Showing at fairs fulfills ag ambitions
For Sodus, NY, resident William Douglass, 17, showing at the local Wayne County Fair in Palmyra has helped him feel close to his agricultural roots. His parents, Keith and Lisa Douglass, operate Deep River Gardens in Sodus, where they also raise beef and meat chickens and previously raised meat and wool sheep. This year, William leased a beef cow from Pine Knoll Farms in Lyons, NY, to exhibit at the fair.
“Showing animals is always something I’ve been interested in,” William said. “I showed sheep for four years in 4-H and I was interested in moving up so I decided to go for beef cows last year.”
He won Grand Reserve Champion for market animal this year with his beefer, which Pine Knoll trucked in with three other animals from their herd.
Learning to handle a beef cow challenged William. “I feel like the sheep are easier since they’re smaller,” he said. “You can make them do stuff they don’t want to do. Cows are bigger and heavier and harder to handle.”
He feeds alfalfa hay and standard grain with no special “show cow” diet. William selected Pine Knoll as the source of his leased cow because a family friend owns the farm and it’s relatively close to where he lives.
He works with his animal with months of prep before the fair. He believes that “animals are very responsive to how you treat them,” he said. “Make sure you work with them a bunch. Don’t mistreat them; that makes a difference.”
He grooms his show animals regularly. On the day of the fair, he shampoos the animal, fluffs its coat with a hair dryer and gives a quick wipe down just before entering the show ring.
This year, his family wasn’t involved in helping him prepare animals for the fair, but the family from whom leased he leased his animal was involved, including his friend, Evan Peeso, and his mother, Janeen Peeso. Evan also exhibited animals at the Wayne County Fair.
William said that while in the show ring, it’s important to “keep your confidence, even if your animal is hard to handle or really big. A sense of self confidence goes a long way.”
William graduated from high school in June and is currently working for American Custom Interiors in Rochester. He was hired there as an informal apprentice. He may show animals in next year’s open show if time allows, as he anticipates work being very busy.
What has become the Wayne County Fair began as a horse race and exhibit of agricultural products from area farms in autumn 1849. A building was erected on the grounds in 1856 and is still in use as the Floral Hall and a main structure on the fairgrounds. The six-day event currently averages 32,000 attendees.
