Fort Fun Families

FAST FACTS
* Centennial Livestock Auction is located at 113 N.W. Frontage Road, Fort Collins.
* Contact info: (970) 482-6207 or cla.auction@prodigy.net
* Website: www.claauction.com

So it’s officially winter here in Fort Collins and since my boys are a bit wimpy when it comes to snow and cold (and I’ll admit to getting tired of the bundling-in-layers-and-snowsuit rituals required to play outdoors) I’m on the lookout for indoor activities around town. Here’s one you may not have thought of : Centennial Livestock Auction.

I grew up in Ohio and used to go to animal sales regularly and was excited to learn that Fort Collins had a livestock auction house not too far from my house. A few weeks ago we checked out the animal action; we went on a Wednesday when they sell sheep, dairy cattle, goats, baby calves, hogs, and horses. The auction starts at 10 according to the info, but things didn’t really get rolling until 10:30. They bring out a group of animals, run them around a bit so you can look them over –all the while, the auctioneer manages the bidding and makes the sale– and then they are on to another group. We settled into the front row and the boys had a ball watching the sheep come and go; we also enjoyed the old billy goat that came out with each group to calm the sheep.

There were ALOT of sheep, about 90 minutes worth, at least, and even with snack the boys eventually tired of sheep gazing. So, we headed outside to check out some of the other animals. There is a walkway that allows you to scan the animals from above.

It was interesting to see the incoming animals herded into their corrals.

We couldn’t resist getting a closer look at the longhorns.

And we stopped to pet the goats.

The auction house has a little restaurant so we headed in to warm up and have some lunch, then went back to watch some baby calves being sold. Thank goodness my trunk is so small; those little ones were so cute I was ready to take one home. By then it was getting close to naptime so we headed home. We’ll be back…maybe with a pickup truck next time.