Cattle Market Pulse

Cattleman's Livestock Market Report, Bowling Green, KY

Bowling Green, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Monday, August 21, 2023

231 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest Cattleman's Livestock report →

heavy 7-weight M&L 1-2 steers $241.18/cwt ≈ $1,886/hd at 782 lb · 17 head
light 4-weight M&L 2 heifers $205.40/cwt ≈ $857/hd at 417 lb · 12 head
heavy 5-weight M&L 1-2 bulls $222.27/cwt -9.73 vs last sale · ≈ $1,287/hd at 579 lb · 10 head
HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 231 185 98
Feeder cattle 188 150 69
Slaughter cattle 30 29 19
Replacement cattle 13 6 10

Compared to last week: No comparison on feeder steers due to light receipts last week. Feeder heifers sold 2.00 to 4.00 lower. Moderate demand on feeder classes due to extreme heat forecast this week. Slaughter cows sold steady. Slaughter bulls sold steady. Good demand for slaughter classes.

New to these tables? Plain-English explainers ↓

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
360 360 1 260.00 $260.00 $936 —
430 430 1 248.00 $248.00 $1,066 -28.74
458 458 4 249.00 $249.00 $1,140 -11.00
570 570 3 235.00 $235.00 $1,340 —
645 645 3 220.00–238.00 $232.00 $1,496 +14.00
668–695 673 6 228.00–229.00 $228.83 $1,540 —
705 value added 705 1 239.00 $239.00 $1,685 —
781 value added 781 16 243.00 $243.00 $1,898 —
795 795 1 212.00 $212.00 $1,685 —
812 value added 812 3 240.00 $240.00 $1,949 —
895 895 1 214.00 $214.00 $1,915 —
914 value added 914 4 240.50 $240.50 $2,198 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
730 730 1 205.00 $205.00 $1,496 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
585 585 1 190.00 $190.00 $1,112 —

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Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
293 293 2 250.00 $250.00 $732 -10.00
342–346 345 10 225.00–246.00 $239.75 $827 —
408 408 6 237.00 $237.00 $967 -18.00
512 512 7 228.50 $228.50 $1,170 -9.50
570–573 572 5 220.00–228.50 $226.81 $1,297 -9.36
640 640 1 197.00 $197.00 $1,261 -20.00
662–674 667 9 197.00–199.00 $198.10 $1,321 -7.61
850 850 1 173.00 $173.00 $1,470 —
1020 1020 1 144.00 $144.00 $1,469 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
325 325 1 220.00 $220.00 $715 —
400–422 417 12 203.00–213.00 $205.40 $857 —
468 468 2 208.00 $208.00 $973 —
587 587 3 197.00 $197.00 $1,156 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
290–295 293 3 175.00–177.50 $176.68 $518 —
370 370 3 187.00 $187.00 $692 —
415–435 425 4 170.00–187.50 $175.70 $747 —
518 518 4 185.00 $185.00 $958 —
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1215 1215 1 149.00 $149.00 $1,810 —

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Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
310 310 3 264.00 $264.00 $818 —
395 395 1 250.00 $250.00 $988 —
443 443 4 241.00 $241.00 $1,068 +15.87
453–481 472 6 235.00–241.50 $239.42 $1,130 +6.89
510–520 516 8 214.00–234.00 $220.21 $1,136 +5.21
567–596 579 10 220.00–225.50 $222.27 $1,287 -9.73
615–635 625 2 202.00–215.00 $208.60 $1,304 -16.41
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
263–280 267 4 238.00–240.00 $238.52 $637 —
420–445 433 2 205.00–215.00 $210.14 $910 —
498 498 2 206.00 $206.00 $1,026 —
583 583 3 198.50 $198.50 $1,157 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
330 330 2 195.00 $195.00 $644 —
635 635 1 175.00 $175.00 $1,111 —
835 835 1 168.00 $168.00 $1,403 —

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Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
830–990 851 85-90% 13 86.00–88.00 $86.17 $733 —
980 980 85-90% 1 97.00 $97.00 $951 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1080–1210 1135 80-85% 3 98.00–103.00 $100.10 $1,136 —
1270–1280 1275 80-85% 2 111.00–117.00 $113.99 $1,453 +25.89
1365 1365 80-85% 1 83.00 $83.00 $1,133 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1505 1505 75-80% 1 88.00 $88.00 $1,324 —
1485–1540 1513 75-80% 2 112.00–120.00 $115.93 $1,754 —

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YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1110 1110 1 93.00 $93.00 $1,032 —
1605–1990 1740 3 121.00–128.50 $124.87 $2,173 —

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Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
880–1000 945 Young (2-4 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 4 1,080.00–1,150.00 $1,125.66
970–1030 1000 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 2 1,075.00–1,200.00 $1,135.63
Medium and Large 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
880 880 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 925.00 $925.00

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Medium and Large 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
890 890 Young (2-4 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 1,025.00 $1,025.00

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Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
880 880 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 1 1,925.00 $1,925.00 —
960–990 975 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 2 1,425.00–1,525.00 $1,475.77 -674.23
995 995 Aged (>8 yrs)Open 1 1,450.00 $1,450.00 -700.00
1070 1070 Aged (>8 yrs)Open 1 1,700.00 $1,700.00 —

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What does "Medium and Large 1" mean?

USDA feeder grades describe frame size and muscle thickness, not quality of the individual animal. "Medium and Large" is the frame score; the number is muscle (1 = heaviest muscled). "Medium and Large 1–2" pens mix both muscle scores — common across the Southeast.

What is $/cwt?

Dollars per hundredweight — per 100 lb of animal. A 500-lb calf at $450/cwt brings 5 × $450 = $2,250. Lighter cattle usually bring more per cwt but less per head.

Why are some prices per head?

Bred cows, cow-calf pairs, and some replacement classes sell by the head, not by weight. We show those exactly as USDA reports them — a $/head figure is never converted into $/cwt on this site.

Where do these numbers come from?

From the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service's Livestock Market News — federal reporters at the sale. We publish each report in full and link the official USDA document at the top of the page.