ROBERTSDALE, Ala. — The auction opened with a young male Jersey calf bawling in the viewing pen.

“This seems to be an unruly calf,” remarked auctioneer Mack Bryant as the calf paced back and forth around the ring, still loudly calling for its mama.

The calf, only a few days old, and not much bigger than a large dog, didn’t draw much excitement from the auction goers in the steeply raked seats around the pen.

The calf was purchased after some bidding by Hank Parnell.

“I got him for a friend who runs some Jerseys,” said Parnell, who lives in Robertsdale.

The purchase pleased his grandson, Michael Parnell, 8. Michael is already an auction veteran, having attended more than 20 auctions.

“I can bottle feed him if my poppa will let me,” said the younger Parnell. “It won’t be the first time.”

Hank Parnell was quick to keep Michael’s hopes from getting too high.

“We are going to have to see about that,” said Parnell. “It’s up to Mr. Daniels.”

The elder Parnell purchased the calf for his friend, Charlie Daniels, who also lives in Robertsdale.

“I have some Jersey calves,” said Daniels. “Hank is just being real nice to me.”

Daniels added that and his wife, Dorothy, would probably raise the calf until it got to “four or five hundred” pounds before selling him.

“My wife will name him, she’s good at that,” said Daniels. He also wasn’t sure if Michael would be doing any bottle feeding.

“We are just going to have to see about that,” said Daniels.

The calf’s sale was just another transaction at the Robertsdale Livestock Auction. The auction’s pens and sale room is at 18375 Highway 104, just off the intersection with Highway 59.

The auctions are held most Mondays at noon, but it’s best to call ahead at

947-2162 to make sure an auction is going to take place. The auction is open to the public.

There aren’t too many of these small, local auctions around, says George Kaiser, president ot the RLA. Kaiser raises cattle himself with “about 700 mama cows” in the area. He says the RLA has been going since 1949.

“This is a very critical part of the cattle industry in this county. You need to have [local] markets,” said Kaiser in a telephone interview. “It’s hard to go 500 to 600 miles if you are trying to sell one head.”

Keeping the cattle industry going is becoming a harder and harder job for the RLA, Kaiser added.

“There are more and more houses,” said Kaiser.

The distance local farmers have to travel to bring their stock to market is a big factor for Auction Manager Harry Bryant. His brother, Mack Bryant, is the auction house’s auctioneer.

According to attendees at the auction, the nearest other markets are in Mississippi and Florida.

“If people have to go a long way a way, it’s a great expense,” said Harry Bryant. “I know if a farmer had one cow to sell, they might just knock it on the head (instead of bringing it to market).”

Mack has been the auction manager for about 12 years. He says that there have been plenty of times when cattle have escaped, but it’s usually no big chore to round them all up.

The trouble comes, he says, when two bulls get together. He’s had that happen with his own stock a number of years ago.

“Both bulls got through the fence,” recalled Mack “and both got messed up. Taking care of it is an everyday chore in the cow business.”

Veterinarian Hugh Palmer, a Bay Minette resident, examines the livestock before the sale. His son, Philip, is the “ring man” at the auction, responsible for making sure the cattle move around well enough that buyers can get a good look, and for their smooth exit from the pen.

One of Palmer’s jobs that day was keeping “Jake,” Philip’s 8-year-old Border Collie under control. The dog watched the pen eagerly, obviously looking for some excuse to slip his lead and aid his master.

“We have always brought him (Jake) here,” said Palmer. We have about 50 head (of cattle) at home, and Jake herds them.”

After the 80 or so cattle were sold, the buyers streamed into the office to pay for their purchases prior to loading them up and heading for home.

The Parnells and Daniels had already left with their “unruly calf.”