GALT, CA (MPG) - The Galt area wouldn’t be complete without local youth training livestock in preparation for the Sacramento County Fair. From raising rabbits, sheep, swine and cattle, to making baked goods and needle crafts, local youth have worked for months preparing their projects to show at the fair, which started May 23.

The Junior Livestock Auction, on Sunday, May 26, is arguably one of the most exciting days at the fair. Bids are yelled from the stands and deals are made, as exhibitor after exhibitor shows their animal in the ring for the last time and eventually says goodbye.

Galt FFA, Liberty Ranch FFA, Galt 4-H and Herald 4-H all have students showing animals or other projects during the fair.

The Herald recently spoke to members of local FFA and 4-H chapters about their fair projects and hopes for the auction. For general Sacramento County Fair information, visit sacfair.com. 

To preregister as a livestock auction buyer, create an account at bit.ly/3Kd8ujK (case sensitive).

Carlie Morgado, a sophomore in Liberty Ranch FFA, is showing an animal for the first time. She explained that she had been prepping her lamb, named Carl, by walking him 15 minutes a day and by working on bracing, a distinct pose that lamb and goat sellers have their animals take to show off the animals’ muscle tone.

Morgado said she attended the fair last year to support a friend who was showing a lamb.

“I thought it was pretty interesting and cool, which is what made me want to show this year,” she said.

The process of raising Carl had come with its share of challenges, Morgado said, but she has listened to advice on subjects like the ideal muscle structure for a lamb. She planned to raise lambs in the future in order to improve her skill with the species.

“I found it (raising an animal) pretty difficult over time,” Morgado said, “but I think that patience and consistency is what’s really going to help me do good at the fair.”

Galt FFA student Alaya Gunter said she was seeking a greater challenge for her second year showing at the auction. So the sophomore switched from poultry to a goat.

“Poultry is very easy and simple, and the showmanship is more questions than physical actions. … It’s a lot easier,” Gunter said. “And goats, it’s definitely a longer process. … You have to be there almost every day of the week trying to work with your animal and really getting them ready, so it’s a lot more work and effort. And you do a lot more in the ring with them during showmanship.”

In the run-up to the auction, Gunter said she was concentrating on helping her goat gain weight, as well as practicing bracing and getting the goat used to the halter it would wear in the auction ring.

Gunter said she had learned to prioritize her animal’s care and keep an organized schedule. She described the experience of showing an animal at the fair.

“It’s definitely nerve-racking to go into the ring, knowing you have multiple other people fighting for the same spot,” Gunter said, “but it’s overall just a really good experience, and I’d recommend it to anybody because it’s so fun, and you meet so many new people.

“And going in to sell, it’s definitely sad knowing you’re leaving your animal that you’ve raised for several months,  but it’s just feeling very accomplished that you did something and you finally made it to the end, what you’ve been working for.”

Getting Crafty

Animals aren’t the only projects that students are working on for the county fair. Galt 4-H specializes in various crafts, and students Elia Rodriguez and Addison Washburn described their creations.

“I am entering a Dutch apple pie and chocolate swirl meringues,” Washburn said, noting that for the apple pie, she used a recipe that she and her aunt prepare every year. 

Asked what the submissions demonstrate for the judges, Washburn said they show “that I love, love, love, love to bake.” Washburn, who serves as Galt 4-H’s sergeant-at-arms, enjoys the science of baking and learning how ingredients interact.

Rodriguez, Galt 4-H president, had a variety of projects planned: a quilt dedicated to her mother; chocolate chip muffins; a photo of a camellia flower; and a science project on osmosis, the movement of liquid into and out of cells.

Rodriguez has submitted a quilt to the fair every year; this year, she took it further and made her own pattern, a heart shape.

The research on osmosis gave Rodriguez insight into the 4-H chapter’s gardening project.

“I feel through science you can learn about so much in the environment or just your body in general. Osmosis explains a lot of why dehydration happens, or why plants die because you can overwater or not water enough,” Rodriguez said.

When she spoke to the Herald, Audrey de Melo Gonsalez, Galt FFA president, was taking a break from trimming the hair of her dairy cow, one of five animals she is raising for this auction. She described the time-consuming process.

“Lots and lots of patience is used up. Just trying to get all of the hair off and not leave a line or any clipper marks is honestly just the most stressful thing,” she said with a laugh. Besides the cow, de Melo Gonsalez will also show a wether goat and three doe goats: “quite the little ensemble.”

In her seventh year showing animals at the fair, de Melo Gonsalez said she took on the additional animals at the encouragement of a local breeder she has worked with.

The Galt High School junior said the participation of auction bidders means a lot to her, not so much for the bid amounts but for “the fact that they are willing to support kids even though they may not know them one-on-one.”

“Even inside the ring, you don’t know who’s bidding on your animal. It’s going so fast — putting your sign up, calls from every corner of the ring — and then in the end, when you figure out and you get your fair check, you’re just kind of amazed. You don’t know who bid on it, but you know it got a higher price, and it’s just the support of the community that makes a lot of things great for the fair.”