REGINA — Lois Trowell said her late father would be “proud as punch” to see a fourth generation in the Canadian Western Agribition show ring.
He would be even more pleased that Trowell’s granddaughter, Karly Eritz, showed the grand champion market lamb.
“The market lamb class was my dad’s thing,” said Trowell. “He had a running battle for years with another lady.”
Ward Mortenson of Govan, Sask., exhibited at the first Agribition in 1971 and volunteered for decades after. He died in 2015 at age 93.
Trowell took over Ward Suffolks, where she runs about 100 purebred and commercial ewes near Saltcoats, Sask. Her son Nathan is the third generation to be involved and now his 12-year-old niece Karly is involved.
Although Eritz lives in Moose Jaw, the family travels often to Saltcoats where she gets right to work.
“She helps weigh lambs and vaccinate and sort,” Trowell said.
Eritz began showing sheep a few years ago at the annual Saskatchewan Sheep Breeders Grasslands show and sale, winning junior showmanship her first time out, and this was her second Agribition.
“It makes you feel proud actually,” Trowell said of seeing her granddaughter in the ring. “She pays attention, and she is really improving.
“She is really into sheep and she’s good at it.”
The feeling is similar to what her dad felt when Nathan began showing and judging sheep.
“He just glowed,” Trowell said.
As Mortenson aged, Trowell used to lamb out about 50 of her dad’s ewes and then take them back to the home farm for him. Eventually, she stopped. But even today she takes 20 to the home farm each year to graze, travelling 240 kilometres one way and relying on a brother who still lives on the farm to keep an eye on them.
She said she has never lost an animal to predators there, although last year she lost eight at home to coyotes. One of those was entered in the Agribition pen of three class. She rounded up a replacement, headed to the show and won.
“We’ve had our supremes. We’ve had our good shows and not-so-good shows,” she said.
This past year she went to the most shows she has for a long time and can boast a supreme ram win at the Manitoba show and sale in August.
Now that Karly is involved, she may have more company on those trips. Nathan works full time for Nutrien, and Trowell’s husband helps with haying.
Trowell wouldn’t turn that company down.
“It’s fun. She is just so willing to learn. If you tell her how to do something, she remembers,” she said.
Last week Eritz exhibited the market lamb in a class of 13 entries. The lamb later brought $375 in the sale.
Trowell said she was happy with the prices her animals brought but prices for market lambs and prospect ewes “weren’t strong by any means.”
Purebred prices were better.
The high seller was Sandy Hill Jaime 32J, a ewe consigned by Sandy Hill Charollais from Red Deer County, Alta., that sold to HCrest Farming Co. of Dundurn, Sask., for $2,800.
The high selling ram, Sandy Hill Jericho 4J, sold to the same buyer for $1,950. It was also the grand champion Charollais ram.
In the show ring, the supreme champion ewe was a Dorset, Furze Heidi 163H with lamb at side, Furze Linkin 91L from Furze Farms at Maryfield, Sask. The supreme ram was Struck J 4K, a Suffolk, from Struck Farm at Pilger.
Struck exhibited the grand and reserve champion Arcott ewes, Struck J 58L and Struck J 133L.
Sandy Hill Juniper 64J and Jaime 32J were grand and reserve Charollais ewes. The reserve Charollais ram was FX5 Livestock from Melfort, Sask.
Furze Farms showed the reserve Dorset ewe, Furze Letty 18L, while the 91L ram was named grand champion ram.
In the Hampshire show, Diamond B Livestock from Barrhead County, Alta. showed grand champion ewe Diamond B Kisses 10K. Tracy and Toby Wessing from Kelliher, Sask. had the reserve, First Knight 303L.
The Ile de France grand champions were Cool Ally 81 L from Cool Ally Livestock, Alyssa Boles and Colton Bowyer, Tompkins, Sask., in the ewe competition, and Cool Ally 65L in the ram class. The reserve was Cool Ally 77L.
Jewels Legacy Katahdins from Porcupine Plain, Sask., showed all the Katahdin entries. The top ewes were Legacys Kia and LEG 33L Lyric, while the top rams were DSKF 955J Jacked Up and Legacys Leroy Brown.
Double L Farms from Fox Valley, Sask., exhibited the grand champion North Country Cheviot ewe, Double L Lucky Lucy 97L. Mackid’s Lass 85K from Kimdain Sheep at Regina was the reserve.
The results reversed in the ram championship, with Mackid’s Britt Ladd 8G winning and Double L Lancelot coming in second.
The grand and reserve champion Southdown ewes were from Furze Farms and Brad Spicher: Spicher 6L and Spicher 37K.
The top Suffolk ewes were Furze Koko 37K and Furze Haomi 1H with lamb Furze Lucifer 94L, and Furze Lucifer 94L was the reserve ram.
Finally, in the Texel show, Double L Farms won the ewe titles with Double L Lilly 30L and Double L Laura 91L, and the ram titles, with Double L Laramie 92L and Double L Karavan 71K.
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