Cameron Shelton & Hailey Carothers took on new species
Thirteen-year olds, Cameron Shelton and Hailey Carothers, were planning to make the most of the Porterville Fair this year and raised new species to show and sell at the fair, but the coronavirus pandemic and stay-at-home orders shut down their plans.
They won’t get a chance to show their animals but each still has an opportunity to sell one through the fair’s Save our Sale and Bid for the Kid. Buyers, and those who want to donate via add-ons, have until Friday, May 1, to make their purchases.
“Even though I can’t even begin to explain how bummed I am to not be able to show my livestock I am looking forward to being a part of this historical sale.” Shelton said in an email. “I come from a family with a huge background in 4-H/FFA and I will be the first of my family to have sold an animal in a ‘Social Distancing Sale’.
How cool is that?” Shelton raised five market goats and a hog for the fair. She is selling one of her goats Sugarcane (0595), who is named after the family he came from — the Cane family — and her barn theme of Sugar, Spice and Everything Nice.
In previous years, Shelton raised market goats and showed them all over the country. But this year she decided to branch out and learn about a new species.
“It has been incredibly rewarding to learn about the pork industry and even though I will not be able to show my project, I am confident I raised a quality animal worthy of providing food for my family,” Shelton said. “I enjoyed the challenge of raising multiple species especially because feeding hogs and goats is completely different.”
Shelton explained goats have ruminant, four compartment stomach, while pigs have a monogastric, one compartment stomach; so it was a learning experience managing weights.
“I have gained so much respect for the pork industry, but my love for goats has not changed,” she said.
Also picking up a pig, as well as a lamb, on top of her normal animal species was Vandalia 4-H Club president Hailey Carothers, who wanted to learn what animal she would show in high school.
But the eighth grader from Rockford Elementary School also loves pygmy goats and started breeding her own herd last summer. She now has 11 pygmy goats in her care, three of which are babies.
“I have not sold any yet,” Carothers said in an email. “I don’t know if I can. I love all of them.”
For the last four years, Carothers showed her pygmy goats at open pygmy goat shows and the Porterville Fair. But this year pygmy goats were not a part of the fair so Carothers raised a pig and a lamb so that she could still be a part of the fair. Her pig, Spots (980) is available for sale.
Carothers does her best to take care of all of her animals by herself and spends more time with them since school moved online.
“I feed all my animals every morning and night,” she said. “When school was in I would feed before school, then feed and walk them after school. Now that school is out I have time to spend with them in the mornings and afternoons. I walk all of them at least twice a day. My mom only helps when it comes to buying the feed. I do all the feeding, cleaning pens and walking them on my own.”