BROWNSTOWN — When people think about the animals exhibited during the Jackson County Fair, they naturally think of farm animals such as the cows, goats and hogs that populate the show barns as 4-H’ers await the next show in which they will compete.
But on Saturday, a day before the fair officially started, a 4-H show was held for an animal that’s not always known for the farming lifestyle: The cat.
Six 4-H’ers brought their feline friends to Show Arena 1 at the Jackson County Fairgrounds to see which cat would become grand champion this year.
“When you tell people you show cats, they’re like, ‘How do you show a cat?’” said Kiley Sons, 17, of Brownstown.
She competed in her ninth 4-H cat show Saturday with her cat, Pooks.
“But it’s pretty easy,” Sons said. “You just have to make sure they’re clean and know your cat.”
The honor of grand champion went to Luna, a dilute calico owned by Kaylyn Holman, 18, of Crothersville.
Holman said Luna is a 2 years old, and her family got her when a friend was giving away kittens.
She said Luna is “not anything fancy” and hates leaving the house.
Preparing Luna for the show involved practicing basic cat care, Holman said.
“My cat, Luna, she’s solely an inside cat, so we trim her nails and play with her and make sure she has a healthy diet,” she said. “We take her to the vet, make sure they have a healthy weight, free of fleas, all of that.”
Luna is not unusual for being a cat that doesn’t love leaving the comfort of her home, but those who competed in the show all said they give extra care to make sure the cat gets through the show OK.
Seymour 4-H’er Lena Benter, 11, competed in the show with her orange cat, Button. She said Button was nervous to leave home, but she petted him and told him it was going to be all right during the show to try to calm him down.
Ella Plasse, 18, of Crothersville brought Dinky. The 12-year-old was the oldest cat of the show.
She said Dinky was found “on the dotted line in the middle of the road,” and after making sure it wasn’t anyone’s pet, he was taken to the vet before staying at her family’s home for the long run.
Plasse said Dinky was pushed up against her during the show, but she felt like it also had to do with the fact that he wasn’t used to being leashed.
Like Benter did with Button, Plasse said she petted Dinky and kept telling him they’re going home soon to calm him down.
One cat that was surprisingly calm for its owner was Hazel, owned by Jacob Jones, 17, of Seymour.
Jones competed in the cat show with his sister, Jennifer Jones, 14, as the only participants of the purebred category. The other competitors were entered in the mixed breed category. There also were divisions for junior showmanship, senior showmanship and master showmanship.
Jones said his family got their cats mainly for the 4-H cat show, and his sister has competed at the cat show at the Indiana State Fair.
He said Hazel is a 2-year-old Oriental shorthair and is normally skittish but was cooperative Saturday.
In preparation for the show, Jones said it was important for the cats to get their shots because they cannot compete without them. He also said he doesn’t necessarily bathe them before the show but rather keeps them clean by wiping them down.
Jennifer Jones competed with Charlotte, a Siamese shorthair. She said her family traveled to Charlotte, North Carolina, to get her.
The judge of the show was Rebecca Wilkins, who is an educator for Purdue Extension in Harrison County.
She said after the show that she wished there were more participants because the 4-H cat show is as much about animal welfare as any other 4-H livestock show.
A couple of pieces of advice she gave during the show are that cat claws should be trimmed, not declawed, and it’s important that cats don’t get overweight because the extra pounds are tough on a cat’s body and can cause them to develop diabetes or arthritis.