Five years ago, Jasmine Shields hadn't been near a farm animal, other than at shows and petting zoos.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Fast-forward to 2019 and the Year 12 Queanbeyan High School student is the toast of the agriculture world.
At the Royal Adelaide Show last week, Jasmine won the National Angora Goat and Mohair Fleece judging competition, and the Angora Goat Paraders competition.
Her effort is made even more creditable by the fact that she lives in East Queanbeyan, not on a property riddled with cattle and sheep and goats as you would likely expect.
Jasmine's interest in all things farm animal was sparked in Year 8 when former QHS Agriculture teacher, Mitch Andrew, asked her if she wanted to lead a heifer during a show team lesson.
She did it, and was hooked. She and Mr Andrew discovered she was a natural.
"Straight away it made me want to join the show team, which I've been a member of since," Jasmine said.
"When I was young I wanted to be a vet, so I suppose I've always been good with animals."
The 17-year-old is studying, unsurprisingly, agriculture and primary industries, but also adds sports coaching and sport lifestyle and recreation to her bow.
She will earn a Certificate II in Agriculture by the time she finishes school this year. She eventually hopes to study for a degree in Agricultural Science.
Jasmine said stock handling involves parading animals around an arena under control.
"You are given an animal you don't know at all, so you have to be confident with the animal and in yourself.
"You generally get a very short time to get to know them before you parade with them.
"In the judging competition, you have to judge four animals and four fleeces, describe how you did it and explain why you have placed them as you did.
"Judging is the more difficult task. There are so many things you have to know about animal traits and breeding, and fleece quality."
Jasmine said she had gained an enormous amount of experience from working with friend and mentor, Debbie Scattergood, at Debbie's farm in Bungendore.
She works there every weekend, feeding poddy kids, mustering animals and preparing them for shows.
Jasmine received sponsorship to fly to Adelaide, but as she needed a chaperone her father, Jamie, raised money by running barbecues at his work so he could accompany her.
