Berkshires 4-H'er Takes Top Honor at World Dairy Expo
Top, Caitlin Moriarty, 16, took first place in showmanship in her age division at the World Dairy Expo in Madison, Wisc. The expo ran from Oct. 1 to 5. At left, she shows WFSupreme Suzanne at the Big E. |
Starting out locally and then regionally showing dairy cattle, she has moved her way to bigger shows this year.
Moriarty went in September to the All American Dairy Show in Harrisburg, Penn., where she showed in both the Junior and Open Show, making it to the finals in Senior Showmanship (along with about 140 other showman).
With her 4-H Dairy Project animal, a brown Swiss summer yearling named WFSupreme Suzanne, she received third place in both the Junior and Open show.
The day after returning from a great show in Harrisburg, Moriarty made her way to the Brown Swiss Show at the Eastern States Exposition (The Big E). At the end of the five-day Big E show, Caitlin and her heifer were the Junior Champion of the Junior Show and Open Show and she received first in her class.
The next Sunday, she and four other Massachusetts 4-H delegates made their way out to Madison for the National 4-H Dairy Conference. At the conference, she learned about the dairy industry and visited places like Hoards Dairy and Crave Brothers.
She also attended the World Dairy Expo, where her heifer received fifth in the Open Show, second in the Junior Show in her class. Caitlin took home 1st place in Senior Showmanship (ages 16-21) against showmen from across the country and the world.
More than 300 youth in three age divisions competed in the showmanship categories. Moriarty was presented the Keith King Award for her first place showing. She also was one of only two New Englanders to be named in the top 10 in the three categories; Morgan Betti of Goshen, Conn., took third in the Junior division.
Tags: 4-H, agricultural show, agriculture, dairy, domestic animals, youth programs,