A lot of families overcomplicate showmanship practice. They think it has to take hours every night in the barn. The truth? Five focused minutes can change everything. The trick is knowing what to work on.

Quick Drills by Species

• Sheep & Market Goats: Practice setting up legs three times in a row. If you are working on a speady set, stay calm and steady throughout and maybe use the six-second setting system from my book. Focus most of all on the one thing your lamb isn’t best at wether that be bracing, going from a stop to a smooth walk or staying still. If they are really struggling in an area work on it three times and stop after three — better to end on a win than wear them out.
• Cattle: Walk a short lap, and try to walk them right into the perfect set without using your stick. If your calf isn’t walking well, never walk him alone, always have a second person there and never let him realize he can get away with being stuborn. Its more important to only walk him when you have the ability to get him going then to practice all the time by yourself teaching him he is stronger than you.
• Dairy Goats: Practice holding their head high, keeping them poised and square, like a dancer holding position. Try moving them in and out of lines if they get frustrated by walking. Or setting them up still if they tend to move around too much. Drill their weakest points and make it their strengths.
• Swine: Drive your pig in perfect lines, walking them along the shadow of a tree or a line you draw on the ground. This helps them to perfectly understand the signal differences between head control and turning, making clean turns with your stick. It also helps you to not overcorrect and you learn to perfect the signals you give so that you and your pig are on the same page nearly perfectly. End with brushing and lotioning them to keep things positive and their hide healthy. Never walk them too hot, wet them before walking if they are getting hot at all and keep practice possitive and as consistent as you can.

Why It Works

Five-minute drills train muscle memory without exhausting the animal or you. It also makes it easier to stay consistent. Every day builds on the last.

Don’t wait until you “have time” for a big practice session. You’ll miss more days than you realize. Instead, fit in quick drills daily. Over weeks and months, those five-minute investments turn into the smooth, polished showmanship judges love.

Showmanship concepts like these are the focus of my book series Show Your Way to the Top. If you want to continue to build your knowledge and master your showmanship skills these are resources that can help you take your skills up a level. I pour a lot of time and energy into every single book I write and they really are packed with what I wish I knew starting out.