At just 29 years old, Tanner Dye has built a multi-faceted role for himself in the cattle business, most recently taking ownership of the storied 101 Livestock Market in California.
“This has been a dream of mine since I’ve been a little kid,” Tanner told WLJ. “I always told my parents that I was going to own a sale barn one day, and I never thought it would actually come true.”
His path to market ownership began with building a career of his own in ranching. As a fourth-generation rancher in Templeton, CA, he established Tanner Dye Livestock from the ground up, steadily growing a cow-calf operation into an enterprise that stretches across 15-20 ranches.
“I started with just a few head and built it, year by year,” Tanner said. “I made some mistakes and figured them out and kept working my way at it.”
Once established in the cow-calf sector, Tanner’s curiosity pulled him further down the supply chain. He began feeding out and trading cattle, again starting from scratch and relying on trial and error to shape the operation.
Tanner soon caught the attention of 101 Livestock Market in Aromas, CA, a livestock marketing outfit located in a Central Coast town of fewer than 3,000 people. Tanner began working for the auction market on a contract basis while continuing to manage his cow-calf ranches and yearling feeding operation.
When a representative position opened up, he took the job. To support the growing workload, Tanner purchased a few trucks and trailers, handling the freight for the sale barn while still managing his own expanding enterprises.
About three years ago, the livestock market came up for lease, catching Tanner’s eye. Lacking the necessary funds to move forward on his own, he explored bringing in a partner, but the deal ultimately fell apart.
In mid-2025, Jim Warren, owner of 101 Livestock, approached Tanner with the prospect of managing the auction barn.
“I told him, ‘I have way too many irons in the fire, and I don’t know if I could manage the place,’” Tanner said, adding that he didn’t really want to work for somebody else while juggling his other responsibilities. “Jokingly, I asked, ‘Why don’t you sell it to me?’” Tanner recalled. “And Jim said, ‘Oh, I’d never do that.’”
A week later, Jim called and offered Tanner ownership of the market.
“I said that I’d love to make it work, and the rest is history,” Tanner said. “We came to an agreement that was lucrative for both of us.”
Jim has owned and operated the yard since 1975, building the livestock market to what it is today, selling cattle and small animals.
“I think the coolest part is that it’s never changed ownership,” Tanner said. “This is the first time it’s ever changed hands.”
As the ownership reins pass from the Warren family to Tanner, he plans to bring fresh energy to the yard while deepening established relationships and creating new ones with customers.
Tanner also plans to continue selling small animals at the market, which is one of the only sale barns in the area that sells sheep and goats.
“I’ve been handling sheep and goats my whole life, so I know them just as well as the cattle,” he said. “I think that’s a lucrative business for us.
Becoming the rancher’s choice
Under Tanner’s ownership, 101 Livestock Market will take on a new name: Rancher’s Choice Stockyard.
“I was driving down the road thinking of names, and I just thought to myself, ‘You know, it’s the rancher’s choice if we stay open or not,’” Tanner recalled. “If we are good enough, then we are going to be the choice.”
101 Livestock Market will host its last sale on Jan. 19. Tanner assumes ownership of the auction yard on Feb. 1, with the first sale under the rebranded Rancher’s Choice Stockyard to be held on Feb. 2.
Although Tanner has made the process look seamless, breaking in as a young cattleman—and now as a livestock market owner—comes with its own set of challenges.
“I have that drive that I want to be the youngest guy,” Tanner said. “I want to be the first to do it and make it work on my own.”
But while conversations about supporting the next generation are common across the industry, turning words into action can be more difficult.
“You hear it everywhere—that we need to do more for young people and get them involved,” he said. “But when it comes time to actually stand behind a young guy, it doesn’t always happen. Going to a bank and asking for the kind of financing it takes to grow is a reality check.”
These experiences have reinforced his belief that credibility is built through action, following through with customers and employees alike.
“My word is my word, and I think that’s how I’ve always done my business,” he said.
The reality of being part of the younger generation trying to get their foot in the door is one also acknowledged by the previous owners.
“It has been difficult to find the right person to take over because other jobs pay more, and they just don’t make young people that have the desire or the ability to stay in the cattle business, or agriculture in general,” reads a statement on the 101 Livestock Market website.
“We’re excited to find Tanner with the desire to run this facility and continue to improve this market in the future,” it continued. “He has some great ideas for the future, and we’re excited to watch it grow.”
While planning to innovate and expand the auction market, Tanner also intends to retain many of the offerings that 101 Livestock has provided over the years. This includes the vaccination programs, which will likely be expanded, and non-hormone treated cattle programs. In addition, the market will continue to work with small producers.
“This sale barn is pretty unique because if you’ve only got two or three cows, we’ll send a truck to get them,” Tanner said. “Most sale barns don’t have that option.”
Most of the staff will also be retained through the change of ownership. “The staff is remarkable,” Tanner said. “They’re really driven, and everybody is on the same page.”
And while the current staff members will be making the transition, Tanner also plans to add some fresh faces to the business. “I’d like to get some new young blood from people who grew up in the north, to add a wider perspective,” he said.
To those on the outside, success can look effortless, but Tanner’s career has been shaped by late nights, countless miles on the road and years of grind. — Anna Miller Fortozo, WLJ managing editor
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