For some UC Davis students, the end of the school year leads not to finals or graduation but to the auction block. Animal science students in the Equine Management Program are busy preparing eight registered weanlings and yearlings for UC Davis' fourth annual horse auction to be held Saturday, June 22, at the campus horse barn and arena on La Rue Road on campus. Included in this pleasure-horse sale will be Arabians, quarter horses, thoroughbreds and thoroughbred/quarter horse crosses. In past years, the young horses have sold for anywhere from $250 to $1,500. "The program provides terrific hands-on experience, especially for students preparing for careers in the horse industry or for further studies in veterinary or graduate school," says Janelle Belanger, horse-barn supervisor. During the program the students learn to plan and carry out the breeding, deliver the foals and coordinate overall training and health care for the herd. They also train the young horses to be led, tied, bathed, clipped, groomed and transported in trailers. The students are now busy planning the auction and preparing the horses for sale. One of the biggest challenges will be saying goodbye to the animals they have raised since birth. The horses can be viewed in the barns beginning at 1 p.m. A $6-per-plate barbecue will be held at 4 p.m., and the auction will begin at 5:30 p.m. During the auction the horses will be walked around the arena and "squared up" into show stance.