Angel Baynard, 15, Wesley Chapel


I am Angel Baynard. I am 15 years old, and I live in Wesley Chapel. This is my first year showing a steer.


I first heard about steers over the summer in July. So, I called around and got a number. When I got a hold of the breeder, he said I would be put on a waiting list because steer projects were so popular this year. He told me everybody was picking on a Tuesday and to call him to see if he had steers left. So, I called him on Tuesday. He said that he would call me back on Thursday because not everybody had arrived yet. On Thursday, at about 6:30 p.m., I got a call. Long behold, he had one steer left. So, that Friday I went to check him out.


The first time I saw my steer he was head butting a tree. Nathe told me he was a Hereford/Angus cross that was born in December of 2006. He was a little bit smaller than the ones
that were waiting to be picked up, but I agreed to buy him anyways. That night I called my agriculture teacher, Mr. Dillard, to see if he could haul my steer to the Pasco High School agriculture barn. He agreed. So, on that Monday, I officially had a steer project. 


I started my steer on 8 pounds of pre-conditioning feed and 8 pounds Purina Show Chow Fitters Edge. By the end of the week, he was on 18 pounds of just Purina Show Chow Fitters Edge. I was surprised at how well he took a liking to feed. He just kept eating and eating and eating.


The first day I weighed my steer was on August 24th, 2007. He weighed 517 pounds. He was quite small compared to the other steers living at the barn. So, when the official weigh-in for the Pasco County Fair came around I was a little bit worried that I would have the smallest steer. I was wrong. My steer weighed in at 570 pounds. He wasn’t the smallest steer at the barn anymore! I was excited.


By weigh-in I had only been working my steer with a halter for about a week. I remember the first time trying to get a halter on my steer, Benji. I had to run him into a squeeze chute to put it on. He wasn’t very happy. After the halter went on, I would tie him up and brush him every day for about 2 weeks. Then, I would let him walk around a little pen in the arena so that he would walk on the lead rope and get a feel for the chain on the halter. I did that for a continuous week and by the time I was ready to lead him, he walked fairly decent. So, I had my steer halter broken. I could even touch his legs and feet without him kicking at me.


When school started, I would go to the barn and feed my steer then come to class. One day when I came to class, I found out about the Purina Mills Jackpot Steer Show in Kissimmee, Florida. So I took the opportunity. My teacher, Mr. Dillard, drove my steer and about 7 other steers and heifers to Kissimmee. The show was 2 days long. The first day was check-in, weigh in, and showmanship. My steer weighed in at 725 and qualified for Class 2. Showmanship was quite the learning experience. I found out that night how to properly use my show stick and show halter. It was really fun. However, I didn’t place. The next day was confirmation class. I got my steer all ready and was walking up to get in line, when all of a sudden my steer got spooked. He reared up, knocked me down and landed on my hand. It was swollen and black and blue. Then class started. I was faced with the decision to either show my steer or have someone else do it. I decided to show my own steer. Ends up he wasn’t so bad. He took 4th place. The judge said he was long and evenly muscled throughout the loin; he had great structure, and he had a good amount of product for his age and size.


Today, my steer currently is weighing in at 1,046 pounds. He is eating about 40 pounds of feed per day. He has well exceeded my expectations, and I cannot be more proud of my steer project!