Stoughton
The Crossroads Multiple 4-H Club members have worked hard to get their calves ready for achievement day held on July 1.
When the calves are around four months old, they are picked by the kids and then the work begins.
The five students begin with halter training. At times this can be a difficult task when the calf is not cooperative.
Over the course of several months, the kids are taught how to feed these calves to get a well-rounded beast and get a quality steer.
Jeryn Tanner is the Crossroads Multiple 4-H leader, and she enjoys getting her kids to this day.
The show was held at Greg and Jo-Ann Tanner’s farm located northwest of Stoughton.
A showring was set up and a spot for spectators to enjoy the show in the shade, bringing lawn chairs and drinks as the morning began to heat up.
The show had an earlier start due to the heat and the kids made sure to keep their steers well-watered throughout the event.
There are many steps in preparing a steer or heifer for the showring. They are bathed, blow dried, some areas are shaved, as other areas fluffed to make the calf look full. There are many tricks to getting the steer looking its best.
When the steers are ready for the ring, they even get a nose wipe so there is no dripping.
Greg Goudy came out to judge, and has ten years of experience with judging, but only does the small shows. He also won Grand Champion with his bull in 2018 at the Agribition in Regina.
All the steers are shorthorn crosses and are born in the spring of 2022.
Tripp Tanner has shown for four years and named his steer Tiger, due to the brown and white markings. He enjoys finishing the calf and winning neat stuff.
Brook Tanner named her steer Cookie, because he looked like an Oreo cookie with his black and white markings. She loves animals and raising calves.
Victoria Anderson named her brown speckled steer Chance. She has been in the club for five years. Her mom worked on the farm, and she would help and enjoyed it.
Hannah Tanner joined five years ago and named her black speckled steer Swirl. She enjoys animals and loves the grooming part of it all.
Jordyn Tanner is the longest member at six years. Her black speckled steer is named NB. She loves the outdoors and has a horse she enjoys riding.
Champion Showman was tied and went to Jordyn Tanner and Victoria Anderson, while Champion Groomer was won by Jordyn Tanner.
Grand Champion Steer went to Hannah Tanner, with the Reserve Steer going to Jordyn Tanner.
The kids went on to Estevan for Regional Days on July 4-6, with the showing being held on July 6. That evening the steers were sold by Mack Auctions.
This can be a difficult time for the kids, after they have put all this work into them, but this is the end result, only to begin another year of training and showing with a new calf.
