Mrs Young has been involved with the Wanaka A&P Show pet parade for more than 30 years and says she has seen it all.
‘‘We’ve had a one-eyed rat, a stick insect, an invisible pet and had two girls lay on the ground spaced apart and had a pony jump over them.
‘‘We didn’t really have health and safety in those days, and definitely couldn’t do that now,’’ she said.
Mrs Young began as a steward for the pet parade in 1995, while Trevor Norman was marshall, and later took his position when he retired.
Now she is joined by her husband John, who has been involved in the show for 20 years, as steward, and daughter Melissa as a judge for 10.
Mrs Young said running the pet parade was a great time together.
‘‘It is so easy with people that you know.
‘‘John does all the physical stuff, I do the administration and Melissa now judges.’’
‘‘We need to respect the fact there is a lot of history here.
‘‘There is a lot of tradition in the show and that is really important to me and a lot of people who still help out,’’ she said.
An avid lover of all animals, and having owned 18 dogs throughout her life, Mrs Young said when judging, she looked for the child with the best relationship with their pet.
‘‘You can tell if its Granny’s dog or the neighbour’s dog, you can tell the kids that really do love their animals and look after them.
‘‘It’s not so much about what the animal is, it’s about the rapport with the child, how it’s groomed and how they look at each other,’’ she said.
‘‘If there is food involved, that can put the judges off a little bit.’’
The pet parade can be entered an hour before judging tomorrow morning at the pet parade ring.
Entry to the competition is $1 and is for children aged 15 and under.
There are 11 classes to enter: best pet lamb, goat, cow or alpaca, best pony, most unusual pet, best caged pet, Jack Russell, toy dog, sporting dog, Labrador, non-sporting dog, best pet and best in show.
The event awards prizes to all categories, the children get a lollipop and the dogs a biscuit and a goody bag from sponsor Vetlife.
Wanaka A&P Show marketing and communications lead Annabel Roy said there was a range of new offerings this year but also all the familiar favourites.
‘‘There are 49 food and drink vendors and 590 trade exhibitors set to attend the A&P show at the Wanaka Showgrounds and Pembroke Park over the two-day event,’’ she said.
The show was expected to host 40,000 attendees.
MetService is forecasting a high of 21°C today and a high of 19°C tomorrow.
Several schools in the Wanaka area have reminded parents that today is still a school day and children are expected to be present at school.
