Conger 4-H’er hopes to make her way to the Minn. State Fair

Published 9:40 am Thursday, July 30, 2009

While Shelby Little is looking forward to attending the livestock show at the Freeborn County Fair with the Conger 4-H, she’s hoping that experience leads to another place: the Minnesota State Fair.

“I love the nerves that build before entering the ring and the relief after you’re out of the ring — hopefully coming out with success,” she said.

Little, 17, will have two Maine-Anjou cows at the fair this year. She’ll take a market heifer named Velvet and a spring heifer calf named Wendy. Shelby brought Velvet to the fair last year as a spring heifer calf, and Velvet went on to win Grand Champion Prospect Calf at the state fair.

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Winning that kind of award doesn’t come easy, and Shelby has to work daily to get her calf ready for the fair.

“Every morning I wake at 6 a.m. to work with my animals. This includes walking, feeding, washing, blow drying, using a special conditioner on their hair and roto brushing,” Shelby said.

At the fair, Shelby will continue her daily routine, but she said she’ll also walk the heifers more to get to them used to their surroundings. Before the fair, she’s clips their hair and has their hooves trimmed. Shelby and her father Marty have also packed supplies like feed for the fair.

While at the fair, Shelby feeds and grooms her heifers twice a day.

Shelby will also help younger 4-H’ers in a fitting contest, where groups have a half hour to prepare a calf for a show.

That’s not the only way Shelby helps other 4-H’ers learn. She and Marty leased five calves to new 4-H’ers so they can experience working with a calf before they buy one as a long-term commitment.

“They have the calf for a month or two before the fair. They actually take them home to their place and they clean them and wash them and train them to walk and everything. Then they bring them to the fair and when the fair is over, they come back to our place,” Marty said.

After the Thursday morning show, Shelby may not be done showing her livestock. She said she’ll take them to the Beef Expo in October and possibly to a few shows over the winter.

“I love the afternoon of show day when you’re finished,” Shelby said. “The results of all the hard work are known and completed, plus you finally have the ability to breath after a really busy day and celebrate with your family and friends that have come to watch.”

Shelby will also have a photography project at the fair. She’ll display pictures she took of orphans she took on a mission trip to Nairobi, Kenya, this spring.