UWRF hosts pig auction

UW-River Falls will host the 9th Annual Show Pig Auction at noon, on Saturday, April 5, at Mann Valley Farm. Approximately 130 pigs will be available to view beginning at 10 a.m.

The student-raised show pigs are from litters sired by top quality boars from Shaffers Gold Rush of Indiana. Many of the pigs purchased at the 2013 auction proved to be top competitors during the fair season last year, including: Grand Champion Carcass – Marathon County; Overall Grand Champion Hog – Hubbard County, Minn.; Champion Market Gilt – Pierce County; Reserve Grand Champion Market Hog – St. Croix County.

Bob Johnson of Badger State Auction will again provide auction services. UWRF students Kathryn Williams, of Slinger, and Emily Warren, of Burlington, are co-managers of the event.

Because of the ongoing threat from the Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea (PED) Virus, buyers are asked to take specific precautions to help prevent the spread of this highly contagious disease: wear boots and shoes free of manure and dirt, preferably cleaned with a bleach solution; wear clothing that has been freshly laundered or not exposed to other hogs or a stockyards environment (this includes jackets and caps); wash and clean your truck, trailer and hog crates if they have been exposed to other hogs or stockyards; traffic on the farm will be routed around the swine facilities. Please respect the signs and other directions that will be posted on the sale day. Also, please stay in the vicinity of the sale and viewing area and do not wander around the farm; all pigs must be removed from the premises on the day of the sale. Pigs will not be held for later pick up.

The Mann Valley Farm is located two miles west of River Falls at 129 Glover Road. Maps and directions to the farm can be found on the UWRF website at www.uwrf.edu.

For more information about the sale, call Williams or Warren at 715-821-7094.