The livestock barns at the Stanislaus County Fair will be much livelier this year as State Veterinarian Dr. Annette Jones lifted the ban placed last year on all California poultry and dairy cattle exhibitions at fairs and shows.
The ban was issued in January 2025 due to the spread of H5N1 bird flu across the state. From August 2024 to January 2025, there were over 700 dairy herds and 60 poultry flocks with over 15 million birds affected by bird flu.
In a press release lifting the ban, the state veterinarian said that since the implementation of the ban, CDFA has conducted ongoing surveillance, reviewed viral trend data and consulted with epidemiologists and animal health partners at both the state and federal levels.
“Based on a comprehensive review of current H5N1 infection trends, improved understanding of transmission dynamics, and enhanced mitigation measures now in place, CDFA has determined that the risk associated with poultry and dairy cattle exhibitions has sufficiently decreased.”
Although the exhibition ban was lifted, the state veterinarian “strongly encourages” fairgrounds and exhibitors to continue implementing enhanced biosecurity.
The Stanislaus County Fair recently released important dates for livestock exhibitors:
· Dairy Replacement Heifer paperwork is due Feb. 16 and 17
· Market Beef Ear Tag and Weigh-in is due March 6 and 7
· Annual Livestock Drive-thru Dinner is set for April 16
· Ear Tag Verification is May 3 and May 9
The Fair also released the 2026 Junior Livestock Auction dates. The 58th annual Replacement Heifer Sale will be held July 12. The 62nd annual Market Beef Sale will be held July 17. The 62nd annual Junior Livestock Auctions will be held July 18.
Last week, the Stanislaus County Fair Board of Directors voted to cancel all junior horse events for 2026. “It’s just been kind of stagnant,” said Fair CEO Kim Williams. “There just haven’t been hardly any participants from our county for 4-H and it does operate at a loss. Ultimately, I think that the board would like to see it come back here.”
The horse show has been a staple of the pre-fair events for decades. For the past few years, the horse show was held not at the fair’s arena, but instead at the Diamond Bar Arena in Ceres with the fair staff hosting the event and it being open to participants from other counties. Williams said the horse show was moved there because the fair’s arena was not up to show standards.
According to Williams, there were 38 participants in the 2025 Junior Horse Show, with 20 from Stanislaus County. She said in 2024, there were only 10 participants in the show from Stanislaus County.
