At 98, Iowa man still shows pigs at Clay County Fair

MANSON, Iowa – Of all the open class hog shows that Don Haupts has shown at, the Clay County Fair Show, in Spencer, Iowa, is the best ever, he says.

And Haupts should know. At age 98, the 2025 Clay County Fair open class swine show will mark his 53rd consecutive year of exhibiting his Durocs and spots.

During his tenure at the Clay County Fair, Haupts has earned 48 trophies in what he refers to as “his hobby.” He tends to the hogs at least once a day, but many times twice and in hot weather, Haupts will be on the farm three times a day.

When his boys were young, they started showing in junior shows as part of 4-H. They showed in Calhoun County, at the Iowa State Fair, and then decided to try the Clay County Fair.

“I have a lot of good things to say about the Clay County Fair. The facilities are great and the fair board is very good to work with. We have never had a complaint,” said Haupts, who started showing at the Clay County Fair when he was 45.

The “boys” Haupts refers to are among his six children that includes a daughter in Des Moines, and his five sons who reside in Des Moines, Florida and Manson, Iowa. The three oldest are retired. He also has 18 grandchildren and 18 great grandchildren.

“The boys are still in it. It’s in their blood and they like to still do it,” he said.

Son, Bob, who retired from Elanco, and son, Bill, who lives in Florida, line up what genetics they breed. They do artificial insemination.

Haupts works with partner, Andy Hock, to complete the farrowing process. In the spring, the pigs are moved to Haupts’s farm northeast of Manson.

“I have 19 head of hogs at the farm, and eight get to go to the fair,” he said.

He looks for maternal characteristic, not the “normal” of the show, he said. They weigh roughly 280 pounds when they go to the fair. While Durocs and spots are what they show now, they’ve had other breeds.

“But on a small scale we can’t have them all,” Haupts said.

The swine are taken to the Clay County Fair Friday, the show is on Saturday and the animals are released on Tuesday. This year’s fair runs Sept. 6-14 in Spencer, Iowa.

“We used to sell a lot of swine, but times have changed,” he said. “We don’t have the farmers buying boars much.”

Most of his stock is for sale at the fair, and if they have a champion boar, it’s apt to sell.

Their show days at the Clay County Fair peaked in the early 1980s when they brought 26 head and came home with an empty trailer, having sold them all. In 1998, hogs prices were cheap and farmer’s didn’t raise them any more, so the Haupts lost their sale potential.

They were still successful with the hardware. In 2008 the family collected four trophies.

Born and raised in Manson, Haupts graduated in 1944, served in the Navy as a medic and was discharged in 1946. He married when he was 27 and lived on the home farm but built a house in town. The couple sold it to buy the farm.

Haupts resided on his home farm 47 years. After the death of his wife in 2005, Haupts moved to town to avoid having to keep the tractor plugged in for moving snow.

The most hogs the family ever raised was 500 in a year.

“Today, that is just a drop in the bucket,” Haupts said.

They also fed 25 head of cattle for three or four years but dropped that venture and went into purebred hogs. Haupts also farmed crop ground that included corn, soybeans, oats and alfalfa and worked for the Hormel Company for almost 28 years. They raised chickens and ducks on the farm, too.

Haupts said showing livestock is great for kids and had this advice: “Always be honest about what you are showing, and take good care of your animals.”

He has seen many changes at the fair, including more modern equipment and technology. The biggest change is in the show ring is how the pigs have changed in style, he said.

“We have gone to a more show pig type,” Haupts added.

Being in good health, he plants to raise and show hogs as long as he can.

He enjoys walking the fairgrounds, meeting old friends and making new friends.

“It’s so comfortable in the barn,” he said. “People come through and reminisce about buying our hogs in the past.”

In between tending his swine, Haupts still does carpenter work and is a member of the American Legion Honor Guard and the Knights of Columbus.

“I don’t take on big projects but I like doing small repair jobs,” he added.

If you get to the Clay County Fair, Haupts can be found in the northeast corner of the swine barn, where he has been for the past 52 years.

“I always get the same spot. It’s seniority, you know,” he said.