Goodhue County General Livestock

Goodhue County 4-H Sends General Livestock Judges to Denver

By: Josie Jenson

The Senior Goodhue County 4-H General Livestock Judging Team is heading to Denver! They will be judging at the National Western Stock Show, competing against other youth from across the United States. The team earned this honor by winning Reserve Champion at the Minnesota State Fair. They attribute their success to their weekly practices during the summer and consistently placing first and second at county contests. The team also won second place at the National Barrow Show this past September. Team members include Elaine Dorn, Sydney Poquette, Isabelle Patterson, and Josephine Jenson.

General Livestock Judging consists of classes of 4 animals, either beef cattle, swine, sheep, or goats. The judges place those 4 animals in the order they believe they go from best to worst. There are usually 5 to 10 questions asked about a class, or a set or oral reasons given. Reasons are a miniature speech explaining why the judge placed them the way they did. Judges can win awards as teams and as individuals.

Team members Elaine, Sydney, and Belle answer the following questions:

What is the most exciting part of the Denver trip so far?

Elaine: My favorite part was at State Fair and seeing everyone’s reactions. Especially when LeeAnn gave us all a big hug and Mike shook everyone’s hand.

Sydney: Hearing the announcer call everyone’s names and being surrounded by so much excitement and happiness.

What is your favorite part of judging?

Elaine: The people are awesome.

Belle: All the memories that I have been blessed with, besides the actual judging. I have created friendships that I know will last a lifetime. Not only that, but I also love the time we spend as a team getting ready; especially the crazy car rides where we spend hours singing and talking.

What have you learned from judging?

Sydney: I have learned all about the different aspects of livestock and what to look for when determining the quality of an animal.

Belle: I have learned how to judge livestock, give a good set of reasons, how to step out of my comfort zone, how to memorize a speech within minutes, make new friends, and so much more.

How has that knowledge affected your life both on and off the farm?

Elaine: I now have a bigger say in which ewes we keep and which ones we cull. Also with buying and breeding and records. Off the farm, I have increased my public speaking and communication skills. The phrase “fake it till you make it” has really applied to my judging experience. I have also met a lot of cool people and made lifelong friendships.

Belle: The knowledge I have gained helps when we pick out livestock; it makes it easier to go into the barn and pick out the one animal I think is the best. I have also gained knowledge that helps me outside of the barn. As an actor, I can tie memorizing a set of reasons back to memorizing all of those lines for the school play. I not only have the ability to memorize, but also have the confidence and volume to be heard loud and clear. As a cheerleader I can tie the confidence you need to give a set of reasons back to having the confidence to go out on the cheer floor.

What are your future plans? If college, which one?

Elaine: I want to go to college to study Ag Communications and Marketing and am looking at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities.

Sydney: I plan to attend college after high school, maybe at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities to get a pre-med degree, working my way towards becoming a pediatric oncologist.

Belle: I would like to major in elementary education at the University of Minnesota Duluth. My hope is to cheer in college but that, nor the college, is set in stone.

Will you continue to judge?

Elaine: Yes, and maybe in college.

Sydney: Yes! I will continue to judge throughout my 4-H career.

Belle: Yes. My team and I have earned our trip to Denver, but our storm is just starting. We would like to win a trip to Louisville and judge there. I may not be on a General Livestock Judging Team my whole life, but wherever there is livestock, I will judge them.