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Alabama 4-H project hatches superstar
by James Shropshire
Howdy!
The end of summer has been a tremendous time for Alabama 4-H and Alabama’s
young people. We have held a wide array of youth livestock events, events
for children of the National Guard and Reserves, and a whole host of other
programs.
Montgomery
was the site of two major horse events this past month. We hosted the
State 4-H Horse Show with 300 4-Hers and the Southeast 4-H Horse Show with
500 young people from throughout the southern United States. What a great
nine days for the equine world! Alabama youth made a large splash in the
total placings throughout the competition.
How fast the
summer passed! School is back in gear, and we parents have been busy
buying school supplies. |
Annabelle, a Rhode Island Red hen, is launching her acting career with Subway™’s national ad campaign for their new Chicken Cordon Blue Sandwich. Amber Burns, 17, of Clanton, is Annabelle’s proud owner. |
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A
new year starts with new hopes and with much anxiety for kids and parents.
It’s tougher than ever to be a kid, so please remember to be supportive
and encouraging for your kids. |
The Coosa County Forestry Team won the state Senior Forestry Competition and went on to win first place in the National Competition. The Forestry Team (from left to right) is Roger Vines (CEC and Team Coach), Anna Vines, Elijah Phillips, Samuel Cordner, Justin Glover and Doug McConnell (County Forester and Assistant Coach). Sam Cordner placed 1st in overall Individual High Score and Anna Vines placed 2nd. |
Our
4-H year is starting with many in-class and after-school programs. We are
also fortunate to have special interest clubs, directed by a great group
of caring volunteers. Do you have a special interest or hobby? Maybe you
are interested in public speaking, golf or even raising emus. Through 4-H,
you can help start an interest club and be a mentor to a group of kids in
your community. Our future is in our children’s hands, help us prepare
them!
We
do have a new national super star from Alabama–Annabelle! She happens to
be a 4-H project that is on SubwayTM’s national ad campaign. The ad will
be introducing a new Chicken Cordon Blue Sandwich. Annabelle is a Rhode
Island Red hen that belongs to Amber Burns, 17, from Clanton. |
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I
apologize for not being able to provide a list of our State 4-H Contest
winners, but a certain bad boy, hurricane Dennis, showed up on the days we
were to have the competitions. I’ll list State winners for you next
month. |
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Congratulations
to Coosa County – again! Roger Vines and company won both the Senior
Forestry and Wildlife Competitions here in Alabama and then went on to
Nationals and "showed out." The Forestry team was number one in
the nation, and the Wildlife team was number two. What a great experience
for the youth of Coosa!! They make all of Alabama proud.
Leading
With Character
Last
month, I began a series of observations on the "Six Pillars of
Character: Trustworthiness, Respect, Responsibility, Fairness, Caring, and
Citizenship." Showing Character through Alabama 4-H Animal Science
Projects will give us some ideas how livestock can develop young men and
women. |
The Coosa County Wildlife Team won the state Senior Wildlife Competition and went on to win second in the National Competition. The Wildlife Team (from left to right) is Joel Glover (Wildlife Biologist and Assistant Coach), Jimmy Mitchell, Justin Glover, James Mooney, Carey Phillips, Roger Vines (CEC and Team Coach). Carey Phillips placed 7th overall for individual and Justin Glover placed 10th. |
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RESPECT
How
would you define or describe respect? What does it mean to you? How is
respect something that you learn and practice through your Alabama 4-H
livestock projects?
One
definition of respect is showing courtesy and proper treatment of people
and things. The things should include your 4-H animals. Take a moment to
answer the following questions:
1.
Do you handle your animals properly and treat them humanely?
2.
Do you realize that your 4-H animals depend on you for daily feed, water,
and care?
3.
Do you listen to and follow the advice of advisors and professionals?
4.
Do you believe that consumers and other people not involved in livestock
production should expect you to take proper care of your animals?
If
you answered yes to these questions, you are practicing the Character
Pillar of Respect. Respect should be shown to your animals, to other 4-H
members, to your county extension staff and to the public, just to name a
few.
When
you handle your animals properly, treat them humanely, and take care of
them daily, you are showing respect for the animals. Handling animals
properly will help prevent stress on both you and your animals and will
reduce injuries to both you and the animals. You will need both patience
and skill to handle animals. However, the rewards for proper handling
include less time spent on tasks, fewer injuries to yourself and the
animals, and a high quality end product for consumers.
Treating
animals humanely means treating animals with consideration for their
comfort and discomfort. For example, providing animals with protection
from wind and snow and giving them additional dry bedding during a storm
would show that you were concerned about the animals’ comfort and were
treating them humanely.
Although
nearly all livestock producers and 4-H members treat their animals
humanely, it is the occasional case of inhumane treatment that can give
the public a very negative impression of livestock producers. We must
always treat our own animals humanely and be sure that others are also
treating their animals humanely. An example of inhumane treatment would be
neglecting to feed and water your animals. Daily feeding and watering are
part of the proper care and respect you show your animals. What might
happen if your animals had nothing to eat or drink for two days? |
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Upcoming
4-H Events:
September 7-9 •
Huntsville
Alabama Association of
Extension 4-H Agents
September 10 • Wetumpka
Elmore County Livestock Show |
No
matter how long you’ve been working with livestock, there is always
something more you can learn. If a trusted advisor, educator or
professional offers you advice, you should show respect for that person
and listen to what he or she has to say. Chances are they’ve learned
from past experience and just want to help you.
Finally,
we’ll talk about the last question - should consumers expect you to take
proper care of your animals? |
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Consumers
do have the right to expect that of you. Every livestock owner has the
responsibility to take proper care of their animals and by doing so they
show respect for the livestock and for the many thousands of people who
know very little about livestock. If all livestock producers show respect
to the public, the public will be more likely to respect our ways of
handling and caring for livestock. Showing respect for the public will
help build a positive image of 4-H and the livestock industry!
Now
some questions for you to think about:
What
are some ways you can show respect to other 4-H members and to your county
extension staff?
Suppose
that two days before the Market Hog Show, your best show pig weighs 30
pounds more than the maximum weight. You would have to severely restrict
your pig’s feed and water or use drugs to get him under the maximum
weight. What would you do? How does respect and humane treatment apply to
your decision?
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What
would you do if you saw someone beating his or her lamb so that it would
handle better and have a better chance of winning a show? What would the
public think if they saw this?
If
you have your cattle at a show and a member of the public who knows
nothing about cattle stopped to ask you a lot of questions about your
cattle, how would you respond? What impression would this leave with that
person?
I
hope that this article has informed you and given you some food for
thought. Until next time!
For
more info on the dates or events: www.aces.edu/calendar/
or go to www.auburn.edu/~rebert/
James
Shropshire is the Alabama 4-H Regional Extension Agent: 4-H & Youth
Development for the Central Alabama Region.
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