2. The second person that I interviewed was Mr. Jimmy Sweeney. Sweeney is an agriculture teacher and father of two sons that lives in Lakeland, Florida. When asked about the price of show hog feed as it affects his family or his students, he reacted indifferently. Sure, it would be awesome if the prices were lower, but that's true for everything; that was the reaction he gave. When asked how he keeps it from affecting his students or sons, he explained that he has a mandatory meeting for any child who wants to buy a pig from the load that he brings in. In that meeting, he gives the student and the parents the estimated amount that the project will cost from start to finish, including feed and vaccinations, and he always uses a high estimate. Those that still wish to participate understand what they are entering into, and many of them are pleased when they do the math at the end of the project and find that they spent less than their teacher thought they would. For his sons, he has worked with them to find buyers willing to purchase their hogs for a higher price than the average at the fair, and has made their project profitable in that way.
3. The third person interviewed was Steve Black. He has a small show cattle production also in Lakeland. Black explained that his method for getting around the high costs has been to buy his feed in bulk. He explained that while he has a smaller number of cattle than some of those around him, he has built a special room on his barn that is a climate controlled feed room. By keeping the temperatures in this feed room lower than the heat outside and closer to a true 'room temperature', his feed can last several weeks without beginning to mold unlike those that try to do the same thing without controlling the temperature. When asked if this is feasible when considering the added electricity that he is using, he replied that in his findings, it still saves money. While he does pay to run the air in the room during the day, it does not have to run nearly as much at night, and the room is well-insulated. Adding in the factors that he does not have to get feed more often and does not have to pay for the fuel in his truck to drive to the feed store, he finds that this is a much more efficient way that makes less work for him.
4. The fourth person that I interviewed was Hunter Maxwell. He is a senior at Kathleen High School in Lakeland and has shown steers, bulls, heifers and hogs. When asked how he manages to afford the show feed for all of his animals, he explained that he works to find sponsors. By reaching out to contacts that he has made over the years of showing, he is able to bring in enough money to cover the costs of the feed up front. In turn, he helps promote people going to that person for business, and in some instances he does odd jobs for the people and is given money that he uses to purchase feed. While it is something that has created challenges for him with organizing his time, he said that he has been successful with this method for the last three years.
5. The final person that I interviewed was Coleen Jackson. She has a small number of show cattle that she owns in Webster, Florida. For her, the way to make up for the high feed costs is to own less animals and feed less per animal. At the same time, however, her animals are very healthy and possibly more well-fed than some of the others that I spoke with. She manages to do this through a strict vaccination protocol every year and by rotating the animals on her fields. By leaving them in one place for less time, she is able to feed them less grain and simply allow them to eat more grass and hay. She then moves them to another field and does the same thing again. Though this produces a good deal of work on her part, she explained that it really does not add much time over what it would be if she were to be required to feed more strictly every day. By doing this, she only feeds her animals grain one time per day and simply spreads it out in a small area for all of them to share. If her plan were different, she may have to separate animals and feed them individually so that they can all get proper nutrition.
| Inside the boundary | Outside the boundary |
| Who is In: Kyle Carlton, Laura Lee Taylor, Maddie Dvorak, Dale Locke, Payge Nichols | Who is Not: John Maples, Jimmy Sweeney, Steve Black, Hunter Maxwell, Coleen Jackson |
| What the Need Is: Paying for high quality show animal feed and finding the best complete ration | What the Need Is Not: Paying for high quality show animal feed and finding the best complete ration |
| Why the Need Exists Tighter profit margins, unable to find complete ration that fits their animals, Very limited options | Alternative Explanations Strict rotation and vaccinations, Higher sale prices, sponsors, Prior expectations, Bulk pricing |
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