Cat’s path to victory starts with a rescue
Published: July 17, 2006
The road to victory is sometimes a long and painful one.
For one black, shorthaired domestic cat named Cocoa, the road ran through the Michigan State University Small Animal Center where Bea Biddinger of Ithaca adopted him.
Hand-feeding the kitten after his mother was killed, Bea brought the cat back to her home, a crop farm where animals are always welcome. Daughter Amanda, an auburn-haired 9-year-old, took over care of the kitten and decided he was perfect for the Gratiot County Fair for Youth, which opened Sunday. Cocoa earned himself a third-place trophy and helped Amanda win a first-place for showmanship. “I’ve had him for about three months,“ said Amanda, a member of the Something Special 4-H club. “He was kinda stressed out, but he did pretty good.“ Amanda also competed in goats, crops, pedal pulling, sewing and the pig scramble. Her 13-year-old brother, JD, also competed in the fair, in goats, crops, dogs, pig scramble and tractor operator competitions. “It teaches them the care and responsibility of animals and competing they learn how to win and lose, both,“ said mom Bea. “They get to see if they work hard on something they do better, and if they don’t do so much, they don’t do so well. It also gets them active and involved with kids their own age.“ JD, who plans to maybe graduate to raising and showing pigs next year, thinks that there are benefits for any kids in the 4-H activities. “You learn self-esteem and to be a better person,“ he said. “I think it would be good for all kids to compete in this.“ Sweltering temperatures and air thick like pudding didn’t slow the visitors to the 2006 fair, even though the carnival midway, run by Elliot’s of Mason, was not set to open until today at 5 p.m. Small animal contests marked the first limited fair days Saturday and Sunday, including a dog show, cat show, pocket pet show, antique tractor pull, fashion and style show and a pig scramble for kids. Opening ceremonies were scheduled for 4:30 p.m. Sunday. Fair organizers expect much larger crowds than in past years for the more than 50-year-old event with expanded exhibits and more exhibitors combined with a quality carnival, said a fair spokesman.
If you enjoyed this good news Subscribe to Good News Blog
If you like this, you'll love Good Animal News:
Share this
To share this simply copy and paste one of the below URL's: