Dairy Judging Team Brings Home the Glory Once Again

Dressing in nice attire and high heels to judge cattle might seem odd to most people, but for Penn State senior Raechel Kilgore, it's just another day at a dairy judging competition.

Kilgore, an animal sciences major, has been involved with dairy judging since she began 4-H at the age of 8. "It has always been a part of my life," she says. "Then, when I came to Penn State, it only seemed logical to continue my judging career."

The Airville, Pa., native is part of the Penn State Dairy Judging Team, which placed first at the All-American Dairy Show in Harrisburg, Pa., last fall. This win was extra special: It is the first time since the 1980s that a Penn State team placed this high in this regional competition, which is usually composed of 15 to 20 teams from across the country. Previously, the team earned second place at the Eastern States Exposition contest in Massachusetts, and it ranked eighth in the National Intercollegiate Contest in Madison, Wis.

"We are proud to represent Penn State, and I am happy that we could bring the honor of the All-American contest back home for the first time in more than 20 years," says Kilgore.

Senior Emily Yeiser says the contest was rewarding and exciting for her because a lot of hard work and preparation goes into each competition.

During a dairy judging contest, the participants are given a class of four cows, which they must place according to their "conformation"—factors such as size, quality of udder and soundness of their feet and legs. Kilgore describes the process as looking for the cows that match the "ideal model."

Then, the participants give two-minute presentations defending their decisions to a panel of judges. Competitors evaluate from 10 to 12 classes of cows and are scored based on how close they come to the judges' class placements
and how effectively they deliver their presentations.