NEWS A Texas Team Ag Ed Publication
Stock Shows: Good
vs.
Michael Meadows, Simms
Why do we have stock shows? I like to think they give our students a chance to be rewarded for their work in selection, feeding, and raising livestock animal projects. For market animals, it represents the end of an SAE project. For breeding animals, it gives our students a chance to compete while building a production SAE. That sounds simple enough and doesn’t do justice to what a student can learn about agriculture, responsibility, sportsmanship, and life in raising a stock show project. Before I go any further, I will admit I am not a stock show expert and have never claimed to be. As an ag teacher, it is one of the opportunities we can offer our students to develop them as individuals and as future agricultural producers. Both of my children raised market broilers, market hogs, market rabbits, and breeding beef heifers for county, local, and major livestock shows. In my 27 years of teaching, I have hauled students showing every species to stock shows all across our great state. I am a huge supporter of stock shows and what these types of projects can teach our students. Let me qualify
February 2018
Bad
that statement - I am a huge supporter if the students are the ones who are doing the work and reaping the benefits. Most students need help getting started and advice along the way. It is part of our responsibility, as ag teachers, to provide advice. Most students need support and help from their family as well. One problem I see too often is involvement from other “outside” influences. It is no secret that we have some issues in our stock show program. In fact, these issues have become so common that we now have a state validation program for all species. This adds another expense to our students as well as another responsibility to us as ag teachers. I have mixed emotions concerning state validations, while I applaud the efforts of FFA, 4H, and the major stock shows in trying to do something to “clean up” the issues we have, I think it’s a shame it had to come to this. Are state validations the answer? Will validating animals solve all the issues? In my opinion, the answer is no. It will help, but those who have lost sight of the intent of the program and have the goal of winning banners and championships
at all costs will always find a way around the rules. It must be a collaborative effort of all involved, including us as ag teachers. I believe it must start
with educating our students and parents in what the intent of the program is on the rules of participating. These rules include the validation policies as well as the individual rules of the stock shows they compete in. When we, as ag teachers, sign entry forms, we are stating that our students will follow all policies and rules, making us responsible. I know there are things going on that we know nothing about. I have been caught between “a rock and hard place” before and had to make some hard decisions. Continue on page 2