Events

Sheep A.I. Day in Licking County

Brady Campbell, Program Coordinator, OSU Sheep Team

Have you ever considered using artificial insemination to rapidly increase the genetic diversity of your flock or to produce superior offspring for show and replacement breeding stock, but was unable to do so due to the cost? If so, look no further. All thanks to the Licking County Sheep Improvement Association, Ohio shepherds now have the opportunity to expand the genetics of their flocks in using A.I. techniques with the services being provided by Reproduction Specialty Group – Dr. Tad Thompson, DVM. The event is set for Saturday, August 18, 2018 at the Hartford Fairgrounds. Continue reading →

Department of Animal Sciences Honors Ohio Shepherd

Steve Boyles, OSU Extension Beef Specialist, The Ohio State University

On April 13th, the Department of Animal Sciences will celebrate the achievements of those who have enhanced student education and enriched the animal science industry through the annual Animal Sciences Annual Recognition Reception. Several prestigious student awards will also be presented.

This year, the Department will induct Mike Stitzlein into the Animal Sciences Hall of Fame. Continue reading →

2018 Southeast Ohio Sheep & Goat School

Christine Gelley, OSU Extension Educator ANR, Noble County

The Ohio State University Eastern Agricultural Research Station will host the 2018 Southeast Ohio Sheep and Goat School beginning February 15, 2018. This six session series will span from February to November featuring presentations by state specialists and regional experts. From “Sheep & Goats 101” to “Finishing”, there is sure to be something for every sheep and goat producer’s interest. Most classes will run from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. and be held at the The Ohio State University Eastern Agricultural Research Station (EARS):

16870 Twp. Rd. 126 Caldwell, Ohio 43724

A meal will be included. The cost for the course is $100 for all six sessions or $25 per session. Registration is requested by February 1, 2018. For more details, please check out the attached flyer.

Any further questions should be directed to Christine Gelley at Noble County Extension (740) 732-5681 or gelley.2@osu.edu.

Sheep Judging (Wool Breeds) Workshop

Brady Campbell, Program Coordinator, OSU Sheep Team

Are you a sheep judge or plan to judge in the upcoming year? If so, do you judge shows at the community, county, state, and national levels? During these judging events, have you ever been asked to judge multiple breeds? More specifically, have you ever been asked to judge a wool breed of sheep?

If you answered yes to the above questions, there is an event that you should attend as you prepare for the 2018 show season. For those that may not feel as comfortable with judging wool sheep, The Ohio State University Extension will be holding a sheep judging workshop that specifically focuses on wool breeds. This workshop is designed to Continue reading →

Re-cap: 2017 Buckeye Shepherd’s Symposium

Brady Campbell, Program Coordinator, OSU Sheep Team

Yet again, the annual Buckeye Shepherd’s Symposium, sponsored by the Ohio Sheep Improvement Association (OSIA), went off without a hitch this past weekend. The objective of the symposium is to assist sheep producers by providing a two day event full of educational programming from which  every sector of the American sheep industry can benefit from. The symposium was held in the Shisler Conference Center at the Ohio Agriculture and Development Center (OARDC) in Wooster, Ohio.

The symposium kicked off on Friday, December 1, with Dr. Francis Fluharty with The Ohio State University speaking on the topic of Continue reading →

2017 Buckeye Shepherd’s Symposium Programing

Christine Gelley, OSU Extension Educator, Noble County

The 2017 Buckeye Shepherd’s Symposium is approaching. This annual event is organized by the Ohio Sheep Improvement Association (OSIA). The objectives of the symposium are to assist sheep producers with increasing productivity through educational programming from which every segment of the sheep industry can benefit.

This year’s symposium will begin with the Shepherd’s College from 2:00 – 5:00 p.m. on December 1, 2017 at Fisher Auditorium on the Ohio Agriculture Research and Development Center (OARDC) Wooster Campus. Dr. Erin Recktenwald of Michigan State University will lead off with Continue reading →

Hardin County Sheep Producers Visit Washington County

Brady Campbell, Program Coordinator, OSU Sheep Team

For most Buckeye’s, this past weekend (October 21-22, 2017) was spent watching Penn State beat that team up north as The Ohio State Buckeyes had the weekend off. However,this was not the case for the sheep producers of the Hardin County Sheep Management tour. For these producers, their weekend was spent in Washington county touring sheep operations that most described as unique due to the benefits and challenges associated with raising sheep in the hills of southeastern Ohio. Continue reading →

Re-Cap: Mid-Ohio Valley Grazing Conference

Brady Campbell, Program Coordinator, OSU Sheep Team

On this past Saturday, 57 livestock producers and forage enthusiasts attended the Mid-Ohio Valley Grazing Conference in Fleming Ohio at Lazy H Farms. The event was sponsored by The Ohio State University Extension, West Virginia University Extension, Washington County Soil and Water Conservation District, Ohio Farm Bureau, The Career Center – Adult Technical Training, and The James Barret Endowment Fund. The speakers of the event were Bob Hendershot, Dr. Mark Sulc, and Dr. Edward B. Rayburn.

Mr. Bob Hendershot, retired State Grassland Conservationist, NRCS and the 2017 Distinguished Grasslander Award recipient, began the morning session by talking about Continue reading →

Mid-Ohio Valley Grazing Conference (September 16, 2017)

Stan Smith, OSU Extension PA, Fairfield County

If you pasture livestock or want to know more about pasture management, then please do not miss this upcoming opportunity to learn from the region’s “Who’s Who” among forages and pasture management.  Ohio State University Extension, West Virginia University Extension, Washington County Farm Bureau, Washington Soil and Water Conservation District, and The Career Center, Adult Technical Training is pleased to offer our region the Mid-Ohio Valley Grazing Conference Continue reading →

Recap: 2017 Ohio Sheep Day

Brady Campbell, Program Coordinator, OSU Sheep Team

Ewes and lambs in the field at the 2017 Ohio Sheep Day at OARDC in Wooster, OH (Image source: Farm and Dairy)

Another successful sheep day is in the books as the 2017 Ohio Sheep Day wrapped up on July 15th at the Ohio Agricultural and Research Development Center (OARDC) sheep research center in Wooster, Ohio. Producers, researchers, and sheep enthusiasts all joined in an exciting day filled with a diverse range of topics that were both practical and applicable on farm. Each year, the goal of Ohio Sheep Day is to provide producers with both scientific information and resources/contacts to better their sheep operations.

The highlight of this year’s event was Continue reading →

2014 Ohio Sheep Day Programing

Roger High, OSU Ohio State Sheep Extension Specialist

The 2014 Ohio Sheep Day is scheduled for Saturday, July 12, 2014. It will be held at the Ray Family Farm, home of Shawn and Kim Ray and Family. The farm is located in beautiful Noble County, at 50725 Ray Ln., Cumberland, OH 43732.

Ray Family Farm is a primarily grass based commercial sheep, goat, and cattle operation in the heart of Appalachia Ohio, concentrating their efforts on providing the highest quality forages to their livestock. The farm is located in Southeastern Ohio where the terrain is very rough and rolling, making it an ideal location ruminant livestock production.

This year’s Ohio Sheep Day Continue reading →

Lamb 509 is Back!

Tracy Turner, OSU CFAES CommTech

Sheep producers can learn innovative new techniques to produce consistent, high quality lamb and how to better market their specialty meats during a two-day course Dec. 17-18. The course will be taught by livestock experts from Ohio State University’s College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences (CFAES) and industry experts. Continue reading →

2013 Ohio Sheep Day Programming

Roger High, OSU Ohio State Sheep Extension Specialist

The Ohio Sheep Day is scheduled for Saturday, July 13, 2013, 8 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. It will be held at the OARDC Sheep Research Unit, located at 5743 Fredericksburg Road, Wooster OH 44691.

The OARDC Sheep Research Unit has a long history of conducting research to answer questions that help sheep producers be profitable. That has not changed. Come and see what has been learned in the last five years. Continue reading →

2011 Buckeye Shepherd’s Symposium Programming

Roger High, OSU Ohio State Sheep Extension Specialist

The 2011 Buckeye Shepherd’s Symposium will concentrate on “Small Ruminant (Sheep and Goat) Nutrition”. This year’s annual event will be held on Saturday, December 10, 2011 at the Agricultural Technical Institute (ATI), Skou Hall, 1328 Dover Rd., Wooster, OH 44691.

With the diversity of the sheep and goat industry, we have made this an intense Continue reading →

2011 Sheep-O-Rama

Roger High, OSU Ohio State Sheep Extension Specialist

Delaware County will play host to Sheep-O-Rama – a one-day educational event to promote the development of the Sheep Dairy Industry in Ohio. Set for Saturday, October 1, 2011, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Delaware County (OH) Fairgrounds, this event was organized by the Heart of Ohio RC&D and the Ohio Sheep Milk & Cheese Initiative and sponsored in part by Innovative Farmers of Ohio.

The day’s events will focus on Continue reading →

2011 Ohio Sheep Day Programming

Roger High, OSU Ohio State Sheep Extension Specialist

What: Ohio Sheep Day
When: Saturday, July 16, 2011
Where: Blue Heron Farm, c/o Cynthia Koonce
32994 Teegarden Rd., Lisbon, OH 44432

The 2011 Ohio Sheep Day is scheduled for Saturday, July 16, 2011. It will be held at Blue Heron Farm, home farm of Cynthia Koonce, located outside of Lisbon, Ohio in beautiful Columbiana County. Continue reading →

2010 Buckeye Shepherd’s Symposium Programming

Roger High, OSU Ohio State Sheep Extension Specialist

Date: December 11, 2010
Start Time: 7:30 – 9 a.m. Registration and Trade Show
Location: Agricultural Technical Institute (ATI), Wooster, OH

The focus of the 2010 Buckeye Shepherd’s Symposium will be “Marketing for a Profitable Sheep Farm.” This year’s annual event will be held on Continue reading →

Recap: 2009 Ohio Sheep Day

Roger High, Executive Director, OSIA
Susan Schultz, OSIA President

OARDC Eastern Research Station in Caldwell, OH hosted the 2009 Ohio Sheep Day

The weather was absolutely gorgeous, with a glint of rain in the air all day, and finally it rained near the end of the program, which was very much appreciated in the drought stricken area of southeastern Ohio.  The air was filled with positive thoughts of an exciting Ohio sheep industry and the OSIA/OSWP/OSU coordinated Ohio Sheep Day was another overwhelming success.   Sheep producers from all over Ohio and Continue reading →

Recap: 2008 Ohio Sheep Day

Curt Cline, 2008 Sheep Day Host

Sheep day came and went on our farm on July 12th. The day went off without a hitch, good people, good food, good times! The day was full of events for all aspects of sheep production or, as far as that goes, any livestock production. From pasture tours highlighting the economics behind the forages to listening to Mr. Gordon Oswalt, a Michigan shepherd that manages 1500 ewes, speak about sheep genetics and his personal experiences with a family farm in which multiple generations work together. Continue reading →