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Wow! It’s the start of a new 4-H year already! Our theme for this year is in celebration of our Nation’s 250-year anniversary, “Lawrence County 4-H is All-American”!

• 4-H Enrollment is open! Please visit oh.4honline.com to enroll for the new year! If you are a returning member, please use your profile log-in information from last year; do not create a new profile. Enrollment deadline is March 15th, 11:59pm.
  • Please encourage 4-H members to check out the 4-H Project Guide! There are lots of new project opportunities: Project Guide | Ohio 4-H Youth Development
• 4-H Volunteers Welcome! Any adult wishing to become a new 4-H volunteer for the 2025 – 2026 4-H Year needs to start with the 4-H Volunteer Application, which can be found here: New 4-H Volunteer Form!
  • Volunteers who need their BCI rescreening this year will be receiving an e-mail and letter soon with their notice and instructions!
• Lawrence County 4-H Guidebook is available at 2025 – 2026 Lawrence County 4-H Volunteer & Member Guidebook
• 2026 Livestock Rules for the Lawrence County Junior fair are available and can be found at: Lawrence County Fair | Lawrence
  • Lawrence County Jr. Fair Beef Tag-In has been set for December 13th, 9:00 – 10:00am at the Fairgrounds. Self Tag-In through the 4-HOnline Animal Identification is also available! For more information visit: 2026 Market Beef Tag-In Information
  • Quality Assurance has been revamped on a state level, but still a requirement! We are asking all livestock exhibitors to hold March 28th for county-wide Quality Assurance! More details will shared as they are available. A few other dates will be shared, but club-based quality assurance will not be an option this year.
• 2026 4-H Camp Dates have been released! Our Adams, Lawrence, Pike County 4-H Camp will be May 29th – June 1st! More Canter’s Cave 4-H Camp dates can be found here: Experience it! | Canter’s Cave 4-H Camp
  • 4-H Camp Counselor Applications & 4-H Camp Scholarships will be coming soon!
• 4-H Project Books have increased in price, books purchased through our office or clubs will be $12 for most project books. Some of our larger project books are higher! Ordered online through extension pubs, will cost $15+!
• 4-H Cross County Lines Policy update! Being in the tri-state area, we sometimes have requests for cross county membership. The procedure for approval has changed a bit, please be sure to check out the Cross County Lines policy and request form for any new member interested in cross county membership: Across County Lines 9.2025-fillable.pdf

As we start this new 4-H year, please reach out to our office at 740-533-4322 or email Rachael at fraley.171@osu.edu

Wow, how the summer has flown by! From 4-H camp to the Lawrence County Fair and Ohio State Fair, the summer was packed with meaningful experiences and youth development milestones! The energy and dedication each of our 4-H members, families, and volunteers bring to their role clearly makes a lasting impact on our 4-H community and our OSU Extension, Lawrence County team and I are so thankful.

As we wrap up the year, it is time for reflection and your suggestions are welcomed. If you have ideas for the 2025-2026 4-H year, please send them to Rachael at fraley.171@osu.edu. Our 4-H and Livestock Committee will begin building our agendas around these suggestions so that all voices will be heard. Our committees start working on policy and procedure changes in September, so please submit your suggestions by September 1.

This time of year, we also get lots of inquiries about becoming a 4-H volunteer, starting a new 4-H club, or joining a committee. If you are interested in any of these, please visit:

• Become a 4-H Volunteer 
• Start a 4-H Club
• Join a Committee: submit a letter of interest to Rachael by September 1, fraley.171@osu.edu. Committee members must also be a 4-H Volunteer.

4-HOnline Rollover & Enrollment: The 2024-2025 4-H year will close out of 4-HOnline on October 31st. All members, youth and volunteer, will become inactive and will need to re-enroll for the new year beginning November 1. Meetings for the 2025-2026 may also begin in November.

Lawrence County 4-H Teen Leader Applications are now available. 4-H and FFA members interested in junior fairboard, camp counseling, and or 4-H Carteens must apply by October 1st. Members must be 14 as of January 1, 2026. Application and more information can be found here: Teen Leader Application

Weekly updates are a must this time of year!

Livestock Updates

• Turkey Exhibitors: You were sent an email today, June 19th, with some tips!  Please be sure to check it out! Also, AW Meats is willing to process our turkeys this year. This option will be available for our buyers, as well as your drop slip turkey.
• Hog Exhibitors: Due to exhibition numbers and anticipation of class numbers and sizes, we will be moving to divisions for this year. Please note, this is a yearly decision based on numbers. But for this year, we plan to have 3 divisions! The division champions will compete for overall champion and the judge will then work their way through the divisions to place a top 10.
• Sheep Breeding and Beef Feeders/Breeders: There will be a space in the barn for you to house your animal all week. But it is not required, you may bring it in day of show. Animals should be on the grounds by 10am for check-in/weigh-in.
• Exhibition Requirement Reminder: All livestock exhibitors must complete skillathon in order to show. All livestock exhibitors eligible for sale, must complete skillathon, market show, and showmanship.
• Exhibition Allowance Reminder: We know many of you registered multiple animals to plan for the unknowns livestock projects can present at times, but wanted to remind you of exhibition allowability:
  • 4-H & FFA members are eligible to exhibit two animals of two larger market species and one pen of market rabbits or market chickens or market turkeys. With the exception, members may not exhibit more than one market beef. Multiple species exhibition is not required. To clarify, exhibitors may not exhibit two species of small animals and turkeys will be considered small animals in relation to this rule.

Cloverbud Interview & Parade Theme Announcement

Huge thank you to our 4-H Committee members who work hard to provide some fun and exciting events for our Cloverbuds!

 Livestock Costume Contest 

Huge thank you to Spice of Life for sponsoring this fantastic event for our Livestock Exhibitors!

Livestock Exhibitor Thank You Posters 

Exhibitors are encouraged to place a poster above your stall/pen thanking your buyers from 2024 or if it’s your first year you can thank or welcome buyers in general 🙂

There is a poster contest! So you may just be a lucky winner, too!

Did you miss our other newsletters this month? 

Check out all the latest at u.osu.edu/lawrence4h

Hello –

We have received a few questions and have a couple things to update you on:

• Skillathon is required by all who are exhibiting an animal project at the county fair. For more information, please visit: 2025 Lawrence County 4-H & FFA Skillathon | Lawrence County 4-H
• Sunday, June 15th is the deadline for a couple things:
  • Non-Market Livestock and Breeding Project IDs are due! To do so, you will log into your oh.4honline.com account and enter your animals. For help, visit this help sheet: v2.Families.Adding.Animals.pdf Please be sure to add your animals age/birthdate to ensure we get the animal registered into the right class.
    • Also, it is important to note, DUNF forms at the fair are required for Market Feeders, so an ID tag is required. 
    • Fancy Poultry must have their pullorum testing complete with negative results by show day check in.
  • Horse Show Registration is due: 2025 Horse Show Registration
• 4-H Project Judging Interview Registration is now available with a deadline of June 20th! All non-livestock project judging will take place at the 4-H & FFA Expo Center. To help you determine which day your project judging will be held and what you are required to bring, please visit our Guidebook 
  • Saturday, July 5th from 2:00 – 4:00pm will be the Food & Clothing Project Judging. To register visit: 2025 Food & Clothing Project Judging Interview Registration
  • Wednesday, July 9th, from 2:00 – 5:00pm will be the Shooting Sports, Natural Resources, STEM, Animal Science projects: 2025 Natural Resources, STEM, Animal Sciences 
    • Shooting Sports will not sign up for a timeslot, but should follow the following interview schedule:
      • • 2:00pm – Archery & Rifle
        • 3:15pm – All other 700 level disciplines
        • 4:00pm – Safe Use of Guns & Basic Archery
  • Thursday, July 10th, from 2:00 – 5:00pm will be the Leadership/Citizenship, Creative Arts and Leisure, Money Management, Healthy Living, Home Living and Self-Determined projects: 2025 Leadership/Citizenship. Creative Arts/Leisure, Money Mgt., Healthy & Home Living, and Self-Determined
• 4-HOnline Verification: Our new fair system, FairEntry and 4-HOnline are synced, making it easy to verify a few things. We are asking each livestock family to log in and double check their family address. This address is what will be used for Junior Fair Sale check mailing! If it needs changed, you can edit within 4-HOnline and it will sync to our system.
• Junior Fair Schedule Updates: 
  • There will be no Specialty Goat Show on Monday, July 7th
  • The Finley Family will be providing pizza to our 4-H and FFA youth on Tuesday, July 8th from 11-2pm with rides open provided by the Senior Fairboard from 11:30 – 1:30pm.
  • 4-H Shooting Sports Skillathon will now take place prior to the fair.
  • The Silent Auction for eligible 1st place 4-H Life Skills projects will be Friday, July 11th from 4:00 – 5:00pm. Set up will be at 3:30pm.
• A few junior fair expectations reminders:
  • 4-H Code of Conduct is expected to be followed by all.
  • Dress code is available in the junior fair rule book.
  • All exhibitors should be reading over all junior fair/ODA rules, to remain in compliance. Be sure to be following all withdrawal dates on medications, etc.
  • Rules can be found here: 2025 Livestock Rules Final.pdf

I truly can’t believe June is here and the 2025 Lawrence County Fair is right around the corner, so we have lots of important news to share:

• The 2025 Lawrence County 4-H theme is “Your Future is Bright in 4-H”. 4-H Clubs are encouraged to participate in the Beautification and Club Booth Contests! To find details about these displays, visit our 4-H Guidebook at: 2025 Lawrence County 4-H Guidebook
• Cloverbud Day Camp is scheduled for June 19th at the Fairgrounds from 5:30 – 7:00pm! Cloverbud Day Camp registration has been extended to Friday, June 6th! To register visit:Registration
• More Canter’s Cave 4-H Camp Opportunities: 
  • Cloverbud Overnight at Canter’s Cave 4-H Camp is scheduled for June 20 – 21. To register by June 6th visit: Cloverbud Overnight Camp | Canter’s Cave 4-H Camp
  • Southern Ohio Teen Camp, ages 14-18, June 26th – 29th, registration is open until June 12th! To register visit: Southern Ohio 4-H Teen Camp | Canter’s Cave 4-H Camp
  • STEM Camp for 5th – 7th grade, June 29 – July 1, registration is open until June 16th! To register visit: 4-H STEM Camp | Canter’s Cave 4-H Camp
• Market Rabbit Tattooing is this Saturday, June 7th from 8:00 – 10:00am at the Small Animal Shelter on the Fairgrounds. If you are tattooing your own, please be sure to complete the 4-HOnline process by June 7th at 10:00am. For more information, visit: Important Info Regarding Lawrence County Junior Fair Market Rabbit Tattooing | Lawrence County 4-H
• 4-H Project Judging Interview Registration is now available with a deadline of June 20th! All non-livestock project judging will take place at the 4-H & FFA Expo Center. To help you determine which day your project judging will be held and what you are required to bring, please visit our Guidebook 
  • Saturday, July 5th from 2:00 – 4:00pm will be the Food & Clothing Project Judging. To register visit: 2025 Food & Clothing Project Judging Interview Registration
  • Wednesday, July 9th, from 2:00 – 5:00pm will be the Shooting Sports, Natural Resources, STEM, Animal Science projects: 2025 Natural Resources, STEM, Animal Sciences 
    • Shooting Sports will not sign up for a timeslot, but should follow the following interview schedule:
      • • 2:00pm – Archery & Rifle
        • 3:15pm – All other 700 level disciplines
        • 4:00pm – Safe Use of Guns & Basic Archery
  • Thursday, July 10th, from 2:00 – 5:00pm will be the Leadership/Citizenship, Creative Arts and Leisure, Money Management, Healthy Living, Home Living and Self-Determined projects: 2025 Leadership/Citizenship. Creative Arts/Leisure, Money Mgt., Healthy & Home Living, and Self-Determined
• 4-H & FFA Livestock Skillathon study tips has been released! It and dates to complete can be found here: 2025 Lawrence County 4-H & FFA Skillathon | Lawrence County 4-H
• Lawrence County Junior Fair Pageant Applications Due June 13th! All applications can be found at: Lawrence County Fair | Lawrence
• Junior Fair Breeding and Non-Livestock Registration Deadline is quickly approaching! Don’t forget to get your animals registered by June 15th! To do so, you will log into your oh.4honline.com account and enter your animals. For help, visit this help sheet: v2.Families.Adding.Animals.pdf Please be sure to add your animals age/birthdate to ensure we get the animal registered into the right class.
• Horse Show Registration Deadline is also quickly approaching! To be eligible to participate, you must register for the horse show by June 15th at:2025 Horse Show Registration
  • Horse Youth interested in competing at State Fair must qualify through a PAS show, for more information visit: Ohio 4-H Horse Program | Ohio 4-H Youth Development
• Lawrence County 4-H Dog Show is scheduled for June 18th, 6:00pm at the Lawrence County Courthouse Lawn.
• Master Livestock Exhibitor is back this year! Huge thank you to the sponsors and organizers of this event! For more information on how to participate or donate, visit: MasterExhibitor.pdf
• Lawrence County Livestock Sale has created a landing page to keep everyone up to date on new changes to the sale including sale order, Fill the Freezer Program, and information to share when talking with buyers, buyer checkout information, etc. Check it out at: 2025 Lawrence County Junior Fair Sale | Lawrence County 4-H
• The Ohio State Fair is scheduled for July 23rd – August 3rd! First place eligible non-livestock projects will receive participation information at their project judging. All livestock youth interested should visit, deadline for participation is June 21: Livestock Competitions
• The complete Lawrence County Junior Fair Schedule, Rules, and more can be found at: Lawrence County Fair | Lawrence
  • Please note there have been a few things updated such as:
    • Shooting Sports Skillathon will now be happening pre-fair.
    • Specialty Goats will not be exhibited or shown at the county fair due to the low numbers of interested youth.
    • Free Ride and Pizza Day for our 4-H members will be Tuesday, July 8th. Pizza will be available from 11-2:00pm, sponsored by the Finley Family and rides run for 4-H’ers from 11:30 – 1:30pm sponsored by the Lawrence County Senior Fairboard.
• Advisors, please hold Thursday, June 26th, 8:00 – 4:00pm for Pass Pick Up Day! Reminder, members must complete their 5-meeting minimum requirement by July 1.

The Lawrence County Junior Fair requires ALL exhibitors to participate in Skillathon to be eligible to exhibit, show and sale their animal in the Junior Fair Sale. To help our youth be successful, we wanted to share the topics to study and some options for taking skillathon.

Large Animal Study Topics

• Feed Tag Questions – Be able to answer questions, similar to those provided in your 4-H project book.
• Quality Assurance – Good Production Practices (Provide Proper Animal Handling and Care, Maintain Proper Workplace Safety, and Practice Good Environmental Stewardship) Review Questions
• Terminology (example – dam, sire, gilt, steer, yearling, wether, etc) Definitions found in your resource book.
• Parts of Animal
• Feet & Leg Structure (Senior Division Only)
• Animal Tag/Tattoo Identifier/Identification Methods

Small Animal Study Topics

• Terminology (example – dam, sire, gilt, steer, yearling, wether, etc)  Definitions found in your resource book.
• ID Methods
• Quality Assurance – Good Production Practices (Provide Proper Animal Handling and Care, Maintain Proper Workplace Safety, and Practice Good Environmental Stewardship) Review Questions
• Feed Tag Questions – Be able to answer questions, similar to those provided in your 4-H project book.
• Parts of Animal
• Conformation (Rabbit Senior Division Only)

Dates to Complete Skillathon 

• Tuesday, June 24th, 10-12pm, Extension Office
•  Thursday, June 26th, 1-3pm, Extension Office
• Sunday, July 6th, 1-4pm, Fairgrounds

It’s May and we have lots of exciting and informative things to share:

First, Some general Livestock Updates 

• The 2025 Junior Fair Schedule has been updated to reflect a change in the weigh-in schedule, all market animals will weigh in between 6:00 – 10:00am on Sunday, July 6th For the full schedule visit: 2025 Fair Schedule Final_1.pdf
• ODA has released a few informative news articles, I believe would be beneficial for families to read and 4-H volunteers to share at club meetings
  • ODA Livestock Exhibition New and Updated Rules
  • ODA Animal Health News – Fairs & Exhibitions Special Edition
  • ODA Animal Health News – Fairs & Exhibitions Special Edition 2  
• Also, it is a great time to review the Lawrence County Fair rules, they can be found at: 2025 Lawrence County Junior Fair Rules
• Showing Livestock at the State Fair, visit Livestock Competitions for more information and registration deadlines.

Market Chicken Pick Up 

• Market Chicken Pick Up is scheduled for the afternoon of May 15th. We will begin calling to let you know ETA, when we pick up.

4-H Project Book Orders

• If you haven’t ordered 4-H project books, our last county order is going in on May 15th. We have some in stock and ready for pick up now but are starting to run low on others. Please contact our office for book orders.

Market Rabbit Tag-In

• Market Rabbit Tattooing is scheduled for June 7th from 8:00 – 10:00am at the Lawrence County Fairgrounds.
• Do you want to tattoo your rabbits yourself or have your breeder do it, to keep you and rabbits from coming on June 7th? That option is available this year. To do so, please follow these instructions: Important Info Regarding Lawrence County Junior Fair Market Rabbit Tattooing | Lawrence County 4-H

Breeding/Non-Market Forms

Reminder – New this year! We will be utilizing the 4-Honline system to register your breeding/non-livestock projects for exhibition. 4-H/FFA members planning to exhibit Beef Breeding, Beef Feeders, Sheep Breeding, Specialty Goats, Fancy Poultry, Breeding Rabbits must register their animals by June 15th. To do so, you will log into your oh.4honline.com account and enter your animals. For help, visit this help sheet: v2.Families.Adding.Animals.pdf

4-H Camping Opportunities

• Adams, Lawrence, Pike 4-H Camp for 3rd – 8th grade is scheduled for May 30 – June 2. To register by May 15th, visit go.osu.edu/alp4hcamp
  • Cost is $165 ($175 for non-4-H members) and payment is accepted at go.osu.edu/lawrenceextensionpayment
• Canter’s Cave Cloverbud Overnight Camp is scheduled for June 20 – June 21. To register by June 6th, visit go.osu.edu/canterscloverbudcamp
  • Required Online Health Forms: go.osu.edu/CloverbudHF
    • Online Health Form needed for all adults and children attending camp.
  • Cost: $60.00 ($40.00 for additional youth/adults).
• Canter’s Cave Teen Camp, grades 9 -12, is scheduled for June 26 – 29th. To register by June 12th, visit go.osu.edu/teencamp
  • Cost is $170 ($180 for non-4-H members) and payment is accepted at go.osu.edu/lawrenceextensionpayment

We will also accept cash or check payments at our office Monday – Friday, 8:00 – 4:30pm.

Cloverbud Day Camp 

• Lawrence County is offering a Cloverbud Day Camp, this evening of fun is only for our Cloverbud age youth, 5-8 years old and will be held at the Lawrence County Fairgrounds on June 19th. 5:30 – 7:00pm. To learn more & register, visit go.osu.edu/lawco4hcloverbudcamp Cost is $10 and registration is due by May 30.

Reminder – Lawrence County Fair Pageant Information: All information regarding each pageant can be found on the opening letter of the applications. All applications are due NO LATER than June 13th, 2025. If you choose to mail your application, please ensure you send it out with enough time to arrive by the due date.

Coming later this month, early June: 

• Skillathon Study Guide
• 4-H Project Judging Registration

2025 Lawrence County Market Rabbit Exhibitors, 4-H Club Advisors, and Parents:

Please read the following information regarding changes to Market Rabbit Tattoo requirements!

2025 Market Rabbit Tattooing Info 

Entering Animals Into 4-HOnline Handout: v2.Families.Adding.Animals

If you have questions, please contact Rachael at fraley.171@osu.edu or 740-533-4322.

April is always an exciting month in 4-H! Our community clubs are busy doing amazing things and we love getting to see and hear about all the different experiences our youth are participating in as part of their 4-H club!

We have a few things to share for this month:

4-H Camp Scholarships – 4-H Camping season is coming quickly! If you would like to apply for a 4-H camp scholarship, the deadline to apply is April 15th! To apply, find camp dates, and register for camp, visit: 4-H Camp | Lawrence For specialty camps like Cloverbud, STEM, Adaptive Adventures, Teen camp registrations visit: Specialty Camps | Canter’s Cave 4-H Camp

Horse Projects – We will be having our in-person Equistep meeting on April 17th, at 7:15pm at the Extension Office, if you are unable to attend or prefer to complete your Equistep training on your own,  you can do so! Also, May 1 is the deadline for Horse Project ID and Equistep completion! Lastly, it is vital we have 4-H volunteers to help make the show a success, if you are interested in helping, we ask you reach out to our office. More information on all the Horse Project details can be found here: Lawrence County 4-H Horse Projects | Lawrence County 4-H

Lawrence County Quality Assurance Deadline is quickly approaching. Quality Assurance must be completed by May 1 to be eligible to exhibit, show & sale at the Lawrence County Fair. If you are 12 years or older, and would prefer to test-out, please reach out to our office to schedule an appointment. Having trouble making it to a Quality Assurance Training, youth may also complete Quality Assurance through the YQCA.org program online for $12.00. To register and complete, visit: YQCA – Youth for the Quality Care of Animals Certificates of completion must be emailed to fraley.171@osu.edu

Breeding Leases – If you are leasing a breeding animal, forms must be on file by May 1: 2025 Lawrence County Breeding Lease Form

Breeding/Non-Market Forms – New this year! We will be utilizing the 4-Honline system to register your breeding/non-livestock projects for exhibition. 4-H/FFA members planning to exhibit Beef Breeding, Beef Feeders, Sheep Breeding, Specialty Goats, Fancy Poultry, Breeding Rabbits must register their animals by June 15th. To do so, you will log into your oh.4honline.com account and enter your animals. For help, visit this help sheet: v2.Families.Adding.Animals.pdf

Market Lamb, Goat, Hog Tag-In is May 3rd, 8:00 – 10:00am at the fairgrounds. If you’d prefer to pick up your tags and tag your market animals yourself, please be sure to follow the directions outlined at Important Information Regarding Lawrence County Lamb, Goat, and Hog Tag-In | Lawrence County 4-H

Market Chicken Update: After some conversation with our hatchery around our 2025 fair dates and our minimum weight requirement, we have updated our Market Chicken pick up. Market Chickens will arrive tentatively May 15th.

Senior Banners – New this year! The Lawrence County Junior Fairboard is sponsoring senior banners highlighting our recent graduates at the county fair. To gather the information needed to create the banners, we ask all 4-H and FFA youth currently enrolled and a high school senior to complete this survey by May 15th: go.osu.edu/2025lawcoseniorbanner

Rabbit Tattooing – Rabbit tattooing is scheduled for June 7th, 8:00 – 10:00am at the Lawrence County Fairgrounds.

The Fair Schedule can be found here: 2025 Fair Schedule Final_0.pdf, no changes, but some clarification on Market Chicken Showmanship and the Fancy Poultry Show! We have also created a landing page for the Junior Fair Livestock Sale to help our buyers and also our families when talking with buyers, as well as a link to go ahead and pre-register as a buyer. For sale information visit: 2025 Lawrence County Junior Fair Sale | Lawrence County 4-H

Lawrence County Fair Pageant Information: All information regarding each pageant can be found on the opening letter of the applications. All applications are due NO LATER than June 13th, 2025. If you choose to mail your application, please ensure you send it out with enough time to arrive by the due date.

Lawrence County 4-H Horse Exhibitors must complete the following if they wish to participate in any county or state 4-H horse show by May 1:

• Horse ID Form – Each member must register their horse by May 1. To do so, you will utilize your oh.4honline.com account and enter your horse through the horse tab. For instructions, visit: v2.Families.Adding.Animals.pdf
• Equistep Training –  Equistep is Ohio 4-H’s Equine Safety, Training, and Education Program. It is an annual requirement for all Ohio 4-H youth enrolled in a horse project. To complete for 2025 visit – https://go.osu.edu/equistep2025
  • If you would prefer to complete in person, we will be holding a county-wide Equistep meeting on April 17th at 7:15pm at the Extension Office.

Request for Volunteers: To be able to help our horse youth be successful and have a positive experience at the county fair show, I am seeking adult volunteers who are willing to help organize, prepare, and work the show!  If you or someone you know is interested – please reach out to me at fraley.171@osu.edu by April 15th.

Important Dates:

South Central Ohio 4-H Horse Clinic – June 5th – June 8th

Lawrence County 4-H Horse Show – Our horse show is scheduled to be in conjunction with the rodeo at the Lawrence County Fair again this year, scheduled for Friday, July 11th at 2:00pm in front of the grandstands.