4-H members get showmanship help

A group of 4-H kids are getting a jump on this year's showmanship competition by getting tips on how to properly present their sheep and goats at the Sanders County Fair.

Juli Thurston and Raelyn Cox taught eight 4-H'ers the proper way of showing their animals at the fairgrounds last Tuesday evening. This was the first time they've held a goat showmanship clinic and though they've had clinics for sheep, it's normally held at a private residence, according to Thurston, who heads the 4-H program in Sanders County. The goat and sheep showmanship competitions at the fair will take place on Aug. 30.

Thurston said they have a lot more goat and sheep entries than in recent years. They have six members in the meat goat category, but the kids will also have them in the showmanship class. Ten 4-H'ers are signed up for sheep showmanship, and six will compete in the dairy goat class. She guesses there might be more than 20 kids enrolled in the breeding category. Some of the kids will do more than one category.

Two girls showed up for the goat clinic, taught by Cox and her son, Presley, 22, who competed with goats with the Trout Creek Mavericks 4-H club for 12 years. Thurston gave instruction to three boys and three girls on sheep showmanship. Thirteen-year-old Matea Keefe of the Thompson Falls Mountaineers brought two goats with her, Luna and Ren, but prefers Ren. Katherine Wessely, 12, will be competing with Clementine, but didn't have her at the clinic because Clementine just had two babies. Instead, Wessely, a South Side Sparks member, worked with Luna at the clinic.

Both judges gave the kids basically the same guidance for showing their animals, such as how to lead them, how to pose the animal, how the kids should present themselves, and that they should keep their eyes on the judges at all times. Cox and Thurston both suggested the 4-H'ers work with their goats and sheep on a daily basis. Most of the kids said they were practicing with their animals three or four times a week, but planned to increase training.

The clinics are very helpful to the kids, said Thurston, who has given 15-20 sheep clinics over the years. This was the first one given at the fairgrounds. She usually gives them at a private residence. "I think the best thing they learned was how to show off their lambs to the judge and how to teach the lambs to walk holding their heads versus a halter," said Thurston, who used to give showing classes at age 14 when she lived in Texas.

Eleven-year-old Moriah Champneys of the South Side Sparks said it was helpful that she learned more about the procedure when showing her sheep Gimli at the fair. A dozen kids signed up for the goat clinic and 10 for the sheep clinic, but several didn't show. The clinic was also helpful for the Silva siblings - Kylie, 13, Isaiah, 11, and Rhett, 9, all of the South Side Sparks - along with Moriah's sister, Michaela, showing sheep for the first time with Caramel Macchiato. Kylie will be showing Molly, while her brother, Isaiah, has Jo-mama and Rhett has Thomas Edison.

"I probably dumped a lot of information in their laps, but I think they'll do fine," said Raelyn Cox, who feels the kids were interested in what she had to say. She was glad that Keefe had two goats with her, which gave Wessely the chance to practice. Cox said she told the kids they could call her if they had other questions.

As the sheep and goat barn superintendent during the fair for the last 10 years, Cox routinely gives the kids tips during fair week. She helped all three of her own kids through goat showmanship when they were in 4-H. Cox plans to have another showmanship clinic, along with a trimming class, for 4-H members sometime in August.

"It was a good refresher for me," said South Side Sparks member John McNamara, who's in his third year for showing Judy" "Sometimes I need to be reminded of things," said the 11-year-old McNamara, who plans to also show a pocket pet project that judges have probably never judged.

"This is helpful. It's definitely going to benefit them," said Danielle Fagan, Matea's mother.