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.

Ryann Butler, 16, Tampa

Wow, time sure flew by at the fair this past weekend! From Thursday to Sunday, I was so busy doing competitions, taking tests, and showing Garth, and I have been totally exhausted! I do have to say that I miss Garth a lot. He was such a good pig, but I knew what the outcome was at the end of the project. I tried not to think of him a pet but simply a grade for school. But going out to feed and take care of him every day certainly grows a bond you can’t avoid! However, the fair was a great experience, and I would recommend doing it for a change. Garth and I won a red ribbon for showmanship and a white one for the swine show.

I was proud of him and myself for getting a ribbon as an amateur! It was a lot of hard work, but it was worth it to just get out there and show it off. I hope to show a pig or perhaps another animal in the fair next year and can’t wait to do it all over again! Here are some pictures at the fair:

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Sophie Ippolito, 12, Dade City

Here I am checking Oreo to see if I can feel too much fat or too little.  Hogs must meet a certain quality of meat and muscling.  On weigh-in day, hogs gets weighed, and if they make the required 230 lbs., the hogs are checked for back fat with a machine. A USDA #1 graded pig must have less than 1 inch back fat. I think Oreo will be perfect! 

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Liz Ippolito, Dade City

Sophie will be 13 on the 20th of this month!  We’re hoping for a grand champion as her birthday prize!

Oreo is number 429. We think it will be a lucky number. 

(Sunday) was the deadline for record books to be submitted.  Since this is Sophie’s second year, it was a bit easier to assist her with, but with a form or two changing from last year, we had to be very detail oriented to make sure we completed every page and record correctly.  Errors in the record book could eliminate her from the competition.  It was a relief just to get the book out of our hands and to the judging committee. 

Getting Sophie to understand the importance of details was important.  The record book was not like a chore. Unlike school work, were she has a bit of room for error, the record book needed accuracy, or she would not be able to finish the project (show the pig).

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Brianna Maslen, 15, Zephyrhills

It has been a busy few days for those of us getting ready for fair. Only 9 more days ‘til weigh in at the Pasco County Fair.

I have brought all my grades up. Now I go to the barn right after school and work with Cleo; then I come home and work on my homework. Being more organized has helped me keep track of everything.

Now that it is this close to fair, it is hard to concentrate for sure. I want so much for Cleo to make it in and to do well showing her, but I am so scared, this being my first time doing any of this.

It has been a good expierence because it has taught me so much, like to have a goal and work hard to get there. My mom has been a big support for me; she also helps me keep on track. If my grades were to slip, I will not be able to do any extra activities like this. At first I thought that was kinda mean, but I see that she just is looking out for me and my future. So I am glad that I have raised Cleo and will keep my grades up, as I want to continue to raise animals and go to veterinary school.

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I stopped by the swine showmanship competition Saturday night at the Florida State Fair to check on Ryann and her pig Garth.
Garth seemed to be the biggest pig there. Ryann said he weighed more than 280 pounds.
He was a real handful that night. He plopped down in the dirt twice while Ryann was trying to walk him around the ring. A couple of other FFA members had to help out by prodding him with canes until he got back up again.
Ryann also said Garth had chewed on another pig’s ear that night.
So, needless to say, they didn’t win the competition, but Ryann took home a red ribbon.
You should have seen Ryann and Garth together afterward, though.
After Ryann climbed into Garth’s pen, he perked up immediately. As some of her family members said, “You can see the love.”
Ryann and Garth were supposed to have said goodbye yesterday. I asked her if that was going to be hard, and she said it was. She said she was just telling herself that Garth was a project, that she was raising him so she could eventually sell him. But she grew close to him, and this was her first time showing an animal.
I suspect we’ll be hearing from Ryann this week about her impressions of the fair and what it was like saying goodbye to ‘ole Garth.
In the meantime, here are the photos I took of them Saturday night:

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Trevor Wilson, 11, Dade City
This is Dixie & I doing our daily walk. She is so friendly.



Dixie will keep bumping her nose on your leg until you pet her. If you pet her on her right side, she will fall down on her other side. She will not lay down. She falls over, and then she wants a tummy rub. Dixie can’t get enough tummy rubs. I never knew pigs were so friendly.
I was at the barn for 4 hours today. Then I went home & worked on my record book. And did homework. Studied for my spelling test. I wrote this on paper, and my mom will type this & send it to you. I have to get a bath and go to bed.
This week I have to give her a bath & clean her ears out. Along with A LOT of tummy rubs.

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Trevor Wilson, 11, Dade City

This is me and Dixie and her barn friend Cleo. They have fun playing together. There are some pigs that don’t play nice with Dixie, but Dixie & Cleo get along GREAT.

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Liz Ippolito, Dade City

We are in the final stretch, and now is the challenge. Will Oreo make it into the fair? I guess it’s a lesson in a real-world situation: You work on a project and hope that it will be a success. But when your child is the one learning the lesson, you want it to be a positive lesson and experience. 

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Sophie Ippolito, Dade City

My name is Sophie, and I am a student at the Academy at the Farm. Our 4-H Club is called 4-H at the Academy. 
I am raising a Hempshire female hog named Oreo. 
This is my second time raising a hog for a 4-H project to show at the Pasco County Fair Youth Hog Show. I tried raising a pig last year because my older brother raised a pig for 4-H and FFA when he was growing up. I did enjoy it and got a blue ribbon, so I decided to raise another pig this year. 
Here are pictures of Oreo and me. 




She really enjoys when I get in the pen with her. Oreo likes to be brushed, as you can see. She sits down and then rolls over for me to brush her belly. 
Sometimes she is fun, and sometimes she a pain - like when I try to clean her pen, and she wants to bite my boots. The bigger she gets, the harder it gets for me to work with her.
This year is the 60th anniversary of the fair.  See you there!

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Trevor Wilson, 11, Dade City
I have been busy getting ready for the fair.
This is Dixie after her haircut.



Dixie loved her haircut so much that she fell over on her side like it was a body massage. I seen some pigs at the barn that didn’t like getting a haircut.
I have been working on my record book a lot. I have to turn it in Sunday. There is so much to write. It is not just raising an animal.
I am always scared when I have to go to the barn ‘cause of those MEAN dogs. I worry about Dixie getting hurt or the dogs coming after me.
I have also been keeping up with my homework, along with some tutoring to help get me ready for FCAT. We took FCAT write test this week at school.

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Trevor Wilson, 11, Dade City

It has been crazy around here. Dixie is doing good.
She is still gaining weight. Pig weigh-in is on the 22nd.
I will have to wash her and clean her ears.She can’t have no dirty ears.
My mom runs me an my brother to the barn daily. My brother is showing a dairy cow & steer. We have been spending 2-4 hours at the barn every day.
I have learned a lot about pigs.

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Ryann Butler, 16, Tampa

THE FAIR IS FINALLY HERE! After all of the hard work every day since September, it’s now finally paying off. I’m leaving bright and early tomorrow morning at 6:00 am to get Garth and Bubba (my friend Meghan’s pig) from our school. We have to be by the fair at 10:00am for check-in and to weigh the pigs. The minimum weight of the pig to enter the fair is 220lbs, and Garth is a whopping 280lbs!! He’s absolutely HUGE!  Come out and see Garth at the Florida State Fair this weekend on Saturday at 6:00pm for the swine showmanship! See him strut his stuff and hopefully win the blue ribbon! 

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Brianna Maslen, 15, Zephyrhills

We have been raising our animals since mid-October. There are a few people that we have come to know very well as we see each other everyday at the barn. Some people have not been out to the barn as much or at the same time as us. Those of us that know each other do try to work togeather and watch out for each others’ pigs. Near the beginning, one of the pigs got attacked by a dog, and I was sad because the pig belonged to a friend of mine, and she was in bad shape and lost her ear so she cannot be shown. Well, today, another attack happened by the same dogs, and another hog was hurt. If it wasn’t for a student that has a steer up at the steer barn checking to see if someone needed help, this hog may of very well been killed.

My mom worries that a student will get hurt by these dogs.

I have seen a lot of kids and parents working together, and others don’t. I think it’s better to work together and learn all you can from everyone. Being my first year in this, I have learned a lot thanks to so many people and hope to continue to make friends and learn. I hope the dogs will be caught soon, so we don’t have to worry about our animals being attacked and hurt. 

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Brittnee Smith, 13, Zephyrhills

I am also raising a Piedmontese bull calf to show at the fair next year. His name is Gus. Gus was born breach and almost didn’t live, but he pulled through and was given to me as an early Valentine’s Day present by my mom.

I feed Gus every morning before I go to school and as soon as I get home. Gus will be two weeks old Sunday. Gus is not really too sure that he is a cow, not a dog, but I don’t have a problem with that at all. I can’t wait ‘til I can show him, though.

This is a picture of Gus at less then a week old.

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Brittnee Smith, 13, Zephyrhills

I have been riding horses for about seven years and competing in rodeo for about four years. Last summer, my stepdad and I broke three young horses to ride. I do most of my training and practicing at home. I have competed on about ten horses since my barrel horse Jake got hurt in June 2006. I think that I have finally found the right horse this time. His name is Shepard. Shepard came from Mexico about two years ago and has worked on a ranch in Ocala since. I have had Shepard for about four months now, and I really think that he has the heart and speed to make it to the top, even though he has never competed before. Shepard is a 12-year-old quarter horse gelding.

I compete in barrel racing, pole bending, and I am going to start goat-tying this year. I compete locally at Combee Rodeo Association in Lakeland FL. CRA has kids from 18 and under competing in many events, from bulls to barrels. CRA runs from March to November. As well as this year, I will be doing the rodeo at the fair. Matter of fact, I ran my best time there last year. Rodeo has never really been about winning to me. It’s more about having fun to me, though, but I love rodeo with all my heart and would never give it up in a million years.

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