Raising Livestock Pays Off for 4-H Members

By Jon Chown

WATSONVILLE — Perhaps it was the morning sun shining through the gaps in the livestock auction tent, but Ashley Jones looked like she was absolutely beaming as she strode out with her Grand Champion pig before the buyers at the Santa Cruz County Fair’s Junior Livestock Auction on Sept. 14.

Jones’ pig, obeying her pokes and prods, put on a good enough show to earn a winning bid of $6.25 per pound from Mercury Metals and after about a dozen generous bump bids from Oil Can Henry’s, Driscoll’s Berries and others, it totaled more than $10 per pound.

The generosity was typical of the day, as the auction raised more than $200,000.

“It went very well, extremely well. We had a really good turnout of people and more animals than last year as well,” said Dawn White, co-manager of the Livestock Department. “I think the camel rides added a lot more traffic to our area.”

Just like the auction, the whole 2013 county fair was a big success, according to volunteer fair manager Dave Kegebein, and new events like the camel rides, situated near the Livestock Department, were part of the reason.

“The fair went extremely well, very smooth. We had a lot of people working very hard to pull it all together — a wonderful group of volunteers. The attendance and revenue were up about 11 percent and food concession spending up about 22 percent,” Kegebein said.

Katie Amirsehhi, an 18-year-old Cabrillo College student, had a great fair because she got $11.50 per pound for her pig during the Junior Livestock Auction. The buyer, Berry Genetics, Inc., was one of about 50 local businesses she solicited beforehand. Amirsehhi, who has been in 4-H since grade school, said writing a good letter and lots of them was the secret to a strong sale. It’s just one of the many things the Aptos High grad has learned through 4-H.

“It has really taught me leadership and how to talk to adults, work with my peers, help my community — and have fun doing it. It’s also taught me a lot about responsibility,” she said.

It was just the second year at the auction for 11-year-old Aptos resident Colton Bernard. He was smiling as he showed his pig and after when he had received a $6 per pound price.

“It’s been very difficult for me to raise an animal, but it’s very fun, too,” he said.

Bernard raised a pig because that’s what his father and uncle raised and sold when they were in 4-H, he said, but next plans on raising a steer. In addition to the Santa Cruz County Fair, Bernard also sold a pig at the Salinas Valley Fair earlier this year.

It’s been seven years since Logan Bernard, Colton’s uncle, sold an animal at the fair and he said it has changed. For one, it’s more expensive. Corn feed for pigs is much more expensive, he said, but it is still a great learning experience.

“Every year was something different for me,” he said. “I really learned that if you can raise animals, grow your own food, you really have a skill you can always use.”