At the first week of the 2019 Manatee County Fair, I exhibited my 9 month old holstein dairy heifer, Clarabella, in show and showmanship. For my first time showing a dairy cow, and my heifer's first ever time in the show ring, we did very well. She received a red ribbon for show.
After months of hard work getting her ready for show, and of me learning to show dairy, it was great to see our efforts pay off with a smooth and successful show. This is my fourth year showing beef breeding cattle, but I learned through practice that there are a lot of areas between beef breeding and dairy shows that don't overlap. For example, with beef shows you hold the lead rope in your right hand and walk forwards, however with dairy cattle you hold the lead rope in your left hand and walk backwards or sideways. Another major difference is that you use a show stick with beef cows to move their feet, but you use your heel and the lead rope to get your diary cow to stand correctly. There are more differences, including the feet positions for the cows, that I had to learn as well.
Although Clarabella was nervous at first in the ring, she did very well and I was very pleased with how the show went.
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