Fair is hard work

 Wowzers!  We have been going non-stop for the past week here at Deertales Farm!  Fair was this week, and boy were we busy!  From the last post, you know all about our Fashion Revue Wednesday.  I was sure glad to get that day over with ahead of time, because this year we had another huge fair undertaking: Livestock!

We started last Saturday by giving our piggies a wash.  We were with the others in our 4H Club (Keene Kids 4H) and just loaded the pigs onto a trailer and hosed them down.  The girls manned the hose while some of the more experienced pig-wranglers crawled inside the trailer to soap them up.  Once the pigs were all washed up, they were taken to the fairgrounds.

Amana and Anlynn's pigs got to share a stall.  As individuals and as part of a club, the girls were responsible for changing their pigs bedding, feeding them, sweeping the aisles, and brushing their piggies.  We've all learned a lot, and we learned that how well you take care of your pig, your pig's stall, and the surrounding area is called Herdsmanship. This is hard work, let me tell you!  Our girls have never worked so hard in their lives!  From scooping urine-soaked wood chips to sweeping a constantly messy aisle, these girls worked their tails off.  There were early mornings (and us Reed girls don't do mornings!) and late nights.  I'm so proud of these girls.

 Remember how scared Anlynn was two weeks ago?  Look at her now!  Here she is laying with Bacon Belle. 

 Amana liked snuggling up to Rockstar Ribs, too!

 Saturday night, after the pigs got comfortable in their new pens, it was time for weigh-ins.  Here's Amana watching her pig weigh-in at 276 pounds!  Anlynn's weighed in at 236 pounds.

 Since Swine Showmanship was scheduled for Monday morning, Sunday was a late night spent washing pigs.  Really washing them this time.  There were about 8 little pig shower stalls lined up.  You get locked in with your pig.  The girls used Ivory soap and a scrub brush to get their pigs squeaky clean!  And to reinforce the concept of "teamwork", they helped their club-mates wash their pigs, too.  It was a nice trade off, since the other club-mates cleaned out their yucky pig stalls!

There is more to tell, but I'm going to have to save it for another post.  Stay tuned for more fair related posts!