Polk County News
Polk County Itemizer-Observer • August 16, 2017 3A
Trust is key in cat show
By Emily Mentzer
The Itemizer-Observer
RICKREALL — Rose started out a stray
cat, heading toward being euthanized, when
she found Tiffany Clark’s family.
“She kind of adopted our family,” said
Clark, 17. “So now she’s my cat, and she’s re-
ally fun to have around.”
Clark, an experienced showman when it
comes to dairy goats, market lambs, rabbits
and poultry, was talked into showing Rose at
the Polk County Fair’s cat show. She got re-
serve champion for her mink coon kitty,
Rose.
Not bad for a stray, and Clark’s first time
showing cats.
Monica Szczepanski, 17, won grand
champion showing her cat, Snickers.
“Having a good connection with your cat
is first of all,” she said. “I got my cat when
she was about 7 weeks old, and she’s been
my favorite cat ever since. She’s one of the
sweetest cats I’ve ever had. She’s always
wanting love, no matter what. She’s never
been mean at all.”
Getting the cat to trust you is also impor-
tant, Szczepanski said.
“She has a good connection with me,” she
said.
This was also Szczepanski’s first year
showing cats, but her older siblings had
shown cats for years, so helped her with tips.
Molly Burger, 14, won intermediate
champion with her cat, Hobbs.
She agrees that trust is No. 1 in showing
cats.
“He has to be in really good health,” she
added. “He has to be groomed, free of para-
sites. You have to make sure your cat isn’t
too creeped out or he could injure himself —
or you.”
Burger has no problems manhandling
Hobbs.
“He’s very relaxed,” she said. “I can do al-
most anything with him. He’s very lovey and
really playful.”
Clark noted that the cat’s temperament
matters when it comes to showing felines.
“With (Rose), she’s not around other cats,
so being around the other cats on the show
table was a little nervous for her, so she was
hissing, but she kept herself really collected
under the pressure,” Clark said. “Her har-
ness, she doesn’t like either, so she was try-
ing to step out of it.”
The relationship Clark has built with Rose
enabled Clark to help calm the kitty, she
said.
“If your animal gets too stressed, if you
hold them, your heartbeat against them will
calm them,” Clark said. “When (Rose) starts
purring, that’s how I know she’s relaxed.”
Purring isn’t always a sign of a relaxed cat.
Virginia Anderson, 12, struggled to get her
black and white tuxedo cat, Druzy, to be-
have on the show table.
“She purrs and meows at the same time,”
Anderson said, holding Druzy close between
competitions.
JOLENE GUZMAN/ Itemizer-Observer
Brylie Emigh, 8 months, sits atop her dad, Matt Emigh, before the Polk County
Fair’s Beautiful Baby Contest on Saturday morning.
Beautiful baby runs in family
By Jolene Guzman
The Itemizer-Observer
EMILY MENTZER/ Itemizer-Observer
Monica Szczepanski presents her cat, Snickers, to the judge on Thursday morning at
the Polk County Fair. Snickers and Monica won grand champion.
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RICKREALL — Brylie
Emigh is only 8 months old,
but is already carrying on a
family tradition.
Brylie has bright blue
eyes, an infectious smile
and is dressed in overalls, a
flowery head band — and
has a fascination with her
father’s sunglasses.
Waiting patiently in the
arms of her dad, Matt
Emigh, of Dallas, she’s
about to go in front of the
judges in the Beautiful Baby
Contest at the Polk County
Fair Saturday.
While called the Beauti-
ful Baby Contest, the
judges aren’t actually look-
ing for the prettiest child,
but the top three in a host
of categories, like “Bluest
Eyes,” and “Best Dressed.”
Not that he remembers,
but Matt had been in the
same place as his daughter
back in 1990. He was only
10 months old at the time,
so he doesn’t know much
about the contest, but he
did win in a category.
“I don’t remember
which,” he said. “I just have
a picture.”
Matt and his wife, Lind-
say, thought it would be fun
to see if Brylie could follow
in her father’s footsteps.
“I was excited,” Lindsay
said. “He wanted her to win
so I could brag about both
of them.”
Lindsay, who also grew
up in Dallas, said she would
come to the contest with her
family every year. She said
the category she thought
Brylie was most likely to
place was “Most Looks Like
D a d ” o r m a y b e “ B e st
Smile.” Seeing the resem-
blance between dad and
daughter, you understand
where she gets her opinion
on the former.
So did the judges, an-
nouncing Brylie as one of
the top three in that catego-
ry.
Daddy was all smiles
walking up with Brylie to get
her ribbon to add to the
family’s collection
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