The sawdust carpet is crowded with well-dressed young people, and the judges will be very careful when showing their clean, well-groomed and calm livestock-this is what visitors to the State Fair and Western Junior Livestock Show saw.

But what does it take to get there?

Lyman County 4-H members Haleigh, Keeleigh, and Oakleigh Elwood and their cousins ​​Rope and Swade Reis provided us with behind-the-scenes footage that gave us a glimpse of what it takes to prepare their performance animals for two games in the state The exhibitions with the greatest time, energy and fun-South Dakota State Fair and Western Youth Livestock Exhibition.

Time and sufficient time

Grandpa Dave and Grandma Brenda gave each of their cousins ​​a heifer when they were 5 years old. This unique college savings plan meant that the cousins ​​grew up on the Reliance Ranch where they helped their families. They all know that if you want to raise livestock, you need to take time to take care of them. Therefore, doing housework sooner or later is nothing new to these children. But their performance animals need more than food, water and good fences, Keely explained. "I gave them about a month to settle down, and then in May, I started walking for about 30 minutes every day, and then my sisters and I set aside two to three days a week to practice acting skills for an hour or two. All in all, the 16-year-old girl spends about three to four hours a day working with her performance animals.

Walking/running pigs, goats and sheep is more than just tame them and train them to display. "For goats and sheep, we walk a short distance and then ran back to build muscles," Keeleigh said. "For pigs, it also helps to increase endurance. I once participated in a state fair, and 10 minutes after the show, a pig wanted to lie down."

Keeleigh's 13-year-old cousin Rope explained that in order to show off these muscles and the characteristics of other breeds, they set aside time to groom or dress up their animals—even their performance pigs. "First I wash them off, then cut off the hair on them to make them as shiny as possible."

Their beef cattle need to be washed twice a week; and meat goats and sheep need to be trimmed before the show.

Then monitor their feed intake. “We usually prepare some kind of mixed feed for the pigs, and then we check the weight. Some of them have an automatic feeder, so they eat as much as they want. If they seem to need to adjust the gain, then we will manually Feed them," Rope said.

His 16-year-old brother Swad added that making time for their animal shows, rodeos and school sports can be a challenge. "Really busy. I break them every day to show them and flush them. So, I really have to manage my time after school. I make a list in my mind and go through it item by item until everything is done. Sometimes I I won’t go to bed until 10 o’clock or midnight.”

As the mother of Swade and Rope, Heidi said his teachers commented on Swade's ability to manage time. "One of my teachers told me that they could see that Swad was responsible outside of school because he always finished his homework on time."

Both Heidi and her husband Sean grew up in 4-H. In fact, Heidi's father and mother are the leaders of the club. "I have made many friends and have many good memories. The State Fair has always been a highlight of my year." She said that it is important for them to have similar opportunities for their children.

Keeleigh's mother April agreed. "4-H was a learning experience when I was a member. As a mother, it was also a learning experience for me because I only showed cows."

Over the years, April’s children have shown almost every animal, explains her 11-year-old daughter Oakleigh. "I have shown rabbits, chickens, milk goats, meat goats, sheep, beef cattle, cows, horses-I have even shown cats. The only animal I have not shown is a dog."

In addition to exhibiting multiple animal species, her children and nephews also participated in many other 4-H areas and activities. "4-H is a safe area where they can try new things. This really helps them become fully developed," April added. "Because of 4-H, they are used to trying new things, so I noticed that this attitude will continue to other areas of life."

When April's eldest daughter, 18-year-old Haleigh, started filling out the scholarship application, participating in various 4-H activities also came in handy. The student of Mitchell Institute of Technology said that in addition to helping to obtain scholarships, she also received many ribbons and plaques. "When you win, you realize that your efforts are meaningful." When Haleigh was 14 years old, her dairy goat won the reserve championship at the state fair.

"What did you get from 4-H," her sister Keeleigh added. During the 2020 South Dakota State Fair, she won an overall performance in the senior 4-H and FFA Dairy Goat divisions.

In addition to ribbons and recognition, their 11-year-old sister Oakley said that she loves the challenges that each new project area and animal species brings. She explained that according to the animal species, she needs to implement different display or try-on techniques.

Sometimes this may seem overwhelming, but if she needs help, her brother, sister or cousin will be by her side. "My sister Keeleigh helped me a lot. We contacted a lot because of our animals. She always helped me, and I always helped her," Oakley said. "Now, I want to help my little cousin, Arista."

Oakleigh's cousin Rope said that although they might compete with each other in the show world, his siblings, cousins ​​and 4-H friends are always there to help him prepare. "We know when to have fun and when to do business. In the screening, everything is business."

During the 2021 Western Youth Livestock Show at the Pennington County Outdoor Market in Rapid City from October 5th to 9th, the cousins ​​will showcase beef cows, dairy cows, dairy goats, meat goats, sheep and pigs. To view the image gallery of these Lyman County 4-Hers and their projects, please visit http://www.sdfu.org and click on the story under the "Press Release" link under the "News and Events" tab.

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