ewes will be assigned to classes within each division by age (lamb/yearling) and then by weight. Commercial ewes will be shown by weight. After a ewe leaves the scales, no reweighs will be made.
12. Market Lambs will be classified for breed characteristics. If it is determined that a market lamb does not meet the standard of a particular breed, it will be moved to the appropriate crossbred class. The decision of the breed classifier is final.
    a. Market lambs must be completely slick-shorn. Wool/hair may only be left below the hock and knee.
    b. Market lambs will be shown by breed and weight. After a market lamb leaves the scales, no reweighs will be made.
    c. Breed shows will be provided for any breed with 6 or more head entered by 3 or more exhibitors following the breed classification.
13. Breed shows for registered ewes will be offered for any breed with 8 or more head entered by 3 or more exhibitors. Those with less than 8 head and 3 exhibitors will be shown in the All Other Breeds classes.
14. Registered Ewes will be shown by age in the following classes (There will be no overlap of age classification):
    a. March Junior Ewe (March 1 and after, year of show)
    b. February Junior Ewe (February 1 – February 28/29, year of show)
    c. January Junior Ewe (January 1 – January 31, year of show)
    d. Senior Ewe Lambs (September 1 – December 31, preceding year)
    e. Junior Yearling Ewe (February 16 – August 31, preceding year)
    f. Senior Yearling Ewe (September 1, year before preceding year – February 15, preceding year)
15. At the end of each breed show, there will be a flock class.
16. Classes may be divided based on discretion of show management.
17. Bred By Exhibitor for Registered Ewes is defined as an exhibitor being listed as both the sole breeder and sole owner of the ewe on the registration paper.
18. Farm Bred for Commercial Ewes is defined as the ewe being produced by a dam solely owned by the exhibitor, his/her parents/legal guardian or his/her grandparents at the time that the said ewe was conceived.
19. Tennessee Bred Lamb for Market Lambs is defined as a lamb whose dam was owned by a Tennessee sheep producer at the time the said lamb was conceived. The lamb must have been born in the state of Tennessee.
20. A COUNTY GROUP class will be held with five sheep from at least three exhibitors to compete.
21. A Skillathon Contest will be held, opened to all exhibitors.
22. Market Goat Division Champions and Market Lamb Breed Champions will show in the Market Animal Grand Champion Drive on Saturday, August 15 at 6 PM.