Bonnie Ayars, Dairy Judging Teams Coach and Extension Youth Specialist, The Ohio State University
Dairy Judging. 2012 was barely started till the first dairy judging contest of the season was taking place in Ft. Worth, Texas at the stock show. This was our second appearance at the contest. The results were outstanding. Our accomplishments included High Team and Individual in the Holstein breed, three members in the top 10, and a third place for the team overall. Attached is a news release of our trip and the contest:
Pictured: Coach Ayars, Rachel Foureman, Derik Baumer, Dan Nicol, and Matthew Borchers.
Showmanship. Back in October at the World Dairy Expo, the national organization of Purebred Dairy Cattle Association (PDCA) approved a new set of showmanship guidelines for dairy youth. Previously, they had been referred to as a scorecard! I was pleased to serve on the committee to develop the new guidelines along with Dr. Halbach of Wisconsin, Dr. Knowlton of Virginia Tech, and Dr. Henderson of Cal Poly. We also worked with Canadian youth representatives, incorporating many of their excellent ideas into our revisions. These guidelines are published in a new Holstein Foundation workbook just released. The title is "Showring Ready" and can be accessed at http://www.holsteinfoundation.org/education/hfworkbooksRequst1682557156541ldskf.html. You can also easily locate the workbook on the Holstein Foundation website.
Facebook. Ohio 4-H Dairy Program does have a Facebook page which I would like to encourage everyone to review and "friend" us. Let me emphasize that it is being used as a tool and not a toy. See for yourself and let me know what you think!
Congratulations are extended to one Ohio's 4-H dairy advisers, Lisa Gress, as she has been selected to receive the 4-H Meritorious Service Award at the Volunteer Conference in March. Last year, we were also fortunate to have Bernie Heisner selected for a leadership award and COBA designated for the "Friend of 4-H" recognition.
At www.4hansci.osu.edu/dairy, you can also read about any of our current programs and events. There is also a file available for you to view our new stand-up poster display that has been making its way around to many dairy events. We are the first livestock 4-H youth program to use such a promotional tool!