Selling sheep has long been a serious business
Abudulreheman Roz always attends the outdoor livestock market in the western suburb of Kashgar, Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, on Sundays so he can sell his sheep at the highest price.
Thousands of livestock, including sheep, cows, donkeys, horses and camels, are brought to the market, also known as the city’s livestock bazaar, which only opens on Sunday. It is as noisy, dusty and crowded as usual during Ramadan.
Some herders arrive at the market with more than 100 animals, while others arrive with just a few. The animals arrive on foot, in trucks, on the backs of motorcycles, or even on the backs of other animals.
Uygur businesspeople are known for attaching great importance to visual merchandising, and there is no exception in trading livestock.
The heads of the sheep are tied up in lines and all face the same direction like soldiers waiting to be inspected.
They have all been sheared before being brought to the market, where their owners will add the finishing touch by styling the wool on their tails with scissors.
“I am not going to sell now, because the price of sheep is too low, but it is a good time to buy,” Abudulreheman, 62, said on June 11. Having grown up in a nearby village, Abudulreheman started visiting the market with his grandfather when he was a child. Some say the market has been in Kashgar since the times of the ancient Silk Road.
Abudulreheman can tell how much meat a sheep can produce by simply squeezing its back. The Uygurs usually use hand gestures to negotiate prices and seal the deal with a big hug.
It was hotter than 38 C by noon and Abudulreheman was still looking for the perfect sheep at the perfect price. His business plan was to buy younger sheep and sell them in September just ahead of the Festival of Sacrifice, or Eid al-Adha, for a higher price.
During the festival, Muslims in Kashgar normally buy and kill a sheep as a sacrifice, so the price usually goes up ahead of the holiday. Abudulreheman predicted that he can make at least 200 yuan ($30) in profit per sheep.
“Fasting actually helps me to keep a clear head when negotiating. I can also use the lunch time to look at more sheep,” he said while carefully examining a sheep from hooves to tail.