Being called on to pass judgement on four well-bred Holstein dairy cattle would be a tough call for most people, but imagine you had to announce the results of your selection in front of more than 100 people, including professional dairy judges.
A group of young people fronted up to this task at the Holstein Australia youth competition on Sunday, January 18 in the main arena at International Dairy Week in Tatura.
The competition is designed to cultivate a discerning eye in tomorrow’s dairy leaders.
One of the competitors was 11-year-old Isla Robertson from Cobram, who confesses to enjoying public speaking.
Isla has participated in IDW for four years and last year was second in her handlers’ class.
She told Country News making a hard call on judging did not faze her.
Isla, the daughter of Bec and Stewart Robertson, said she often picked out a cow she liked and then broke down the individual traits to work out their strengths and weaknesses.
She was one of 130 young people competing in leading, judging and clipping competitions on the Sunday.