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By Bill Van Tassel
TURNER — Reeve Twitchell, an eighth-grader at Tripp Middle School, and his Holstein calf Paddy won first and second-place prizes at the Eastern States agricultural fair in Springfield, Mass., last month.
Reeve, 13, the son of Matt and Michelle Twitchell, won first place with 10-month Paddy, in the 4-H (for those 12 to 19 years old) category and came in second in the open division at New England’s biggest fair, known as the Big E.
Reeve comes from a family of farmers on Upper Street in Turner and says he’s always had a leaning toward dairy farming. With encouragement from his father, who grew up on the farm, Reeve began training with dairy cows about three years ago.
His training was under the eye of Betsty Bullard, daughter of Upper Street dairy farmers Steve and Mary Briggs, of Brigeen Farms.
This past year Reeve began working with two young winter calves leased from Brigeen Farms, Paddy and Ginger. A trainer works with the animals about two to three hours a week, grooming, washing, and teaching them to follow commands, as well as getting used to each other’s personalities.
In preparation for the Big E, Reeve showed the animals at the Windsor, Topsham and Ossipee fairs, learning what judges look for. Besides the relationship between animal and handler, the judges also look at the physical attributes of the calves and the quality of the grooming. Dairy cows, which are bred for milking and used to free roaming in grassy fields, must get used to being haltered in their movement by the handler.
Reeve said he enjoyed picking out the young calves, then seeing the progress Paddy made over theeight or nine months of training. And then, “to actually find yourself wining such a big prize,” was a thrill.
He gives major kudos to his trainer, Betsy Bullard, her husband, Jim, and Steve and Mary Briggs for all their help.
The Briggs family has been in dairy farming since 1777, and their website has an old farm saying, “If you take care of the cow, she will take care of you,” as well as, “Cow comfort and care is job number one.” Those lessons were likely ones Reeve absorbed as he trained his calves.
Bullard, an 11th generation farmer, said, “There is a definite sense of satisfaction when lessons imparted over a period of time come together with hard work and determination. Both Reeve and Paddy had their ‘I get it’ moment at the same time at Eastern States and it turned out fabulously for them. We are very proud of them.”
The huge size of the Big E offered some more learning opportunities for Reeve.
“All the people involved with the animals know so much more about everything,” he said. “It’s a great learning experience to have to get up so early every morning or the competition to make sure your animal is looking its best.”
Reeve also plays football, basketball and competes in track and field in addition to his studies and 4-H activities.
