INDIANAPOLIS – Before she competed with her goats during the recent Indiana State Fair 4-H Grand Drive, Caroline Sullivan was hoping one would be named Grand Champion meat goat wether. She accomplished that and more, as another of her goats was named Reserve Grand Champion in the same event.

“It is just an unbelievable feeling,” Sullivan said. “My goal was to win Grand Champion but I never thought I would be able to win both. It’s very rare to win both at a state fair market show.”

The competition was Aug. 3 in the Corteva Coliseum at the fairgrounds.

Sullivan, of Hancock County, isn’t new to showing animals as she has competed at several national shows. This is her eighth year showing at the state and county fair.

She said she was nervous before the competition “because I knew all that could happen if everything went right. There were so many hours of work on the line and that made me very nervous. This year our goats were more chill about going to shows than ever for some reason. And, as long as they are together with another, they don’t freak out too much.”

Sullivan’s Grand Champion goat was named Valen, she said, because he had a perfect heart-shaped marking on the back of his neck. The Reserve Grand Champion was Panama. “They were both so sweet and hairy,” Sullivan said. “I loved that they had so much hair! It was unbelievable.”

Her parents were both in 4-H – her dad had projects but her mom showed cattle.

“My family has never raised goats before,” Sullivan noted. “I got started when I joined mini 4-H. My mom knew someone in the county that had a goat I could practice with and I loved it ever since.

“I also show sheep but this is only my third year showing sheep. My mom doesn’t love the sheep but I made a bet with her a few years ago and as long as I made it to the Coliseum with a goat that year, she told me I could get sheep. So, here we are.”

Sullivan’s family doesn’t have a farm, but they do have livestock at their house. She also has some cows but doesn’t show them. Sullivan is a junior at Fortune Academy and would like to attend Purdue University to become a veterinarian.

As for her Grand and Reserve Grand Champion wins, she offered a couple tips that led to her success:

“All I can say is that you have to be very consistent and make sure you watch all the details because everything matters from cleaning water buckets everyday to practicing walking and show-ring details.”

During the Grand Drive, 4-H members showed livestock of various species, weights and classes. The other Grand Champions were:

- meat goat wether dam: Spencer Goettemoeller, Randolph County

- market lamb: Gabrielle Route, Clinton County

- market barrow: Hadley Hendrickson, Randolph County

- beef heifer: Kiptyn Felton, Huntington County

- beef steer: Redmin Brumbaugh, DeKalb County

The other Reserve Grand Champions were:

- meat goat wether dam: Piper Unger, Sullivan County

- market lamb: Jack Huelsenbeck, Noble County

- market barrow: Ryder Lambright, LaGrange County

- beef heifer: Hogan Hendrickson, Randolph County

- beef steer: Piper Unger, Sullivan County