Director Lee Stanley said that so far, there are about 30 head of cattle for each class. He added that after the first place is selected from each category, a supreme champion will be selected from between the top Holstein and Jersey cattle.

“There’s not many Jersey shows around,” said Alex Mayhew, who’s been participating in dairy shows since he was seven. “There’s a couple local Jersey farms and they sound excited.”

Another change to this year’s show is that it will take place outdoors this year due to COVID-19 restrictions. The show will start at 11 a.m. on Friday, a change from their usual date of Saturday evening.

“It’ll be a little brighter, a little easier to see the animals,” said Lee. “We’ll show in raincoats if we have to.”

He added that the event has received lots of interest this year. Participants are set to arrive from all over Quebec and Ontario. Animals are to be brought to the grounds on Wednesday, which Stanley said is done to let them get used to the grounds and the water so they’re in the best shape possible for Friday.

“They can’t just pull an athlete out of the pasture, it needs a lot of preparation,” said Cheryl Stanley, a committee member for this year’s dairy show. “They’re kind of like athletes, they need to be in perfect shape.”

Leading up to the show, contestants spend much of their time halter training their cattle, as well as clipping hair and simply getting their animals used to being around people. But the effort can result in more than a first place ribbon.

“Going to the shows has a lot of value to those involved with breeding,” said Cheryl. “It’s an opportunity to compare breeding programs with others in the area.”

Mayhew said that he’s been preparing for the show for a few weeks now, spending at least an hour everyday preparing. As he’s gotten older, he’s come to appreciate the dairy shows more and more since winning his first trophy in 2014.

“Before then, all I wanted to do was to go on rides, but then I realized that this is what I wanted to do – show animals,” said Mayhew.

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