For the Love of Livestock

Showing livestock, as so many youth and families in North Carolina do, is not an easy thing. It is not as simple as walking an animal around a ring, accepting a ribbon, and having your picture taken. The days are long and include hours working with your animal, making sure it stands just so. These hours are longer when that goat or steer decides to be exasperatingly stubborn and rebellious. The work is hard. Many a showman have earned their share of blisters from shoveling manure or playing tug of war with an animal. The experience is messy. Mud-caked boots…