Snoop Dog, a 1,343-pound heavyweight black European Cross, sailed past the previous record at the Fort Worth Stock Show’s Sale of Champions, selling for $440,000, well above 2022’s $310,000.
The steer was purchased by Fort Worth insurance company Higginbotham & Associates, which is celebrating its 75th anniversary this year. Higginbotham got into a bit of a bidding war with Women Steering Business, but the insurance broker’s final bid held. It was a good thing the bidding war stopped, said Rusty Reid, chairman and CEO of Higginbotham.
“We were done,” said Reid. “If they (Women Steering Business) had kept going, I would’ve graciously kept my hat and said, Thank you.’”
All proceeds will go to Snoop Dog’s owner, Sadie Wampler, 15, of Canyon, Texas. Wampler is a member of the Randall County 4-H. Snoop Dog was chosen as the 2023 Junior Grand Champion steer on Friday at the Stock Show, from the 1,500 entrants at the show.
Wampler would wake up at 7 a.m. in the summer to wash and dry the steer and do the same at night. During school, she would have to take care of the steer after her daily sports and school activities. She plays basketball, volleyball and runs cross country, as well as being a member of her school’s Future Farmers of America chapter.
Taking care of Snoop Dog taught her a lot, she said.
“This industry has taught me a lot about time management, and I’ve learned over the past year that I can do multiple things if I manage my time properly,” she said.
In the summer, she said, she spent every day in the barn. During school she had to work around classes and her extracurricular activities such as volleyball, basketball and track.
She will likely need those skills when she attends Texas A&M in a few years, where she plans to study animal science.
More difficult may be saying goodbye to Snoop Dog, named after the rapper and entertainer, she said.
“It’s going to be really hard,” she said. “I mean, I spend more time with him than anyone else in my life. He’s like my best friend.”
The sale in 2022 eclipsed $6 million in total auction receipts benefiting about 300 young men and women, said Matt Brockman, communications manager for the show. Total receipts for Saturday’s auction were not available at press time.
Before the sale began, Brad Barnes, president of the Stock Show, said this year’s attendance topped 1.2 million, despite icy weather the final week of the show. Saturday is also the last day of this year’s Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo, which dates back to 1896.
Bob Francis is business editor for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at bob.francis@fortworthreport.org. At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policyhere.
At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.
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