Do llamas really spit? What’s the difference between a llama and an alpaca, anyway? How are mountain goats able to scale such enormous mountains with ease? What kind of shampoo do those miniature horses use to get such glossy coats, and where can I buy some?
After a long stroll through the livestock pens at the 118th National Western Stock Show, kids might have questions like these floating around in their heads. Or perhaps your inquisitive little one has a newfound interest in pigs, and you need an expert—stat.
Look no further than Farmyard Follies, an educational entertainment show for children and the whole family. Hosted by “farm crew” member Emilie Owen and located in the Ames Activity Pavilion, audience members are introduced to Wilbur the pig, Scout the baby goat, Princess the llama, Denver the donkey, and more. The show runs for 45 minutes, the sweet spot for youngsters’ attention spans. The opening show on Jan. 6 even had some surprises in store for the audience.
Princess took a little detour away from her handlers, leash not in tow, and said hello to audience members standing close to the stage. A friendly llama, her handlers chalked it up to her desire for stardom. True to her name, she remained poised and ladylike throughout, eventually returning to her handlers without causing too much trouble.
Scout, the eight-week-old baby goat, jumped off a see-saw onto Princess’s back at one point. The audience gasped. But Scout is no Gabby Douglas.
“He’s actually never done that before. That’s not one of his tricks,” Emilie said. “Notice how I didn’t panic? That’s the most important thing when it comes to handling baby goats. Don’t panic when things go sideways, because that’s how babies learn. They play, they climb, they tumble, they fall. And that’s what it’s all about.”
Owen interacted with audience members as she introduced each of the animals. Seven-year-old math whiz Ethan from Parker, Colorado, got a chance to show off his skills.
“Denver the donkey weighs 400 pounds and can pull up to four times his weight by cart. Does anyone know how much that is?” Owen asked. It took Ethan only seconds to yell out the answer: 1600 pounds.
After the show, Ethan shared his review.
“I was hoping that we would get to see the llama spit, but she was only kidding about that part,” Ethan said.
For the musically inclined kid, the Stock Show is home to the annual Colorado Fiddle Championships, held in the Beef Palace Auction Arena. Local fiddle legend Katie Glassman was named the 2024 Open Champion, but this year’s younger fiddle players stole the show, especially nine-year-old Rowan Lerch from Salida, Colorado. He placed second in the Novice Division, meaning this was his first fiddle competition.
Rowan was named after famous bluegrass musician Peter Rowan and has grown into the name perfectly as bluegrass is his favorite musical genre. Rowan has been a student of Coletrain Music Academy in Buena Vista since 2019. In 2020, he took fiddle lessons from Joe Craven, a multi-instrumentalist who played with David Grisman and Jerry Garcia. When Rowan was only two years old, Craven asked him to play fiddle onstage at the 2017 Hangtown Music Festival.
“I have been playing the fiddle for about four years and my nanny took me to her son’s fiddle lessons when I was less than one year old. I also play the mandolin. I’ve played in the Surf Hotel in Buena Vista with my fiddle teacher Colman Smith and David Lawrence, and I’ve played in jam sessions at the Lariat, too,” Rowan said.
This year’s fiddle championships had the biggest turnout yet, with thousands of dollars on the line for top fiddlers and accompanists. But that didn’t phase the pint-sized prodigy, who practices the fiddle once a day.
“I felt nervous but I also felt confident. I’m excited to come back to compete next year,” he said.
The competition took place over two days and was split up into divisions of Novice, Small Fry, Junior-Junior, Young Adult, Adult, Senior, Senior-Senior, Bob Wills, Twin Fiddles and Accompanist. One or two guitar players accompanied most contestants.
There was only one rule for audience members: Don’t clap or tap along to the music, no matter how catchy it might sound. Doing so can throw the fiddle players off their rhythm and make it harder for judges to score them accurately.
Seven-year-old Oona Williams was crowned this year’s Small Fry—under eight years old—champion, and she told judges that when she’s not practicing the fiddle, she spends her time coloring.
For kids growing up in the city or the suburbs, the Miniature Hereford Junior Show paints a fascinating picture of what life is like growing up on a ranch. Audience members watched junior exhibitors as they skillfully paraded their blow-dried cows around the stadium arena.
To put it in practical terms, just one of those small fluffy cows could pay the rent on an upscale Wash Park apartment for two months. Seriously. Amelia Cragen, 12 years old, took home this year’s Grand Champion title, which was a heartwarming moment for her after entering with her Miniature Hereford cow for the last six years.
On the third floor of the Hall of Education, kids can visit the petting zoo and pony rides, while parents can finally grab a beer. CSU offers a “junior agriculture adventure program,” where young ones can learn about crop production, animals and the agriculture industry at large. There is so much at the Stock Show for children to enjoy. Whether you’re planning on going to the stock show with kids in tow or just a kid at heart, the annual event is something you don’t want to miss.
