Wake up. Throw on some clothes. Get out to the barn.
  The animals need to be fed and watered. Need to make sure they're OK, and relatively happy.
  Cows, chickens, rabbits, pigs: Champions in training can be demanding.
  Some like to be brushed; others spook easily. Some like to play; others think they're in charge.
  Being the best isn't easy. But it's what drives these teens - that, and their animals.
   You'll find stories behind every pen at Tampa Bay's agricultural fairs. Come along as we follow the stories of several teens preparing for the 2007 fair season.

Raquel McFarland, 17, Pasco High School

Hello. My name is Raquel McFarland, and I am 17 years old and a senior at Pasco High School, and this is my first and last year of showing a steer for the Pasco County Fair in February. I named my steer Boomer and I spend every day after school until about 6:00 p.m. working with my steer, such as grooming and walking him, getting him ready for fair, cleaning his pen out when needed, feeding him and making sure he has fresh water. It is a lot of fun to work with him. He has a lot of character. Sometimes my other friends that have steers and me go out into a big pasture and play soccer with our steers. He seems to have a good time playing with the other steers. I have enjoyed taking care of him and watching him grow up. 

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Sarah Joyce, 16, Land O’ Lakes

Sarah and Cindi Lou will be at the Florida State Fair from Feb. 10-13.
Her show times are 4 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 11, and Tuesday, Feb. 12 @ 9 a.m.

They will be at Pasco County Fair on Monday, Feb. 18. Show starts at 6 p.m.

Shannon will have her bunny Peri-winkle at both fairs, also at same times.

Hope to see you there.

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Stacy Potts, Dade City

There is a lot of hard work involved in preparing steers for the Pasco County Fair. The steer I am raising is a Black Angus cross whose name is Corndog. Every day I stay after school to work with him. I do different thing with him everyday so that he doesn’t get tired of working on the same old thing. Some days I work him in his show halter, some I practice setting up his feet. Because Corndog is a good steer that enjoys working, I also give him play days. What I mean by play is Corndog gets turned out into a pasture with his other companions, and they play soccer together.


Corndog is the Sr. chapter steer for the Dade City FFA, so he is kept at Pasco High School. Some of the other students who keep their steers at school participate in playing soccer.


It all started on one of the days I worked Corndog. Myself and two other friends were walking our steers in the pasture to exercise them when we came across a big rubber ball. Attempting to “desensitize” our steers from foreign objects, we began kicking the ball back and forth in between our steers. This was when the steers decided to chase and head-butt the ball.


Ever since then, playing soccer has become a favorite pasttime at the barn. Not only does it provide entertainment for us and our steers, but it also makes the steers exercise on thier own.


Corndog and his friends will be at the fair for three days. On Tuesday, February 19th, my friends and I will be showing our steers in the youth Showmanship compitition. On Wednesday, February 20th, the beef steer show will be held. The show judges the steers on thier quality and finish. The last day is on Thursday, February 21st, when the sale will take place. Sadly, the soccer-playing Corndog will be sold, but the proceedes will go to the Dade City FFA, so it is for a good cause.

Feel free to come to the fair and meet Corndog. I will be able to answer any questions you may have about this talented steer. I cannot wait until fair and I hope to see you there!

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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!

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David Roberts

I will be showing a steer in this year’s Pasco County Fair. This will be my third year showing a steer, and this being my senior year, it will be my last. My steer is a red angus cross and currently weighs about twelve hundred and fifty pounds. I am currently mostly working on record books, but I still walk and groom my steer every day.


It’s coming down to crunch time, but it’s still always fun. 

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Brandais Austrino, 14, Pasco High School

This year I am showing a steer for the first time in the Pasco County Fair. I have shown cattle for three years in fairs all around Florida. I live on a ranch that has 30 head of Angus cattle and three horses.


I have enjoyed working with my steer. He is a lot of fun, and I will miss him. I am also showing my show cattle in the fair, too. I have four cows that are going, and they are Teddy, Sassy, Elby and Maggie, with her calf named Roll On. 

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Heather Mathis, Pasco High School

Howdy! My name is Heather Mathis. I am currently a senior at Pasco High School and a senior exhibitor with the Pasco County Fair. This is my first year showing a steer, and I couldn’t be more nervous. For the past six years I have shown hogs, and I now understand exactly how much different they are from each other besides pork and beef! It’s so much more work than I had ever anticipated, but I wouldn’t trade the experience for anything!


My steer now weighs 1,100 pounds, and he is an Angus X. I purchased my steer from a great breeder and a wonderful family, the Nathes. Mr. Bill Nathe understands how hard a student works to get the steer broke and to the fair and how hard it can be to come up with the money to buy your steer. That’s why he does everything he can to help you start off your project. My steer’s name is “Blackberry.”


Fair time is only a few weeks away, and all of the exhibitors are nervous not just because of us showing but because we all have to sell. Buyers are getting harder and harder to come by, and without them there is no us. For instance, this year’s earnings are going to help me with going to college. Something I can not pay for alone. I’m sure there are other seniors that are in the same boat as me.


Well that’s all for this time. I’m sure you will hear from me soon!

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Sarah Joyce, 16, Land O’ Lakes

Hi, my name is Sarah Joyce. I am from Land O’ Lakes, Florida and go to Land O’ Lakes High. I am 16 years old and in the 11th grade. I have a heifer that I will be showing in the Pasco County Fair and also the Florida State Fair. I also showed her at the Jacksonville Fair in October and received a blue ribbon for 1st place in my class.





I have been in the agriculture program since my 9th grade year and have been showing heifers at the Pasco County and Florida State fairs since then. I love being in this program because I have a lot of fun and it’s also a great experience for someone who loves animals. It takes a lot of work preparing for the fairs. I feed my heifer (Cindi-Lou) twice a day. I also have to groom her and bathe her.


From the beginning of January is when all the fun begins. I have to make sure all my fair deadlines are in, make sure my heifer stays healthy, and also have to get her looking good. I will be getting her hooves clipped, clipping her hair, and be working with her everyday so she walks good in the show ring. I love raising animals. I actually have two heifers, but one I will not be showing because of age.


I am in the Land O’ Lakes FFA, and also the Land O’ Lakes 4-H. Almost all of my time is devoted to agriculture. Whether it has to do with going to meetings, taking care of my animals, or getting ready for fair. It seems like everyday I always learn something new. I just learned how to cut warts off of my heifer last week.

My 9-year-old sister also will be showing a rabbit in the Pasco County Fair and the Florida State Fair. She is in the 4-H since she isn’t old enough to be in FFA. This is her first year showing an animal and being in the 4-H. 

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I am raising a steer for the Pasco County Fair His name is Big Mac. He is about 11 months old, and is Charolais and Brangus. I have worked with him daily since the end of August, and he has grown so much. His starting weight for the fair was 528, and he has to weigh 950 to get in to the fair. Just this past weekend he passed his goal: He now weighs 1,058 pounds.

Going to the barn after school has not only been fun, I have learned so much about steers and the right way to raise them. I raised a pig last year, so this year it has been so different working with a much bigger animal. It scared me at first, but now I love it! I am sending two pictures of Big Mac: one when I first got him and one from last night. There is such a big diffrence. I just can’t believe how fast he has changed.

Brianna Maslen, 10th Grade, Zephyrhills High School

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Time again to head out to the barn, out to the pen, into the show ring, for a behind-the-scenes take on raising a would-be champion hog, steer or heifer.
We may even get a chicken or a rabbit this year.
Welcome back for another year of Young Farmers’ Fare. These are the stories of young people raising animals for the fair. Sometimes we hear from a parent or a teacher, too.
In the next few weeks, you’ll meet some terrific kids. Maybe you’ll be taken back to when you were getting ready for the fair.
You’re guaranteed to laugh. Animals are unpredictable after all, and these ones can get pretty big.
So stick with us through fair season, and check back often. You never know what you’ll see.

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Brianna Maslen, 15, Zephyrhills

I am so nervous. I have worked very hard and can only hope Cleo will make it in. Her weight is 254 pounds now, so weightwise, she should be good. It will be a very busy few days to come, and we will have to take a record book test if our hog makes it in the fair. I want to thank everyone that has helped me learn through out this project. I have a better understanding about what it takes to raise a market animal and want to definitely do this again next year. I wish everyone luck and hope to see everyone at the fair! Please stop and say hi.

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Tammy Wilson

Editor’s note: The hog weigh-in at the Pasco County Fair was Thursday. We’ll let you know how Dixie did. The sale is Saturday.

Trevor has worked hard on raising Dixie. The BIG question is: will Dixie make it to fair. They have to weigh in at 230. If they don’t make it to 230lbs, they can’t show.

As of yesterday, Dixie needed 3 more pounds. Dixie only weighed 24 lbs starting off. Everyone else at ZHS barn started off at 45 to 65 lbs.

I am proud of Trevor. He has done a good job raising Dixie.

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Jo-Ann Johnston, The Tampa Tribune

Everybody who raises a livestock project for the Pasco County Fair learns that providing your animal with good nutrition is important.

Still, the fair entrants who raise hogs finds that pigs don’t only want what comes from the feed store.

“Pigs east trash and metal and sticks and cardboard and plastic bags, feed bags - anything,” says Brittany Green, who is 15 and raised Wilber at the Zephyrhills High School farm.

In raising Wilber for the fair this year, Brittany had a little misadventure that should make the record books:

Wilber is not the culprit in this tale, however. That would be Bugs. Bugs belongs to Brittany’s friend and fellow ag student, Nickie Harrison, an 18-year-old senior.

Bugs caused quite a ruckus one day before Christmas when Brittany, who happens to be hard of hearing, was in the barn with some friends and her mom. Brittany recalls she was standing near Bugs’ pen.

“I was talking to a guy friend, and we were just having fun and he gave me a hug, and my hearing aid – the box- caught his shirt and it popped off.”

Oops. Everybody scrambled to look for the tiny box, which normally belongs just behind Brittany’s left ear.

“We couldn’t find it. We thought it fell into a puddle of water, we looked in there and it couldn’t find it. And then we heard Nickie’s pig coughing, and then all of a sudden we hear something drop. We just saw it on the ground. And then the pig went after it again, but we snatched it before he could get it.”

Brittany cleaned up the aid, but it didn’t work. She and her mom are working with their insurance company to try to get replacement, and in the meantime, she has been wearing a loaner.

Meanwhile, Bugs and Wilber have grown up just fine. Both animals were accepted Thursday into the Pasco County Fair hog sale. They’ll be going to the higgest bidder Saturday night.

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The Pasco County Fair’s youth steer show is at 6 p.m. today. When last I heard from Britnee Smith, Hammer weighed more than 1,100 pounds. Check back this week for an update about how Hammer did.

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When I stopped by the swine showmanship competition at the Florida State Fair, I was impressed by the posters lining the competition ring. Most of the posters depict the internal workings of a pig, what parts produce what meats, what pigs eat, etc. The kids earn extra competition points for making the posters. Personally, I love the titles. They draw you in. Who can walk away from “SWINE NUTRITION” or “QUALITY MAKES THE DIFFERENCE”?

Here are a few of my favorites:

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