The chickens will cluck, the pigs “oink, oink,” and the cows will “moo” as they strut their stuff during the 45th Permian Basin Fair & Expo’s livestock events scheduled for Saturday and Sunday.
If the judges find the livestock healthy and looking good, the young owners of these animals will walk away with scholarship dollars, awards and the knowledge of a job well done, said Bob Williams, a longtime executive board member, who oversees various fair events.
“The main goal (of the livestock contests) is to teach kids about self-discipline and responsibility,” Williams said. “They learn that it’s their responsibility to take care of the animals.
“They have to get up early every day, even on mornings when they may not want to and feed them, and after school they need to feed them again and clean up after them.”
The fair’s livestock events are for youths ages 8 through 19, and features various livestock categories, including rabbits, poultry, swine, goats, cattle and lambs.
Most livestock events are held on Saturday and Sundays so that youths don’t have to miss any school days, Williams said.
For a complete schedule of event days and times visit tinyurl.com/pnbxxepa.
Participating youths do more than just feed and keep them clean, Williams said. They need to make sure their animals are healthy, eat the proper amount of food and are well-behaved.
Livestock judges use a variety of criteria to judge animals, including the animal’s overall appearance and build, and the quality of an animal’s offspring if they are being raised for breeding purposes, Williams said.
Youths and animals are also judged on showmanship. Judges observe how owner and animal interact, how well the owner presents their livestock and how courteous they behave toward other people and animals. Judges also quiz owners about how they raised their livestock.
“It’s a good thing they can use for anything in life,” Williams said.
