Intense heat not fit for man nor beast

WORTHINGTON — The turkeys had their beaks wide open, the chickens panted in their cages, rabbits were fidgety and the dairy cows grew a little skittish in the show ring.

And the humans, well, the humans complained about the heat.

It was opening day of the Nobles County Fair on Thursday, and Trevor Gruis of the Grand Prairie Rockets 4-H Club said it was the hottest day he remembers in his 12 years of showing cattle.

“It was pretty hot,” he said as sweat dripped from his face. “It wasn’t ideal for showing cattle, but you gotta do what ya gotta do. We brought them here to show.”

Gruis tried to beat the heat by rising at 6 a.m. Thursday to get his dairy and beef animals washed and in front of fans, but with temperatures already climbing into the upper 80s by mid-morning with a high humidity, keeping comfortable was a challenge.

“They feel worse than we do with their hide,” he said.

If the cattle were uncomfortable, the rabbits may have been even more so. They too were shown by 4-H exhibitors during the hottest part of the afternoon.

Before the show had ended, Jasmine Fletcher of the Rushmore Central Hustlers 4-H Club said she ran out of frozen water bottles used to keep her fuzzy critters cool in their cages.

“I do it every day of the summer,” said Fletcher of her attempt to keep rabbits cool. With the water melted in their bottles, the rabbit exhibitors moved in fans to keep the air circulating.

Back in the beef barn, 4-H mom Sue Springman was using a water hose to spray mist on the cattle bedding, the cows and the calves.

“It’s been hard (on them),” Springman said of the heat. “They’re panting. The lambs have really been wrung out — I think all livestock is kind of suffering right now.”

Nobles County 4-H Program Coordinator JoAnn Ammann said despite the heat, livestock numbers are looking good at the fair this year. She said just a couple of young Cloverbud 4-H members didn’t show animals on Thursday because of the heat.

“Animal safety is a top priority at the fair this year with the heat,” Ammann said, adding that additional fans were being provided by Runnings and TSC in Worthington.

Sarah Schmidt of Luverne spent more than three hours in the show ring of Olson Arena Thursday afternoon as the judge for the dairy show. While she said it was comfortable at the entrance to the show ring thanks to a nice breeze and a large fan, the middle of the arena was downright hot.

“I was more concerned with the kids and cows today and making sure they had the water they needed,” Schmidt said. “I think these exhibitors did a very good job making sure their animals were as comfortable as possible.”

Those who had to work in the food stands at the fair were just as uncomfortable as the animals in the show rings.

“It’s hot,” exclaimed Kassie Wilkening of the Graham Lake Braves 4-H Club. She and fellow 4-H’ers had the 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. shift in the 4-H food stand. With the exception of a couple of trips to the horse barn to check on her animals there, she’d been serving up food to hungry customers.

As for the horses, Kassie’s sister Amanda said they were doing OK.

“So far, so good,” she said. “They’re a little bit crabbier than usual. I think with every animal here it’s been a little frustrating.”

What may have been the worst job to have at the fair on Thursday was that of grill cook. Over at the Worthington FFA Food stand, James Schultz had the honor of working the noon shift.

“Hot and long,” he said of his time slaving over the grill to make hamburgers and pork burgers. “But it’s really fun.”

Schultz said there were a couple of fans working in the grill area, and they had a nice breeze blowing through the building, both of which helped to beat the heat. Another option was water.

“Splashing it over your face — that’s about all you can do,” he said with a grin.

With Thursday night’s storm pushing through the region, temperatures are expected to be more bearable at the fair today and through the weekend.

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