Confusing Judging Terms: Part I

Yeah, and that's why I loved it.

People sent these in, and we started looking at them like, yeah, I can totally see how that's confusing.

First one that we had sent to us, and the one that probably got the most likes or kind of the most response was the term fresh.

So Tony, when you hear the word fresh, what do you think about?

I think about a variety of things.

I mainly think about, whether it be hogs or cattle or sheep and goats, I mainly think about animals that look kind of youthful and lively, if you will, and they've got a fresh presentation and a little bit of presence when they hit the ring.

And then I also think about it relative to muscle shape.

And I think those animals that have fresh muscle shape, and it's a big term now, excuse me, that we talk about in hogs all the time is he's got a big fresh back.

And I just think about really crisp and youthful looking shape when I talk about in terms of a muscle.

But mainly I'm just thinking like youthful and the right kind of presence, upheaded, clean and crisp in their hair coat and their presentation and their fit job if it's cattle.

And then when it comes to muscle, like that right kind of bloom and roll that they typically have when they're kind of on the way up, not necessarily on the way down.

What do you think of when you think fresh?

Yeah, I think the muscle, like you talked about, and I think it's the appropriate amount of fat cover, right? So we're going to talk about another term here in a few minutes being green, right? I think it's not too little of a fat cover.

It's not getting them husky and over the hill on fat cover.

It's the appropriate amount of fat cover, the appropriate amount of muscle for the size that they are.

I think that's a good way to think about it.

Skin and hair plays a big deal into this, though.

Absolutely.

If they don't come in, and it doesn't matter to me the species, and I don't judge a lot of shows anymore, but I've judged my share.

And, man, when they hit the ring, the fresh ones, before you see muscle, before you even really evaluate fat cover or anything that way, I think the fresh ones, to me, are really bright and very lively almost in the way they're presented.

Right.

So white hogs that are white, black hogs that are black hair kind of put together in the right manner.

Same thing on the cattle side in particular, like a really clean, crisp hair coat with a good clip, fresh clip job and fit job and those things that just look really sharp in their appearance.

And, man, you run one of those to me and you're my friend right off the bat, right? Just make them look cool and I'm in every time.

Those first impressions are so important, right? You know, when you're looking at 350 hogs for the day, that first two or three seconds matters a bunch.