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By Joel Frady
Dozens of goats, sheep and cows will strut around the grounds
of the Ag Expo Center in West Jefferson on
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Saturday morning when the North Carolina Cooperative Extension's
4-H program and the Ashe Friends of Agriculture host their annual
Fourth of July Livestock Show. The show will begin at approximately
10 a.m. and organizers will begin to weigh in animals at 9 a.m.
Charles Young, area agent for the Cooperative Extension, said
that the goal "is to help youth with their livestock projects
and give them a chance to exhibit to the public.
"As always, the point of anything in 4-H is to help kids
learn by doing, and it helps them build all the responsibility
and dedication to handle stuff like that," he continued.
"To be honest, raising livestock is not something you go
into lightly. It takes a lot of time and effort and it builds
a lot of responsibility in the kids to get it done, which is
one of those life skills that we like to talk about."
Young noted that "as a parent with older kids who have
gone through the program, what they pick up and the people they
meet - it's just astounding. It's one of the better experiences
we can put kids through."
The show, which has been held for around 15 years, also stands
as the beginning of the livestock show season for the participants,
which come to West Jefferson both locally and from Alleghany,
Catawba, Yadkin and Grayson (Va.) counties.
"Most livestock shows in this area are in the fall, with
the county fairs, and this is just a good warm-up show to help
the kids make sure all the animals are broken to halter and
brush up on showmanship technique before the start of the season,"
Young said. "We just jump the gun a little bit." Participants
will show a variety of common livestock, from market lambs,
beef cows and meat goats to dairy goats and heifers.
The show is also open to adults, and Young said that if adults
"have livestock they would like to show off, this is a
good place to do it."
Participants will compete in two classes: showmanship and animal
confirmation. Young said that the judge, recent N.C. State graduate
Austin Armstrong, will "look for how well the kids present
the animals for the showmanship class." They will also
be judged on how well they know their animal, because the judge
can ask questions.
"They've got to know the body parts, what the animal is
eating and how old it is," said Young, who added that the
questions will be age-appropriate. The animals will also be
judged for confirmation, which Young said is defined by "a
good set of feet and legs, and strong back line and proper muscling."
Primarily, however, Young said the show is "a good chance
to get animals and kids together.
"If they've got their hands on a halter," said Young,
"for one, they're learning stuff. And two, we're keeping
them out of trouble."
To find out more about the Fourth of July Livestock Show, contact
the Cooperative Extension at (336) 846-5850 or click to ashe.ces.ncsu.edu.
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