Journey’s nickname is Dino, then there’s Lady of Tice, whose nickname is Trace, and then there’s Heart, who goes by her registered name.
These are the names of the registered Hereford heifers Michaela Roth and her husband Alex show at fairs and cattle shows throughout the region. The endeavor is one of community and relationship: Many of the people who show cattle regularly see each other at shows throughout the year and are friends because of it, forming a community of camaraderie over their shared passion. And the love each person has for their cattle is evident in the way they talk to and about them, and in the ways they care for them.
Michaela says each animal has her own personality: One of her heifers is lovey dovey, one is calm, and one has bonded with her husband.
“Every single one of them have a different attitude,” Michaela says. “Kind of like people, we’re all different, so they’re all different. All three of those heifers have different things that they like, they don’t like and just how they tolerate things — they’re all different. And [it’s all about] just picking up on those cues and knowing how to interact with each one based off of that and just building that relationship.”
Both in FFA and 4-H, Michaela and Alex met while showing cattle at the SEMO District Fair in high school, at the FFA Barn. After graduating from Meadow Heights High School, Michaela attended Mineral Area College and Missouri State University, where she studied animal science and agriculture communications. Now, she works for the Cape County Soil and Water Conservation District in Jackson. She and Alex operate their farm with Alex’s parents in Altenburg, Mo., baling hay in addition to raising cattle. They have two daughters, who also show heifers with them.
On the day of a show, Michaela and her family get to the SEMO District Fair at 4:30 a.m. They get the heifers up, wash them and blow them out so they’re dry. They feed and water them and then relax until it’s time to get the heifers back up again to put their show halters on, blow them out to get all of the wood shavings from their bed off of them, spray and comb them.
In the ring, Michaela uses the show stick to move a cow’s feet and to scratch them, which helps them to calm down during the show. Twisting their tail a little bit to one side or the other helps get the heifer to move and can help them to turn in a certain direction. Michaela says communicating with the heifers in this way is important, especially in the ring; if one of her heifers is nervous, she will also talk to her while in the ring, to help her calm down.
This benefits not only the heifers, but also Michaela.
“It also helps me calm down, ‘cause I get a little bit worked up, and that can also translate to them, too,” Michaela says. “So just talking and trying to de-escalate both of us, bring us back down to normal [is what I do].”
In the ring, the judge judges a cow based on what they are designed to do and how well their body has the capacity to do that. So, for example, cows like Herefords that are raised for beef are judged on soundness and structural correctness or how they walk and move, a large part of a cow’s score. They are also judged on proportion, muscling and femininity. Each judge can have different preferences for what they look for in a prize winner.
This year, Michaela and Alex showed their heifers at a prospect show at Altenburg, at the Farmington Fair, the Missouri State Fair, the SEMO District Fair and the East Perry Fair and in Germantown, Tenn. Throughout the season, their heifers won first through fourth places in their class, as well as Reserve Division. At Farmington, Dino won Supreme Champion, the highest award at a show. To win this award, a heifer must win first place in their class and then move on to win first place in their division and then be shown against the heifer division winners of all breeds.
But the work for showing their heifers doesn’t just happen on the day of events; it requires work each day of the year. Michaela spends time in the barn with the heifers each day, washing and caring for them. She and her husband work together to select the heifers they will show from their herd of 40 to 50 cows.
Even though it requires much work on a daily basis, for Michaela, it is restful.
“It’s kind of like my safe haven, in a sense. If I can go to the barn and just spend time and wash [the heifers] and just be there, it lowers my stress a little bit from everything else, and I can just kind of calm down a little bit,” Michaela says. “It’s always kind of been that way. If I could be in a barn doing this everyday [full-time], I would be.”
Michaela says raising and showing cattle teaches her daughters about life and death and that sometimes, things don’t work out the way one wants them to. She says it also helps them to be more well-rounded and learn how to help others, how to be a good loser, and how to be a part of a community. She is excited they want to be involved with it, and says as they grow, they will have the freedom to choose to continue with the pastime or not.
Michaela herself comes from a long line of farmers who raise cattle. Her mother, Carol Haley of Sedgewickville, Mo., celebrated her 55th year showing at the SEMO District Fair in 2025. And Carol’s father — Michaela’s grandfather — also raised and showed cattle for more than 50 years. Carol says Michaela was out in the ring with her and Carol’s husband Mike showing cattle from the time Michaela was 2 or 3 years old; she’s glad Michaela is continuing that love for cows and hopes her granddaughters will also continue the family tradition.
“I just like them,” Carol says of cows. “I like raising them, I like seeing the calves being born, I like where we can raise them and sell them to other people for them to make a good herd for theirselves.”
Carol shows registered Charolais. Her cows’ names are Keystone, Vegas, Maddie, Tonka and Mercy Me. This year, they have won Reserve, Grand Champion and Supreme awards.
From a city, Carol’s husband Mike — Michaela’s father — started showing cows with Carol after he met her. Now, he has been showing cows for approximately 30 years and says he enjoys meeting new people through it.
“You either like it or you don’t, there ain’t no in-between,” Mike says of showing cows. “You just love it or you don’t. It’s a lot of work. A lot of work. At home and at the fairs. And it’s expensive. But Michaela’s doing it and packing two kids, too. So, you know.”
Michaela is grateful for the legacy of this pastime from her family; it has shaped who she is today. She hopes to shape it for the future, too.
“It kind of basically taught me the value of hard work and respect and being able to handle different situations and being OK with stuff that happens,” Michaela says. “Just being able to pass that down to [my daughters is important to me] and hoping to make a difference and leave it better than whenever I came in.”
Know the Lingo
If you’re wondering about the nuances of cattle language, here’s your guide:
Cattle: A group of bovines that can include both males and females.
Cow: A female bovine that has given birth at least one time.
Heifer: A young female bovine that has not given birth.
Steer: A young male bovine that has been castrated.
Bull: A mature male bovine that is fertile.
Calf: A young bovine in its first year of life.
Hereford: A beef cattle breed with English origins characterized by red coats and white faces.
Charolais: A beef cattle breed with French origins characterized by white or cream-colored coats.
Angus: A beef cattle breed with Scottish origins characterized by black coats.
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