Lamb & Goat Show goes on despite pandemic

Published 2:44 pm Monday, October 26, 2020

MOULTRIE, Ga. – There is a first time for everything, such as winning a Grand Championship. Sixteen-year-old Laine Weeks earned hers finally at Saturday’s Colquitt County Livestock Association Junior Market Lamb and Goat Show.

Leading her lamb Ellie Mae around the arena for the inspection of judge Denton Lowe, Weeks claimed all the Grand Champion prizes: a silver patter, banner, ribbon and of course a check.

This annual show is a culmination of a year’s worth of feeding, washing, grooming and training these animals seven days a week, not to mention a lot of time on the road for competitions from one corner of the state to another. Like everything else in society, 2020 has been a different year with changes necessitated by the COVID-19 pandemic. This has included cancellation of some shows and social distancing and masking requirements for shows that did take place.

Even though the 2020 Georgia National Fair in Perry did not take place, the livestock shows associated with the carnival continued. They were held the weekend before Colquitt County’s show and were strictly for those involved in the local 4-H and Future Farmers Association of America programs.

For Weeks, the biggest adjustment was the face covering.

“That’s definitely been something that’s been … having to wear masks,” she said. “They are hot and sweaty. Other than that, everything’s kind of stayed the same.”

Weeks and several of her Colquitt colleagues went to the Heard County Livestock Lamb Show, the State of Dade Lamb & Goat Classic in Dade County, the Stephens County FFA Blue Ribbon Challenge, the Southern Premier Lamb & Goat Show (Tifton), the Atlantic Coast Classic (Sylvania) and the Georgia National Fair.

“I’m with (Georgia Club Lamb Association). They have some point systems that showmen can compete for the top 10,” she said. “They are all over Georgia.”

Weeks had 159 points, second among seniors, as of Sept. 16.

“I’ve been doing this since I was in the first grade,” she said. “I love animals, and I love anything outside related.”

After claiming Reserve Champion in 2018, Weeks said her Ellie Mae’s been good this year. She actually had two lambs in the stable, both born in early February, and she explained lambs cannot be shown after one year of age.

“They become sheep,” said Weeks. “You can’t show sheep.”

Cooper Lewis was Reserve Champion for Market Lamb, a competition that consisted of five classes based on weight. The winners of each class are then judged again by Lowe, who announces his comments to the audience and selects the winners.

The Market competitions are mainly about the animal. There is also a Showmanship competition which judges the animal plus the exhibitor. The Lamb Showmanship winners Saturday were Riley Avery (1st-2nd grade), Jax Fowler (5th-6th) Baylee Ann Tatum (9th-10th) and Weeks (11th-12th).

The Goat Show is divided up by males (wethers) and females (does). Roxanne Herndon, in Wether, showed both the Grand and Reserve Champions.

For Showmanship, winners were Rawlins Herndon (1st-2nd), Libba Dykes (3rd-4th), Lucy Watson (5th-6th), Roxanne Herndon (7th-8th), Laurie Jo Burt (9th-10th) and Mason Bass (11th-12th).

To conclude the Lamb and Goat Show, Libba Dykes won Grand Champion for Market Doe with Laurie Jo Burt taking the Reserve title.

Lowe came to Moultrie from Decatur, Texas, to judge a livestock show for the first time in Georgia. He’s been now to 14 states, and he said any chance he gets to work with young people, it’s a great experience. He praised the Colquitt Association for keeping the show alive despite the challenges of the pandemic.

The Colquitt County Livestock Association is next planning a major regional show for Market Hogs Dec. 5-6 with a projection of 200 to 300 exhibitors.