Guinea pigs are a popular animal in the Pocket Pets class.

Guinea pigs are a popular animal in the Pocket Pets class.
By NANCY TULLIS
VINDICATOR SALEM BUREAU
LISBON -- Samuel Johnson's hermit crab is known for breaking pencils and lifting a metal ruler or a roll of tape in Beaver Schools' seventh-grade classrooms.
"Hermie" is now among the Pocket Pet exhibits this week at the Columbiana County Fair, where 21 entries are tucked away at the rear of the government building.
Samuel, 14, and his cousin, Montana Virden, both of Rogers, are first-time exhibitors at the fair, showing animals in the Pocket Pets category. 4-H officials are happy with the response from Pocket Pets exhibitors, a new category of the junior fair.
Julie Herron, county 4-H director, said Pocket Pets has been a popular category at other fairs, but this is the first year it has been offered to Columbiana County participants.
"They might not have room in the back yard for a horse or goat or even a rabbit, but they can have a hamster, or a parakeet or a goldfish in their bedroom," she said. "This is a chance for a lot of children to experience the fair with a project that is fairly easy for a beginner."
Open-class event
She said Pocket Pets is an open-class event, meaning exhibitors don't have to be 4-H members to participate. She said that next year, Pocket Pets will likely be offered in both 4-H and open classes.
Guinea pigs proved to be the most popular pets among entrants, who also brought turtles, birds, mice, hamsters and even tropical pets to show. Pocket Pets judging is at 5 p.m. Friday.
Montana said she is having fun with her guinea pigs Seeka and Brownie. She also brought a jar full of guppies. The fishes' tiny offspring may be among the smallest of fair exhibits.
Other pets
Besides Hermie, Samuel is also showing a guinea pig named Nibbles and a dwarf hamster named Roy. Roy, about half the size of average hamster, is content to sit comfortably in the center of Samuel's palm and nibble on sunflower seeds, his favorite treat.
Samuel said he has been a member of Steppin' Out Riders 4-H Club for two years, but this is the first year he's been a fair exhibitor.
"You have to give hamsters and guinea pigs wood to chew on because if you don't, their teeth will grow right down through their jaw and kill them," he said. He said they also learned from other fair exhibitors that pine rather than cedar wood chips should be used as a liner for guinea pig cages because cedar can make guinea pigs sick.
Samuel said the family's pets at the fair are just a few of the menagerie at home, where there are "100 chickens, plus peeps; six goats, two dogs, two horses, six cows, three pot-bellied pigs and 'a herd' of guinea pigs."
Doris Johnson is Samuel and Montana's grandmother. She and Samuel's mother, Marjorie Case, and friend Amy Black of Lisbon volunteered to be the Pocket Pets committee. Each fair exhibitor's category is overseen by a committee, which is required before entrants can participate in that category.
Johnson said she was glad to volunteer. She said her children and now her grandchildren are participating in 4-H.
"I love 4-H," she said. "It is great for the kids, and they learn so much. They have fun, and they take a lot of pride in their projects."
tullis@vindy.com