Fair Week

Fair week is always the most busy week out of the exhibitor's year. You've got check-in, the show, the auction, clean-up day. Every day is an adventure. There's always a lot going on and it's very exciting. The day that Rusty came into the fairgrounds, he could not stay still at all. He's always wants to move around, but when he found out his goat-girlfriend was in the same pen... He was on full throttle! The cutest parts were when we would sometimes catch the two of them snuggled up and sleeping. Show day was crazy! We gave him another bath. He hated it so much, he pressed against the wall and wouldn't even let me wash his other side off! Blow-drying was a nightmare too. Every goat exhibitor was running and making sure everything was ready for the show that evening. The actual show itself was a lot quicker than I had imagined. It was very fun and a lot of it was me trying to make sure Rusty didn't rear up and kick me to death. We got third place! Shortly after that, was the showmanship competition. Rusty was very well-behaved, but I don't think he liked standing still for that amount of time. As I was walking back, he was pulling and pulling to go back home and see his little goat-girlfriend again. Auction night was even more intense than show night was because EVERY exhibitor was running around getting stuff ready, not just goat people. Steers, heifers, pigs, goats, were everywhere. It was a very stressful night. All of us were awaiting the big word that would change the future... "SOLD" When I got into the show ring, I walked him around a couple times and I kind of zoned out. I snapped out of it when I heard that magic word. I was having a rush of emotions coming through... Mostly astonished that someone bought my third place meat goat. I later talked to the buyer's father-in-law and I found out that they hadn't bought him because of his meat quality... They bought him to live on a farm with a couple other goats and a donkey. He said that whenever I wanted to see him, I could drive out and look into the field at him frolicking around. They were proud of the work I had put into Rusty.  At that moment, I was thanking the man and literally choking back tears of pure happiness. I then left and went back to the barn and it all came out. I cried because it was amazing to know that a goat with a personality like his would be preserved and he'd die of old age and not turned into mutton. I was always prepared to accept the fact that he might get turned into goat meat, but now knowing that he's not is amazing! I'm truly grateful.