--- title: First Time Fair Information date: 2026-09-24T11:10:00-07:00 author: Matt Bloomfield canonical_url: "https://www.mlj.one/volunteering/4h/first-time-fair-information" section: Blog --- [ ← Blog ](https://www.mlj.one/volunteering/4h) Post September 24, 2026 # First Time Fair Information Raising a pig for the fair is a lot of work. Use this guide to prepare yourself for what the actual fair week looks like! This is part of a two-part guide about raising a 4H pig. If you haven't read the previous guide, start there! --- [Part 1: Raising a 4H Pig](https://www.mlj.one/volunteering/4h/your-guide-to-raising-a-4h-pig) Part 2: You're here! ## Fair Week Be prepared to spend *a lot* of time at the fairgrounds. Most people pull their kids out of school basically from Tuesday to Saturday. You will deliver the animal on Tuesday, but it’s up to you to make sure it’s taken care of. Plan to be there at least twice a day for feeding/water, but probably more for general welfare. ### Preparation Things to bring with you: - Bailing wire - Pliers - Some scrap sheet wood - sometimes you’ll need to modify your stall to keep wood shavings in or keep your pig safe from an aggressive neighbor - May also want a saw and drill to help with fitment and attachment - A feeding bin. Either a trough you can attach to the stall or a bucket/rubber tray for the ground. - A watering mechanism - many people use 4” PVC with a 90 elbow at the bottom and attach a water nipple to the end cap. This stands about 5’ tall in the corner of the stall and can be filled with water each day. - Any soaps/shampoos/lotions/beauty products for the pig - A washing brush - Pig whip and brush - Water - not everyone does this - but Holbrook water can sometimes make a pig stomach-sick. Many people haul their own water in or use an RV filter on the hoses supplied to fill up water. - A bucket or two. - A mister of some sort - you want to be able to mist down your pig when they are getting hot. This especially helps when they are getting ornery. - Wheelbarrow - useful for transportation of supplies and also old, gross wood shavings I’m going to use the 2025 schedule as a basis, knowing things may change year to year, so take it with a grain of salt. Your times will be on the Schedule page of the Navajo County Fair Book, which you can search online. ### Tuesday Schedule: - 5-9 pm Check-in - 6:45 pm Mandatory Meeting - 7-9 pm Pig weigh-ins Many people get to the fairgrounds long before 5 pm. You can unload your pig and get them in the stall at any time that day after 8 am. If you are bringing an RV trailer, you probably want it there pretty early to secure a spot. We didn’t get to the fairgrounds till about 6, and that worked out fine. We had plenty of time to get the pig comfy before weigh-in, but by the time we checked in, they were out of the discounted carnival tickets As part of check-in, you have the option to buy additional wristbands. These get you into the fair all week - so if you have additional guests who will be coming more than one time, plan to buy them wristbands ($15/each). You can also buy the discounted 3-hour wristbands for the carnival, which were $25/each. ### Wednesday Not much happens this day. In our case, Adam went to school, and I worked at the fair, feeding the pig twice and that’s about it. Most of the kids take the chance to explore exhibits, watch various shows, pal around, and spend time with their animals. It’s a fun day. ### Thursday Today is the big day! You will be showing your pig two times today - once for the market, and once for showmanship. #### Understanding the Competitions The market competition is more about the pig - its genetics, muscles, build, etc. - but it’s still important that the kid shows control over the animal and shows every part of it to the judge. The showmanship competition is about the kid and how well they show. That said, the pig is still taken into consideration. Here, the judge is looking for kids who have good control, good eye contact with the judge, keep the pig distanced from them but also don’t stay in the corner, and keep their pig between them and the judge. Either on Wednesday evening or Thursday morning, they will post the order for both competitions. Market is broken into classes, and showmanship is in lots. #### Preparation Take the morning to feed and wash your pig. You’ll wash it again before you show it, but you want to get anything major off now. For showing, your child will want to dress up. For a girl, this often means a flashy blouse with cowboy-cut jeans and boots with done-up hair. For a boy it’s similar, swapping the blouse for a long-sleeve button-up, optional tie, and combed hair. A white shirt works, but most kids will wear a checkered or colored shirt, which looks cleaner and longer. #### Understanding Timing They want to have whichever class is on deck in the show stalls while the other class is in progress, so you’ll want to get your pig washed and ready at least 3 classes before your time. (e.g., if you are class 3, pull your pig out at the start of class 1, that way you can be over in the grass behind the barn, ready to load up right as class 1 finishes (about 10 min). The same timing applies to showmanship. Expect the shows to take several hours, as there are a lot of pigs and they take about 10 minutes per round, plus the championship round and bred and fed round. ### Friday Auction day! There’s lots of excitement here, and for good reason! The auction is a long and fun event. Dozens of buyers come in from all around the county and generously purchase the livestock, helping the kids (and their parents) recover the funds from the season and have a little extra for future goals. The order is determined by a few factors, but it will be posted in the same place as the classes from yesterday. #### Preparation Once again, your child will want to be wearing show clothing. Have them ready to go at least 30 minutes before the auction. You’ll also want your pig washed and looking its best once again. It is a common courtesy to present your buyer with a gift. It doesn’t need to be extravagant, but something to show appreciation. Expect to pay ~$50 for this. Some ideas: - Nice stadium chairs - Freshly baked cinnamon rolls - A BBQ set or various sauces and rubs - A basket of various animal-related trinkets and gift cards Whatever the gift, including a note from the child is a nice touch. #### Timing This is a bit more relaxed. Each animal takes roughly 2-3 minutes to auction. Go get your animal about 10 slots before yours, and you should have plenty of time to rinse it off and head to the barn. #### Format The format is simple; it’s in the same barn as the showing. Each kid will show their animal again but in a much smaller ring and alone while the bidding happens. A prudent parent will encourage their child to walk around and meet the potential buyers before the auction starts and also greet those you invited. A simple introduction, like, “Hi, I’m <name>. Thank you for coming today” can open a conversation and help teach your child to interact with adults, especially adults in power. Pay attention to the location of your buyer so you can deliver your gift. Kids typically deliver the gift within a few minutes of the purchase. ### Saturday Another slow day, like Wednesday. Hang out, feed your pig, keep them comfy in the potentially hot weather. ### Sunday The fair is over, the animals are gone. Between 7-8:30am, everyone is required to clean out their stalls. Bring a shovel, wheelbarrow, and a bucket. Once stalls are clean and you've passed it off with a superintendent, you are free to go home!