Love for cows takes local woman to Royal Winter Fair

Catherine Reynolds | Nov 09, 2016

Teddy Brown has loved cows longer than she has known them.

Standing in a barn at the Royal Winter Fair in Toronto less than 18 hours before she is to represent Frontenac County in the 4-H Showmanship and Conformation class, she smiled when asked about the origins of her affection.

“I’ve always had a love and devotion to cows, without even petting them,” said the Elginburg native. “I think they’re good creatures that give so much to us. I just appreciate that. I don’t know why I love them, I just do.”

Unassuming and hardworking, Teddy is gaining national attention exhibiting her family’s superior line of Holsteins. Her accomplishments seem even more impressive when compared to her arrival in 2010 on the Frontenac County 4-H scene at age 16 when she bought her first calf. 

For the first year of 4-H, the girl and her calf were ranked at the bottom of every competition. After years of hard work and perseverance, she became a very accomplished showman, exhibiting some of the top heifers in Canada.

Now 22, Brown’s is enjoying her fifth and final year at the Royal Winter Fair at the 4-H competition; one of the biggest fairs in the world. In 2014, she won Reserve Grand Champion Calf at the TD 4-H Classic. In 2015, she won Grand Champion Calf at the TD 4-H Classic.  It was the highest 4-H accomplishment in Frontenac County in years.

This year, Brown plans to show the daughter of her winning cow from 2014.

“It’s neat to have the same family come back,” she said about her Calf Lily, who she was presenting on Nov. 8 in the Showmanship Class.

Poised to compete against the best cows and handlers in the Canada, Brown seems ready for the pressure.

“I feel good,” she replied when asked if she’s ready for the competition, which was starting a few hours later. “The cows have settled nicely and I’m not too nervous. I’m just trying to focus and get the job done.”

Brown calls this year’s fair bittersweet because it is the last time she can compete in 4-H, as she is at the age limit for 4-H.

“It’s pretty cool,” Brown noted about how far she has come in the short time she has been working with cows. “It’s not all me,” she said, “I’ve had some pretty knowledgeable and influential people in this industry who have helped me along and I’m thankful for their support.”

Some of those supporters include Brown's partner Adam Hunt along with her mother, Mary Pearson.

Laughing at the memory of those early years when she was trying to find a calf for her daughter and learn how to care for it, Pearson noted wryly, “I had never even touched a calf before that. I didn’t know anything about cows.”

A retired family doctor who owns a small farm in Frontenac County, Pearson said affectionately about the 16 cows at the family farm, “It’s like looking after little kids.”

The family got serious about cows in 2011 when they purchased a calf in the “Sale of Stars” at the Royal Winter Fair.

“We stared at her hour-after-hour, she was so beautiful,” said Pearson about the purchase of the family’s first show heifer, which they soon discovered came from Eilevale Farm in South Frontenac. 

Over the next few years, the family immersed themselves in the agricultural community in Frontenac County where Brown honed her skills as a master showman.

“Having a cow at the Royal Winter Fair is such a huge deal,” said Pearson who will be watching from a distance as her daughter competes in three classes over three days at the Royal Winter Fair this week.

“Teddy has upped the ante in this county,” said Pearson, “She’ll do her best to not do it badly.”

Focused on making the most of her last year at the most prestigious agricultural fair in Canada, Brown smiles when she talks about her future.

“I love the cows so much. I don’t see myself ever being away from them,” she said with a chuckle. “It’s weird, isn’t it? I don’t know why I love them, I just do.”