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FFA member Kael Willis of Sterling, eyes a ring of market swine Saturday morning at the Northwest Illinois Livestock & Dairy Judging Contest, hosted by the Carroll County 4-H Foundation. (Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@shawmedia.com)
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First- and second-year 4H members are escorted off to their first judging pen. Older members knew the tricks of the trade and moved about with their groups. (Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@shawmedia.com)
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FFA and 4-H members look over a ring of cattle Saturday morning. Some of the things to look for when judging beef cattle are size, muscling and balance. (Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@shawmedia.com)
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Connor Erbsen of Lanark brushes his cattle that he brought in for judging. (Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@shawmedia.com)
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Judges jot down observations while at the market barrows pen. Each pig has a number on its back for judges to keep track. Long loins and big backsides, where the ham is, get higher marks. (Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@shawmedia.com)
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The groups moved from ring to ring, judging cattle, sheep, swine and dairy cattle. (Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@shawmedia.com)
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Rebecca Alexander of Chadwick volunteers her time to both 4-H and FFA events when she's not involved in grad school at St. Ambrose University in Davenport, Iowa. "I want to give back when I can; (4-H and FFA) made me what I am today," she said. Saturday she helped out with the livestock judging. (Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@shawmedia.com)
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Market sheep were one of the stops on the judging circuit. (Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@shawmedia.com)
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Abby Jo Utecht, a Sterling FFA member, judges cattle Saturday morning. (Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@shawmedia.com)
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Renee Gehrke of Byron stands by after making her picks at the market barrows pen. Gehrke is president of FFA Section 2. which covers Ogle, Lee, Carroll and Whiteside counties. (Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@shawmedia.com)
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During the event, youths will judge two rings of beef cattle, sheep and swine, and four rings of dairy cows with one production ring in each species. The 11th ring is a questions class. The event was open to any youth from any county. (Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@shawmedia.com)
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Livestock producers make their observations and picks before the event opens up to the kids. At the end of the contest, producers announce their placings and give their reasons. (Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@shawmedia.com)