Raised in the Ring: Makayla Massey's Unique Farewell to High School

On May 31st, high school seniors in our community will be dressed in their caps and gowns to walk the graduation line and receive their high school diplomas, while one South Laurel High School senior will be walking out into the show ring.

Makayla Massey’s graduation day will be a graduation day like no other, as she will be spending the day doing what she loves—showing livestock.

Makayla’s dedication and passion for livestock is deeply rooted in her upbringing. As the 18-year-old daughter of Dr. Joey Massey, veterinarian and owner of Noah’s Ark Animal Hospital, and Melissa Massey, Makayla has been surrounded by animals all her life. Her parents' vocation and lifestyle have undoubtedly influenced her love for animals.

The Massey family owns 500 acres of farmland throughout the county and has 150 cattle, as well as some horses and other livestock on their farmland. At home, the Masseys also have several dogs and cats, something that Melissa said just comes along with her husband’s job as a veterinarian.

Growing up, both Melissa and Joey showed cattle at the county fair level.

“I didn’t want to show much beyond that, but now Joey, if he had had the means, he would have probably shown nationally,” Melissa said. “He has sort of seen his dreams come true through Makayla.”

Because of her family’s background, Makayla’s journey with livestock began at an early age. Her father had dreams of Makayla showing cattle from the moment she began to walk, but Melissa wasn’t quite ready for that.

“I wasn’t sure about putting her in front of this large animal, so I said, ‘let’s start out with something a little smaller, let’s get a goat and then we’ll see where it goes from there.’”

For her third birthday, Makayla received a goat she aptly named “Baa” to show at the county fair. She continued showing goats for a couple years until she turned five years old when she got her first heifer to show.

“We had one little show heifer named Pamela; Makayla was very attached to Pamela, and Pamela was very attached to Makayla. We drove all the way to Amarillo, Texas and spent a week there and showed cattle and that was the start of it.”

Since then, Makayla and her family have traveled all over the country to show cattle, showing livestock in over 15 different states across the country from county fairs to national shows, something that requires a lot of preparation throughout the year, a lot of money and a lot of miles on the road.

Because of all the time, money and energy that goes into it, Melissa said one of the stipulations for Makayla to show livestock is that she must do all the work to care for the animals and prepare them for a show.

“We never wanted to her to be one those kids who have never had to work with them and just showed them,” Melissa said. “Me as a mother, I have two children, they are my responsibility. These cattle, for Makayla, are essentially her children—they rely on her to eat, they rely on her for water, they rely on her to give them a bath.”

When Makayla was younger, the Massey family hired some college kids to help teach Makayla how to care for the show cattle and by middle school she was doing it all on her own.

“I think a lot of people say ‘oh, she just shows cattle,’ but I don’t think they realize all the work that goes into that,” Melissa said. “Showing cattle is everything to her, I mean, she eats, sleeps and breathes it.”

When she isn’t in the show ring, Makayla is meticulously caring for her show cattle in the barn. Her routine includes waking up bright and early each morning to feed her cattle before school, bathing and drying the cattle, cleaning their stalls, practicing for shows and so much more.

“It’s a lot,” Makayla said. “Any type of farmwork is harder than people expect.”

The evidence of Makayla’s hard work is proudly displayed all throughout the Massey family’s home, with banners, trophies and photos of Makayla and her show cattle taking up shelves and wall space in several rooms of their home.

Though the show cattle season picks up in the summer, Makayla competes in shows all throughout the year, meaning that Makayla misses a lot of school, but Melissa said she has never had to worry about Makayla keeping up with her assignments or having bad grades in school.

“We have always told Makayla that in order to show cattle, she has to have good grades,” Melissa said. “If you don’t make good grades, you don’t show cattle. But we’ve never had an issue. School has always come easy to her.”

All her senior year, Makayla has been doing co-op where she only takes three classes on the school’s campus and then spends the rest of her day working at the vet clinic with her father, as well as caring for her cattle. Makayla’s work ethic isn’t common for someone her age, something that Melissa said makes her and her husband extremely proud.



“The responsibility and the work ethic she has is going to stay with her for the rest of her life.”

The relationships Makayla has built over the years because of showing livestock is likely one of her aspects of being a part of this livestock show world. Makayla has had the opportunity to meet people from all over the country, befriending people who have encouraged her to begin showing pigs, something she started doing more recently. It is also where Makayla met her boyfriend, Grant Helsinger, who will be moving to London soon to help her family on the farm.

Looking towards the future, Makayla plans to continue showing livestock until she has “aged out” of the competitions, which is at 21 years old, and hopes to continue taking home awards until that time comes.

Following graduation, Makayla will begin taking online business classes through Somerset Community College and has goals of someday raising and selling cattle of her own, passing on her expertise and passion to others. She also has plans of one day taking over her father’s vet clinic as office manager.

Makayla’s journey reflects the support she receives from her family, as her parents have been instrumental in her success by dedicating their time, money and energy to helping Makayla reach her dreams.

“I wouldn’t be able to do any of it without them.”

Makayla’s eight-year-old brother Cole, who has cerebral palsy, is likely his sister’s biggest supporter when Makayla is in the show ring.

“He loves watching his sister show cattle when he does go,” Melissa said, noting that due to Cole’s disability, he cannot attend every show of Makayla’s. “He knows whether I tell him she’s coming in the ring or not that she’s in the ring, he will start pointing at her and get excited.”

So, as graduation day approaches, while most of her peers will be preparing their speeches, picking out their outfits and planning to celebrate the culmination of their high school years, Makayla will be preparing for the show ring, exemplifying the fruits of her labor and the depth of her passion.