Swine show at the Payne County Free Fair highlights hard work

Aug. 30—The crowd inside the McVey Arena at the Payne County Free Fair on Wednesday morning was smaller than at other times — and quieter.

Those in attendance at the Swine Show at 8 a.m. were mostly grandparents, parents and friends. But the snorts of pigs and the voice of the judge over the microphone did not deter the intense focus on the ring and the activity of 11 participants and their pigs.

Participants used small whips to direct their show pigs around the ring. Some used one whip, but most used two to keep the pig's head upright.

Young pros

Teagan Voight, 13, won the Breed Champion award for his gilt (young female pig), in addition to the Showmanship award.

He and his sister, Kaylee, are from Glencoe 4-H and are pros at showing pigs. Teagan has shown pigs since he was 6 years old. Kaylee, 11, started showing at 4 years old.

"I wasn't really interested until Mom made me show," Teagan said. "After a year of it, I just enjoyed it and did it ever since."

The Voight family does not raise pigs; they raise other animals such as cattle and chickens. But Teagan said he plans to keep showing pigs.

"I think I'm gonna doing it for a while, as long as I can," he said. "There's a few people from Glencoe that I've come to know a lot better and it's fun to see them showing, too."

This year he showed a Duroc and a crossbreed, and his sister showed a Spot and a Berkshire.

"Sometimes we do team in case one is better than the other, so we have a better chance of winning," Teagan said.

Teagan and Kaylee typically feed their pigs twice a day, usually with a special feed in addition to whatever else they think is best for the pig. If the pig needs to gain more weight for shows, they will feed the pig about three extra pounds in addition to slop.

"Since school started, (we feed) ... somewhere between 7 and 7:30 a.m.," Teagan said. "At night, it just depends on when we get home."

Kaylee said her mom asked if she wanted to get a pig. They bought some, but at first didn't know what to do with them. Krsytal, the siblings' mom, said they learned together.

"We started walking and washing and rinsing them every day," Kaylee said. "It helps their skin stay healthy and it doesn't look dry."

Show rules maintain that the participants can't use grease to make their pigs' skin shine, so they spray the pigs with water instead. Then they brush the skin down.

"It makes them (not) look like they got put in a pen five months ago and then they're here," Kaylee said. "Because that is what happens to some pigs — they don't get taken care of very well, sadly."

Kaylee said she's inspired to work hard because of the competitions in Payne County.

"You have to work to get in the sale, where at other counties, you just get in the sale automatically," she said.

Krystal, the Glencoe County 4-H Youth Development Educator, said when it comes down to it, the students she works with are not coming to shows to be professionals.

"They're doing it to learn those life skills — teamwork, responsibility, hard work, caring for something outside of themselves — the things that will carry them into whichever job they go into," Krystal said.

First-timer

Grant McCasland, 9, showed his pig for the first time this year. A third-grader from Perkins, his family raises pigs on their property — so many that they weren't sure the exact count.

"(I showed) a Brooks and Spot pig," Grant said.

Did he have fun in the ring showing his pigs? Yes (with a nod and smile). Would he keep showing pigs? Yes.

His mother, Makayla, shared with the News Press that Grant's father, Jeremy, is deployed. Grant's older sister, Audrey, will be showing a commercial ewe in the Sheep Show at 5 p.m. Wednesday.

During the show, Judge Andy Forehand of Fletcher, Oklahoma took a moment to address the crowd.

"I know that we don't have a lot of numbers here today, but always remember when you get the chance to work with these young people, that every kid matters," Forehand said. "It wouldn't matter if we had two kids out here, if they were learning a lot, if they were growing and developing work ethic, a desire to succeed and the ability to work with others, it's worth every bit of the effort we put out."

Showing animals is not cheap, he said, but no matter how much money it costs, the opportunity is still the same — to learn and to grow.

"I don't talk a lot on the mic, I guess when I evaluate these animals ... the way I feel is, it's really about the kids," he said.