A long way from home - Agribition show coverage

Family time for afar

This week is always a big event for my family. We are currently showing cattle at one of the biggest livestock shows in Canada called Agribition. The only thing is that I am not at the show this year. With a change in jobs I successful completed my first sale meetings this week, but that meant no trip home.

Thankfully through tweets, Facebook statues and online video I have still been able to keep tabs on the family.

If you have never seen a cattle show or are interested in the Simmental show at Agribition you can watch online right now. Blair's Ag is a Canadian company that has a huge commitment to Canadian agriculture and has sponsored an online video feed of the Agribition cattle shows. You can follow along with the show my using this show program.

Good luck to all the exhibitors. My family, High Country Simmentals, has already shown one heifer this morning, and will have a cow/calf pair and bull calf to show later on.

RJY Rival 13Y

Reserve Champion Simmental Bull at Fairfairm International

Dairy Cows and $800 shoes

Manolo Blahnik execs. take on dairy farming

I realize today is Turquoise Thursday, but when I saw this article I knew that Turquoise could wait one day. So come on back tomorrow and we'll talk Turquoise on Friday, and you can see what arrived in the mail for me this week. 

I can't embed the video, so you'll have to click here to watch, but the story talks about the Manolo President and Vice-President trading their New York lifestyle for the profession of dairy farmer ever Thursday through Sunday. 


I think it is pretty cool when people without agriculture backgrounds decided to take an interest in the industry that is so dear to my heart. And these guys jumped right in it. 400 head of dairy cattle, with 25 employees, and although these city boys admit they down do too much of the dirty work they aren't afraid to step into a barn. 


This morning on the Early Show two of my loves were brought together - cattle and shoes. And we aren't talking any old shoes, we are talking Manolo Blahnik shoes. I am too frugal with my money, and so lively will only ever be an admirer, but it wouldn't surprise me if my sister (check out her blog) would some day own a pair. 

You can read about Arethusa Farm, and how George Malkemus and Anthony Yurgaitis saved the farmland from developers and turned it back into a functioning dairy. And a dairy with some top show genetics. 


Now maybe I just need to figure out how I can swap places with them and work in the Manolo Blahnik shoe store a couple days a week. 

Welcome to the Cattle Hair Salon

Do you need a wash or a trim? 

The cattle that my family and that the Boy and I are purebred cattle (this means that they have registration papers just like a purebred dog would). We also show our cattle and this helps us market our cattle and genetics.

This fall my family will be showing quite a few animals, and my dad has been working hard on getting them in show shape. This means brushing, washing and even giving them hair cuts (we call this clipping).

So today, I would like to present you with the steps of washing cows.

First, you need to tie your cow's head up high. This will help restrict their movement. 

Next, you take a garden hose with a nozzle on it and wet down the entire animal. After this step I take a soap specially formulated for cattle and put that all over their body. 

Then I take a scrub brush and work in the soap. Cattle usually really like being washed because of the scrubbing. It is like an all over massage. 

And as you can see washing cattle gets the cattle really clean, but you get really dirty. At least diamonds are really durable. 

Once I've scrubbed and rinsed all the soap out of the animal, then it is time to brush. I use two types of brushes to brush all the hair in one direction, usually forward and up at an angle. 

 You can see I've brushed the top part forward. All the hair must be brush forward in the same direction. Part of the grooming process is to accentuate the good parts of the animal and hides the flaws. 

And finally we use a giant hair dryer called a blower to dry the animal's hair. If you follow me on Snap Chat (Crystal Cattle) you'll see lots of snap and video from the "beauty parlor." 

Green ribbons

Iowa State Fair

Well, the Iowa State Fair Hereford Show has come and gone for the Boy and I. Although, I am not quite caught up on sleep, we had an awesome time working together. It can always be hard when a new person enters the farm (that would be me). Jon (we are going to call the boy by his first name today) has been working hard on his same herd of Herefords for many years now. Luckily, Jon and I both bring different skills to the table, and together we can take JJB Cattle Co. to another level.

When I got to the  show I decided to take before and after pictures of the stall. I was really please with how the stall looked all week. Not only is it important to have a bed pack (what the heifer lay on) that is comfortable for the cattle, but is also important to have a clean and well presented stall. Jon did all the graphics for the banners and stall cards and they turned out great. I even cooked while at the show, more details to come on that later.

Randy, Jon's dad also came and was in charge of washing the cattle. Each day Randy came back soaked, but those heifers were sparking clean! 

As for the heifers we brought three yearling (year old) heifers. Dana picture below is my favorite. 

We didn't bring any blue or red ribbons home. The heifers weren't quite what the judge was looking for this time, but it was fun for me to be back out there in the showring. It is hard when you put that much work into your livestock to not have as much success in the showring as you would like. Yet, for me it was a reminder that that even those I want success, I also do this because of the people and I love being a part of agriculture. Throughout the week I got to catch up with old friends and make many new ones. Jon and will be back at the Iowa State Fair again, and one day we'll have those champion banners hanging in the stall. 

On the Road Again to a Cattle Show

Load up the heifers and the kids

On Sunday, I will be hoping on a plane to Pennsylvania for the National Junior Angus Show. More than 3,000 people and more than a 1,000 head of cattle will all gather for one of the largest junior national shows in the country.

While I am moving east, the Boy will be making his way to the Junior National Hereford Expo, an equally as large cattle event, in Kansas City.

See what is inside a trailer here.

On my way home from the July Fourth weekend I saw this livestock trailer. Whenever, I see a trailer on the highways I always wonder where they are coming from or where they are headed. During the past two weeks there has been hundreds of these trailers on the road all headed to a junior national.

So what makes these events so unique? We'll I grew up going to junior shows and junior nationals was the highlight of the year. It was more than just showing a heifer, it was where I got to see my second family and my friends that really understood my passion for livestock, I got to travel across Canada and into the U.S. I learned more life skills at a cattle show than anywhere else. I also got to dominate at Quiz Bowl - yes I was that girl.

Since, next week will be crazy you probably won't be hearing from me much. I'll try to post some photos on the Crystal Cattle facebook page, and I'll be working on lots more videos like this one I did a last year. I love capturing these moments at the show. I know it sounds funny that at 14 years old a kid can say they have been working towards these moments their whole lives, but it is true.



My blogger friend Melissa at Born in a Barn wrote an awesome post on packing the trailer for the National Junior Angus Show. Take a second and check it out here.

Hereford Cattle Show

Iowa Hereford Preview Show

I mentioned that last Sunday the Boy and I attended the Iowa Hereford Preview Show. The Boy and I both grew up showing cattle, him Herefords and me Simmentals. The shows weren't just about bringing home champion ribbons, but our junior breed associations also focused on leadership, stockmanship, and life skills.

I snapped a few pictures to walk you through walk show day looks like. Max Cherry is a good friend of the Boy's. There family's have worked together for many years so it was fun to watch and help Max.

Here Max is working on preparing his heifer for the showring. The metal thing she is standing in is called a blocking chute. This prevents the animal from moving back and forth, and keeps the people around her safe as well. Show cattle are given baths, their hair is blow dried and clipped (just like a hair cut) and we use products similar to hairspray to hold the hair in place. All of this grooming is called fitting.

These are just a few of the tools of the trade used for preparing cattle for the showring. 

Max giving his heifer at last minute drink of water before they head on up to the showring. It is unbelievable how fast a heifer can suck down a bucket of water!

Last minute preparations going on. On the left is Jon (aka the Boy) and the girl in the yellow is Max's sister Jenna. For most people showing cattle is a family project.

Jon gives her one last brush with the comb and it is time to enter the showring. I am not sure who was more nervous Max or Jon. 

Max showing his heifer in the showring. During this time the judge is evaluating each animal. Since this is a heifer and her purpose is for breeding the judge is looking for things like structural soundness (can she walk properly), femininity (does she look like a girl) and body type (we want long bodied cattle, that are deep sided, and have lots of muscle expression).

Max had an awesome day. He ended up winning the whole show. Max will next travel to Kansas City with his heifer to show her at the Junior National Hereford Expo the middle of July. 

Jon also had a great day with some of his JJB Cattle Co. genetics. A heifer that he sold a couple years ago was shown as a cow/calf pair and they won Champion Cow/Calf Pair and that cow's bull calf was Bull Calf Champion. Also, there was a daughter out of another heifer Jon had sold and she won her class. To see a few more of my pictures from the weekend check out my facebook page.

And don't forget to enter my giveaway. Just click here. 

NWSS - Out in the Yards

Sunshine and Hereford cattle

Well the Denver Stock Show is all over for me, but that doesn't mean the events have ended. Simmentals, Maines, Shorthorns, Charolais (all breeds of cattle) and the Junior Market animals are yet to show.

My week ended with a bang as the Boy's family couldn't of had a better NWSS. Grand Champion Polled Hereford Bull, Grand Champion Polled Hereford Female, Grand Champion Carload for the 12th year in a row, and Supreme Champion for the second year in a row, as well as numerous division winners.

All this made me think of two things. 1. These are good cattle. It wasn't by accident that these banners were won. Farms and ranches that are successful spend years building a program, selecting the right genetics, and finding out what management styles work best for them. 2. This also doesn't happen without amazing people. From the guy who makes breeding decisions, the person who feeds the animals everyday, the lady that keeps the records, and the crew that takes care and present these animals at the show - it takes all of them to create a champion.

You can read more about Star Lake Cattle Ranch's success on their NWSS Blog.

This is one of my favorite pictures from the whole show. It reminds me of my favorite photos from last year. 

The money making end. 

Grand Champion Carload NWSS 

Riding for the Brand. 

I'll get some more of favorites posted later in the week. 

DRIVE - another livestock magazine

Who says print is dead?

I remember when I was younger fighting everyone else in my family for the Simmental Country or Simmental Register magazines when they arrived in our mailbox. I would quickly flip through the pages to get a sense of who is doing what in the business. Today the same goes for the Angus Journal, the Showbox, Show Circuit, Livestock Plus, BEEF, Drovers, etc. However, the problem is I flip.

I honestly don't care to read another article about scours or pasture rotation or bull tests. Now I am not saying that these aren't important subject matters and I can't learn something from them, what I am saying is that the magazines I read have become saturated with these kind of production articles, and once you read one you have read all of them. OR on the other hand I am tired of flipping through pages and pages of ads and show results with no real content.

It wasn't until more recently that I have been inspired by livestock magazines again. First with Lot One, the LiveAuctions.tv magazine and now my most recent find DRIVE. Have you ever noticed people love reading about other people?

The magazine has all the usual advertising suspects in it, but their debut edition also had a number of great stories. They were about the people I respect in the business, were well written, and had great photography to accompany them. Currently you can read the issue online.

All the articles in this issue were teasers, with the full articles being revealed in their January issue, debuting at the National Western Stock Show.

And onto another note. If you are a magazine editor and you would like to know what I would be interested in reading Rachel Williams Cutrer's (Ranch House Designs) new Modern Livestock Merchandising hits the nail on the head. I am really hoping someone picks up this column soon, so I can start reading Rachel's wisdom.