Butler Farm Show’s goats to enter the ring
Almost every morning before school, Nolan, Dylan and their mother, Misty, Thurber head down the lane of their Fenelton family farm and, before they hit Route 422, they turn.
They each have Boer goats in tow, born either in January or February of that year, that they are getting ready for competition.
They head for a major hill near their house, and for the next 30 to 45 minutes, they walk, slowly but surely, to build muscles on their goats ahead of competition season.
For many longtime members of 4-H, like Nolan and Dylan, showing goats at the Butler Farm Show is not a one-and-done activity. It represents the culmination of months, sometimes even years, of hard work, dedication and discipline.
The Farm Show offers a host of different goat categories, including Derry goats, Boer breeding stock and market animals, according to goat superintendent Tina Bryner.
Many competitors are from Butler County’s 4-H program and span the ages of 8 to 18.
In recent years, the Butler Farm Show has seen an uptick of interest in goats. In 2025, the Farm Show welcomed 173 goats and 38 exhibitors, Bryner said.
The goat entries for the last two years have had “the second highest number of animal entries on the grounds during the Farm Show week,” Michael Dean, who is on the farm show board, said.
Dean and Bryner attributed the trend toward goat farming to the fact they are more manageable than some other animals and do not require as much time or space to raise.
For the show days, two rings will be running simultaneously in the same arena. One ring will focus on Boer goats, which are meat goats, and the other will focus on the dairy goats, Dean said.
The long-term cart goat project, fan-favorite obstacle course and time-honored dress-up contest will return again this year.
The cart goat project watches as about three children at different stages of the project teach a goat how to wear a harness, steer a cart and then, in year three, pull a cart with the trainer in it through the obstacle course.
It demands “a lot of dedication and a lot of practice,” Bryner said.
The obstacle course, which typically includes local celebrities and politicians participating in the event, will welcome state Reps. Aaron Bernstine and Marci Mustello and Butler County Chamber of Commerce President Jordan Grady this year.
The theme of the dress-up contest this year is celebrating America’s birthday. To compete, the goat and the owner’s costumes need to be at least 50% homemade.
Fifteen-year-old Haley Vorndran is no stranger to the contest, having won first place in the 12- and 13 year-old class in 2025.
Haley recalled in an interview one of her favorite costumes: she and a friend dressed up as Jack and Rose from the movie, “Titanic,” with their goats clad in a cardboard replica of the ill-fated ship.
The Farm Show goat competition isn’t all work. For Haley, the events can feel almost like a vacation.
“Some of my closest friends I’ve met through the Farm Show,” Haley said. “Every year I look forward to all of it.”
The goat competition begins at 10 a.m. Monday, Aug. 10, with goat showmanship.
The goat cart classes, goat costume contest and goat obstacle course will all take place on Wednesday, Aug. 12, starting at 11 a.m.
