Who Is Karis Dadson? The California Teen Behind the Viral ‘Icy Stare’

A 15-year-old girl from Paso Robles, California, has become a big TikTok star. Her name is Karis Dadson, and people love her serious stare during swine showmanship events.

A video of her from a show at the Mid-State Fair went viral this week. In the clip, Karis walks confidently into a livestock ring. She wears a red shirt, blue jeans, and a shiny belt buckle. Her blonde hair is tied up high. But what really caught everyone’s attention was her eyes. She stared straight ahead and didn’t blink. Her pig followed her every move.

That short video got over 27 million views on TikTok. People were amazed by how focused she looked. One person joked in the comments, “She threatened the judge into winning.” Others said they didn’t even know what a swine show was, but now they are fans.

Karis’s Life at Home and On the Farm

Karis is a sophomore at Atascadero High School. She has been showing pigs since she was four years old. Her first competitions were at the Paso Robles fairgrounds. Now, she travels across the country for events—in places like Arizona, Idaho, and Indiana.

She lives on Dadson Farms, which her parents own. The farm has eight show pigs, five sows, a boar, and a litter of piglets. Karis and her twin brother, Krew, help care for them every day. They feed, wash, walk, and clean up after the pigs. On hot days, they also turn on fans to keep the animals cool.

Her mother, Karalyn Dadson, used to show pigs too. She started the family’s TikTok page to help sell pigs, but didn’t expect it to go viral. Now the Dadson Farms TikTok account has more than 455,000 followers. Videos regularly hit over a million views.

Training for the Perfect Stare

The famous stare that made Karis popular didn’t happen by accident. Her mom taught her to keep strong eye contact during shows. Judges want to see that the handler is in control of the pig.

“I just ran with it,” Karis said. “Now I’m just used to being more intense.”

She practices every day and has now won 23 belt buckles from different competitions. She keeps them in her room or wears them to shows.

From Farm Girl to Internet Star

Karis says that the attention was hard at first. Strangers now ask for photos and autographs. Some people even dress like her for Halloween. Despite all this, Karis says she’s still focused on pigs and fair competitions.

She has also been invited to speak at FFA conferences and model for magazines like Domina Journal. Her story shows how social media can turn anyone into a star—even someone from a pig farm.

The Family’s Big Goal

Even with their fame, Karis and her family are focused on one thing: promoting the livestock industry. They want other young people to get excited about raising animals and learning hard work.

Her mom says their main goal is to show that farming teaches responsibility. “It’s very hard to keep animals healthy,” Karalyn said. “But it’s worth it.”