WAPAKONETA — It was all about putting your best foot, or hoof, forward Wednesday at the Auglaize County Junior Fair Beef Breeding and Feeder Calf and Showmanship Shows.
The show brought young people from throughout the county together to show the best that both they and their cattle had to offer, either showing off the best attributes of their animal’s particular breed or displaying how well they handle their heifers in the show arena.
“With the heifer and cows, they will be looking for different things than in your steers,” said Auglaize Junior Fair beef Chairwoman Jessica Fisher, 19, of Wapakoneta. “For breeding stock, they look more at the style of the breed, whereas with the beef steers, they’re thinking more of how they will look on the rack, looking at things like muscle tone, width, that sort of thing. [For showmanship,] a lot of it will be how they present the animal, how quick they can get them set up, and sometimes the knowledge of their animal or the species itself.”
While Fisher did not have a firm number on how many were participating in Wednesday’s show, she did note that participation in the beef shows overall has increased, with 130 head of cattle present at this year’s fair compared to 110 last year.
“We’re still trying to get more people to participate, though,” she said. “But with high grain prices, it has been difficult.”
What has kept many presenters going, such as 14-year-old Lauren Schaub, of Shawnee Township, is family tradition, with several cousins also having shown cattle in the past.
“My family does it,” she said. “So I wanted to do it, too.”
While she is following in her family’s footsteps, Lauren said she really enjoys the time with the animals, despite the many hours of feeding and handling them in advance of the fair.
“It takes a lot of work,” Lauren said.
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