SENECA FALLS, N.Y. — They say cows have a mind of their own. Cooper Merrill knows this.

“Some days she’ll just be miserable out of her mind,” said Merrill, of Seneca Falls, of his cow, Lady Jane. “And some days she’ll walk like a puppy.”

Lady Jane has the face of a champion, and a handler that helps make her that way. In September, Cooper and his red and white Holstein won the Supreme Champion Heifer award at the All-American Dairy Show in Pennsylvania. 

“She happened to be one of the best of them,” he said.

Cooper began showing cows by himself at age four. For him, the Merrills, showing dairy cattle is a family tradition. Cooper’s sister Evelyn does it, his dad Shaun showed cows as a young boy and so did his parents.

“It’s really pretty special,” said Shaun Merrill, of his son's accomplishment.

Lady Jane has finished first in every event she was entered in this year. Ribbons are nice, but it’s more than that.

“The biggest thing is the teaching them the grit, the patience, the work ethic,” said Shaun. “And knowing that even when you do put all your hard work into things, sometimes it doesn't turn out the way you want. So what do you do in that situation?”

Cattle judges look for qualities like height, length and slenderness - all qualities Lady Jane possesses, qualities which make her a champ.

“You just want yourself to win because of all the hard work you’ve put in,” said Cooper. “She did pretty good, and I was very happy with how she did.”