LOS FRESNOS STUDENTS PREPARE FOR BUSY LIVESTOCK SHOW SEASON

Los Fresnos CISD students from various grade levels start a season of livestock shows for their animals, starting Friday at the Tip-O-Tex Livestock Show at San Benito.

The show will be the first of four opportunities for students to show their steers, hogs, lambs, goats, junior heifers, and chickens in the coming weeks.

Students will showing their animals at the South Texas Livestock Show at the San Benito Fairgrounds Jan. 17-18, the Cameron County Livestock Show in Los Fresnos Jan. 30-Feb. 2, and at the Rio Grande Valley Livestock Show in Mercedes March 7-16.
Forty-three Los Fresnos CISD students have entered to show 59 animals in Friday’s event at the San Benito Veterans Memorial Academy Agriculture Barn. Some students have multiple entries, like Kenny Miller who will be showing four hogs.

Others showing multiple animals including Robert Waters, one steer and two junior heifers; Bruce Waters, Morgan Waters, and Robert Waters, one steer and one junior heifer each; Lane Thomae, two junior heifers; Rebeka Borders and Austin White, two hogs each; Dillon Crouch, Calley Crouch and Tristen Cruz, two hogs each; and Maddie Parker, one lamb and two goats.

Los Fresnos High School sophomore Kendall House has spent about several weeks preparing her five-month-old goat for the spring shows.

“To show an animal, it’s very time-consuming,” House said. “You have to come in the morning and at night to feed him, and you have to walk him for about 45 minutes.

At the shows, students will walk around the arenas with their animals. Judges will take views from a profile and from the rear before touching the goat’s skin to check for muscle tone.

“We cut their hair right before a show,” House said. “You make them look their best.”