Harrisburg, PA – “Once you have 20 head, the next 20-30 don’t make a lot of difference,” noted veteran showman Dale Bendig.

Bendig and his wife, Deanna, owners of Spungold Holsteins, have been working the show circuit for more than 30 years. The phones rang as Dale and his crew of nine helpers began planning for the 2015 All-American Dairy Show in Harrisburg. The Bendigs are planning a near-repeat performance of last year, when the animals in the show string totaled 49.

“The challenge is showing 38 head in one day,” said Bendig. “We had 49 on the pack – 28 of them milking cows – and 38 of those showed in one day.”

It’s an effort that involves plenty of clipping, prepping and bagging. Everyone on the team has a job and knows what to do.

Coordinating the Show String

Bendig’s job is to orchestrate and manage, starting with writing down show times and bagging schedules. One person is assigned the job of bagging the animals on the string, Bendig emphasized. The job requires a watchful eye on the clock to ensure the bagging schedule is kept on time. That allows Dale to concentrate on getting cows ready and keeping things moving to the correct show ring – a necessity, since the show features five rings operating at any one time.

Feeding a show string of more than four dozen animals is a challenge where the success lies in the preparation. For the 2014 show, Dale and his crew set up the operation Thursday evening, loading a flatbed trailer with hay and two tons of the complete feed he uses as part of his show program.

Large square bales of hay receive individual necktags and are loaded on the trailer in order so that they’ll be fed in the proper order as well.

While the All-American boasts a world-class feed room with high quality feedstuffs, Dale prefers to pack lunch for his cattle.

“It scares me to death to not take my own hay,” Dale said. He takes comfort in knowing what is inside each of the bales he loads. Like most dairymen, Timothy is the hay of choice, with a few bales of grass mix thrown in for variety.

“Everyone – from cow to heifer – gets treated the same,” he said. “They get fed what we use for our show program.  It can be tough to get some cows used to the complete feed with beet pulp, but that is what we feed.”

Years of Success

Dale and Deanna operate a 79-acre farm with a herd of 120 cows, 65 of which are milking. Spungold is also home to a few boarded cows as well as cows owned through partnerships. Focusing on cow care and housing cattle for others has created a unique farming operation for the Bendigs.

Dale started showing at age 18 and now has more than three decades logged on the tanbark trail. The All-American has been a favorite exhibition in part because showing at Harrisburg is a little easier than taking a load of 38 cows to Madison. Harrisburg is just an hour away according to Deanna. Although she stays home to keep the rest of the herd at home healthy and milking, she makes the trek to Harrisburg daily, bringing along anything that was forgotten.

Over the years, Dale and his crew have worked with and presented many famous cows.  Perhaps the most famous addition to the Spungold show string was Old Mill E Snickerdoodle OCS, who was an eight-time All-American nominated cow, and won six Grand Champion titles at World Dairy Expo as well as Supreme Champion in 2003.

From the time she was a 2-year-old, the Bendigs took her to the shows. Deanna was the main leadsman for Snickerdoodle. Deanna chuckled as she recalled how the famous Brown Swiss cow would pout and miss her owner Allen Bassler. According to Dale and Deanna, Snickerdoodle was all about the show, and she would eat, fill, make milk, and then turn on the charm as she strolled into the show ring.

“Snickerdoodle made us extremely successful. She had a game on attitude for show day,” Dale said. He also noted that one year he had to challenge a visitor who was pulling hair from Snickerdoodle’s tail.

Times have changed in 31 years. Dale now installs a vacuum line right on the pack making milking easier and faster. Bedding heifers has changed – now, using only shavings keeps the young stock looking good and clean.

Still, sometimes old school is best. Dale likes keeping a low water trough for watering heifers.  He notes how the heifers prefer not having their eyes below the top of a bucket – drinking from a pool of water is preferable.

Many Hands Make Light Work

Success of the Spungold herd hinges on many hands in many places. In particular, Dale credits friends Cory and Roy Thompson as long-time crew members whose help is essential to maintaining the success of his show strings.

When asked about managing the crew and traveling on to national shows, Dale was quick to point out that you have to stop the drama fast.

All animals are treated equal under the Bendigs – even Snickerdoodle received no special treatment. Having Snickerdoodle and her top competitor on the same pack made it interesting, but each animal was given as much care and attention as she needed.

Check-in at Harrisburg is the greatest challenge – a full Saturday’s work for 49 head in six different breeds, including checking in individual animals, registering for group classes and keeping track of the show numbers and records is an undertaking in itself. In recent years Cindy Rutter has helped Dale check in several breeds, heeding Dale’s philosophy of “one breed at a time.”

The Bendigs noted the benefits of having a crew cook, mentioning that keeping the crew fed and happy is a priority for getting chores done well. Last year, one family’s smoker grill was a great addition for the 49-cow string, freeing up time otherwise spent leaving the complex to grab dinner. Instead, the crew could stroll through the barns and visit other exhibitors.

Reflecting on the All-American

“Harrisburg is a great show. The good cows are there,” Dale mused during a pause in his planning and preparation for the All-American. “They have always been there.” It’s also rewarding in more ways than one to raise the best animal at the All-American.

“Having the best bred and owned at Harrisburg is pretty cool,” he added. The bragging rights are worth it, and so is the prize – use of an EBY trailer for an entire year.

Dale has advice for dairy enthusiasts and exhibitors at the show, whether they pack six feed tubs or 30: take the opportunity to meet new people and visit with exhibitors and sponsors.

“Talk to everybody. They will remember you later,” Dale noted.

“If a young person wants to show at a big national show, the best bet is for them to visit the shows first, get a feel for the intensity and atmosphere, then plan on participating the next year.”

The Spungold show string will be set up in their usual spot, the back aisle of Barn E – the Equine Barn. Stop by, witness the madness and take a moment to talk to veteran showman Dale Bendig.

The All-American Dairy Show features 22 shows in six days in addition to the nation’s only all-dairy antiques show. Last year’s show featured nearly 2,800 animals and more than 1,300 exhibitors from across the nation. For more information, visit www.allamerican.state.pa.us.