ASHLAND — The coliseum at the Ashland County Fair hummed Thursday afternoon and again Friday morning as livestock auctions capped months of preparation for 4-H kids.
Days before, youngsters herded their animals to the fair’s barns and prepped to show them.
Months before, 4-H’ers weighed their animals, received trainings and worked to make the animal ready for the big day.
There were 607 animals sold through the Ashland County Junior Fair’s auction ring this year.
Case White’s grand champion market steer, named Special Ed, fetched a lofty premium of $11.50 per pound. Special Ed’s 1,367-pound frame meant a $15,720.50 paycheck to the 9-year-old.
Needless to say, White had a wide smile moments after the sale, which went to Ryan Heffelfinger of Heffelfinger’s Meat Market.
Special Ed also did well at the Ohio State Fair in early August. “He got second place in class,” White said.
This year was the Northwestern student’s first in 4-H, an organization that had 730 members from Ashland County this year.
As the auctioneer reminded buyers, “it’s payday for all these kids.” But for some it’s a little more than dollars and cents.
‘For the kids’
For Logan Fulk, Thursday marked the last day he’d step into the auction ring. At 18, he’s aged out.
The Paradise Hill resident has shown dairy steer since age 12. This year’s first place grand champion dairy steer finish meant something deeper for him and his brother, Tanner.
“My grandpa loved showing holsteins. So for my brother and I to get grand champion and reserve champion means a lot to our family,” he said.
Each of the brothers’ dairy steer weighed in at 1,638 pounds and fetched $3.50 per pound for a grand total of $5,733.
Mike Volz of Cole Distributing Inc. bought Logan Fulk’s unnamed dairy steer. (He used to name them, but stopped in order to not grow so attached.)
“This is for the kids,” Volz said after winning the bid. He said the livestock auction, in general, is about supporting the community.
Cash Gaus, 14, sold Otis — a grand champion market hog — for $18 a pound. Otis weighed in at 267 pounds, meaning Gaus’ paycheck amounted to $4,806.
“I’m gonna save it,” Gaus said of the earnings. “And probably put some of it into another hog.”
Gaus, of Rowsburg, has done this for three years. He’s raised Otis since March from his parents’ 13-acre farm, where they raise other 4-H hogs and cattle.
Annette Augustine, 18, of Loudonville described walking out of the coliseum with her hog, Scuba Steve, a bittersweet moment.
She’s been showing hogs since age 5. Scuba Steve, a 272-pound market swine, won reserve grand champion this year and a $3,264 check.
What’s next for Augustine?
“I’ll get a big-girl job in the ag industry,” she said. And hopefully that job involves working with livestock because: “I love livestock.”
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