OWENSVILLE, Ohio — Clients of the Clermont County Board of Developmental Disabilities stepped into the show ring at the Clermont County Fair this week, paired one-on-one with local 4-H members for the annual “A Day in the Ring” event.
The program pairs individuals with developmental disabilities with 4-H members, who let their fair partners help show goats, rabbits, chickens and other project animals in Gibbons Arena on the fairgrounds, according to the Clermont County Board of Developmental Disabilities and Ohio State University Extension’s Clermont County 4-H program, which jointly host the event.
Unlike the fair’s regular species shows, “A Day in the Ring” isn’t judged for competition. A judge still walks the ring and offers pointers, but the goal is to give participants with special needs a chance to experience success in front of an audience while 4-H members put their own animal projects to use as mentors, according to the DD board.
“To say the 2026 ‘A Day in the Ring’ was a success is a definite understatement,” the DD board said in a Facebook post, adding that more photos from the event were still to come.
The pairing event has been part of fair week for years; the DD board’s own records show participants showing goats and cattle alongside 4-H mentors in Gibbons Arena as far back as 2018. This year’s fair runs through Aug. 1 at the fairgrounds on Locust Street in Owensville.
The DD board, which serves Clermont County residents with developmental disabilities, says its mission is to help the people it serves “expand capabilities and navigate the possibilities,” according to its website.
The information contained in this story was obtained from the Clermont County Board of Developmental Disabilities.