Whether perfectly poised or jumping around and bleating at the top of their lungs, 4-H and FFA youth competitors all agree their goats are pretty cute.  

But just being cute doesn’t cut it — judge Karly Hanson said she’s looking for knowledgeable competitors with confidence when watching youth in the showmanship ring. Dairy goats and meat goats have different criteria for judging, and competitors need to know how to properly show off each animal.  

“For dairy goats, you want something that has good udder, good teat placement, really refined in their bone work and has a maternal body shape,” Hanson said. “For meat goats, you want something that stands really square, has some depth of body, has some muscle shape to them and just a balanced and proportional look from the side.”  

At the Northwest Montana Fair and Rodeo on Aug. 14, grand champion in senior showmanship went to Brynn Mason, 17, a 4-H member who has been showing goats since she was 9. Holding back tears, Mason described the journey she’s been on raising goats. Her winning goat LaLayla Jasmine (also called “Jazzy”), is the kid of her original show goat Layla.  

“When I retired her, it was her last kidding — I had two boys that died and two girls that lived in that litter. It was a hard labor, a really traumatic night for me and for the doe,” Mason said. “But I got a really special goat out of it. Jazzy is my first goat that really loves to be shown,  and I think she likes it more than I do. She just gets out there and she does her thing.”  

Jazzy is also the highest quality goat she’s shown. She said that means a lot to her, because she’s been there at every step of the process: breeding her mother, choosing the buck and providing the best nutrition possible.  

Although aspects of animal husbandry can be hard, getting to know individual personalities is very fun, Mason said. If she doesn’t choose a career in agriculture, she says she will continue to breed goats as a hobby for the rest of her life.  

“I love that dedication. I love how bonded you get to them. They get so excited when I open the back door in the morning, they all start screaming at me,” Mason said.  

During the showmanship competitions, Hanson had competitors switch goats with each other for another walk around the ring. It’s one way to see how competitors adjust to showing a new animal, but also if they can correctly choose which part of the dairy or meat goat to display to the judge.  

Switching animals in the showring is something that 13-year-old James Newton said he hadn’t seen before, as he held his goat and prepared to go into the ring.  

It’s important to keep their legs straight and their head up, he said. Goats can be a little squirrely sometimes, but a good showman knows how to get everything back on track.  

Newton said it's fun to raise goats — they’re cute and like to jump and run around a lot as babies. Although he has taken pigs to market, he hasn’t taken any of the goats.  

“You can only do market for one, but also, we have had these goats for a long time, so I just don't want to take them,” he said.  

For junior showmanship, Hanson gave grand champion to 13-year-old Naomi Brist. 

“There's no doubt in my mind, that young lady wins this class pretty dang easy for me,” Hanson said. “She's very intense, very confident and she presents goats very well. When I asked the kids about their projects, she was probably the most detailed." 

Naomi Brist celebrated alongside younger brother Garrett Brist, 11, who got third place in the competition.  

"Nutmeg was doing awesome,” she said. “This is my first year with her as my showmanship goat, because I've had the same goat for the past six years. Having a new one that will probably replace the old one is awesome.” 

Garrett said he was a little nervous showing Hershey at this year’s fair, it was the goat’s second year and his fourth year in the ring. But, he was happy with their performance.  

Raising Nigerian Dwarf goats, sisters Gwendolyn, 13, and Magdolyn Russell, 15, said showing the particular breed is different than others.  

“We show only these for breed, because they're not as well behaved for showmanship and you really haven't had a lot of time to work with them. But it's really to show their confirmation and bone structure,” Gwendolyn Russell said.  

Magdoyln Russell got into raising goats at age 8.  

“I went to the fair and their goats were so sweet and cute. So I was like, ‘Oh, I want a goat.’ And then 2020 came around, and we didn't really have much to do, so we got bottle babies. I just like them because they're funny and they're all unique,” Magdoyln Russell said.  

Whether it’s goats, steers or sheep — judging livestock at the Northwest Montana Fair was a real homecoming for Hanson. Raised in the Flathead, she showed sheep for 10 years in the Trade Center.  

It’s the first hometown competition she’s judged since going off to college and starting her career.  

“Of all the shows I could ever judge, this is going to be the biggest one for me, just because I get to give back to the kids and the community that I grew up in. Getting to judge here is really special, I have my mom and grandma here watching all week,” she said.  

Reporter Taylor Inman may be reached at 758-4440 or [email protected].