Louie, the steer, was obviously nervous before his big show on Saturday. He anxiously stepped from one hoof to the other and nervously tossed his head.

His owner, 15-year-old Maria Kidder, was the polar opposite.

She calmly led the grand-champion steer around his stable at the Island County Fairgrounds. Then, it was time for business. Maria pulled the steer out into the stares of the bidders at this year’s livestock auction at the Island County Fair.

Louie proved to be popular, and the steer was sold at a good price. Maria said she got about $2.50 per pound for her highest paying quarter of beef; the other three quarters were sold just under $2.50 a pound.

But that’s a big chunk of money considering that Louie packed about 1,350 pounds on the scale.

“Oh, yes, it went very well,” Maria said. “Last year, I made only $1.90 per pound.”

After raising Louie and showing him in several cattle shows around the state, parting ways is not easy. An experienced 4-H’er like Maria can handle it, however.

“It’s a little bit hard, but we’ve been doing it for four years,” she said. “It gets a little bit easier every time.”

Katie Leese, a 4-H sheep owner, echoed Maria’s words.

“I don’t get attached to my market animals,” she said.

Katie and her sister Maria Leese both had sheep in the auction, and both sold them at a good profit.

“It went well,” Katie said.

Raising an animal and then selling it off for consumption would be tough for most kids, but the 4-H’ers are pros. Many said they chose the project to learn marketing skills. Plus, rearing a market animal means money.

The 4-H kids plan to use the profits for college tuition, vacations, new cars or other items, such as repaying loans for animal feed.

But some said they plan to reinvest their profits in the next 4-H project.

Lance Kidder, Maria’s brother, said he wanted to save the money for his next steer project.

Lance said he was very happy for what he got for his steer.

The 13-year-old cattle expert speaks like a seasoned marketing veteran when he talks about selling cattle. He has had five steers so far.

This Saturday, he made $2.60 per pound for the highest paying quarter of beef. His steer weighed in at about 1,400 pounds.

“With the money I made on Saturday, with some of it I will by a new steer from a breeder. Maybe two,” he said.

Kidder learned most of what he knows about selling livestock from his fellow Junior Cattle Association members.

“The rest I know from experience,” he added.

The Kidders became involved into 4-H after visiting the fair four years ago.

“It was really cool, seeing the animals talking to the people. I wanted to do that,” Maria Kidder said.

The 4-H Livestock Auction at the 2006 Island County Fair was a big success, said Judy Feldman, Island County’s 4-H program coordinator.

“Just as we expected, the kids in our Market Animal Project performed like champs at our Island County Livestock Auction,” she added.

“Our sale was most definitely a success, but we won’t have the final numbers until later in the week. Prices were up, the bidding was lively, and everyone left happy,” Feldman said.

The 4-H’ers were true role models.

“They spend most of the year caring for these animals in a way that allows them to show the livestock with confidence in the ring – and yet they maintain an awareness of why that livestock is being raised,” Feldman said. “They understand that the steak in the grocery store isn’t created behind the counter, it’s grown out in the pasture.”

“It takes a lot of focus and maturity to reconcile care for their animals with the goal of providing safe, nutritious food for their community – I would wager that most of us adults couldn’t do it with the level of class that these kids do,” she said.