Going once, going twice, sold!

Heifers, cows, steers and bulls were sent one by one to the auction floor Monday afternoon at Ramsey Livestock Sales in Bovina, waiting to learn who they’d be going home with.

Owner and operator T.D. Ramsey is third-generation in his family to work with stockyards.

“I’ve been in the cattle business my whole life,” he said. “We had sale barns back in the ’70s and ’80s in Hazelhurst and Fernwood.”

Ramsey opened his sale barn at 4023 Bovina Cutoff Road last April where he holds a livestock sale each Monday at 1 p.m.

Though his business has sold mostly  cattle, Ramsey said horses, sheep, goats, hogs or any other type of livestock are welcome.

Many of the cows coming through the chutes are commercial beef cattle, but there are also a few registered angus and brahmer bulls available.

Most of the clientele at the auctions are those with family farms, coming from Louisiana, Arkansas and Mississippi.

“We’ve had a lot of local people who hadn’t been in the cattle business who got back in the cattle business from this sale barn,” Wilson said.

“People around here are getting back in this business because there’s a sale closer to them.”

However, as of late, the beef industry has suffered, along with many other industries.

“We were averaging over $1,200 a head when we first started, and the average now is probably $700-$800 just to give you an idea of the price of cattle,” he said.

“It’s just like oil. It was at $90 a barrel and now it’s at $30-something a barrel, and all of that follows that trend.”

The Ramsey family hopes to provide a family-friendly atmosphere with concession stand burgers and other food and prayer opening up each auction.

In addition to the auction, Ramsey said he’s able to provide any sort of cattle work area ranchers might possibly need.

Later on in the spring, Ramsey is looking to start a Trade Day once a month on Saturdays.

“You can trade anything: sheep, goats, pigs, chickens or whatever,” he said. “If you’ve got something you want to trade on a Saturday, let us know and we’ll start having it. They have canned goods and all kinds of things from the local farming community at these things.”

For more information, call T.D. Ramsey at 601-940-2221 or 601-892-1788.