Month: April 2020

Virtual Livestock Quality Assurance Training Approved for 2020

Quality Assurance Training is still mandatory for 2020 for all youth taking market livestock and lactating dairy cattle/goat projects in order to be eligible to participate in junior fair events, shows and sales at the fairs.  Parents are encourage to attend the training with their child.

The Ohio Department of Agriculture has given permission to OSU Extension to teach QA using a virtual platform such as Zoom for 2020 only. This virtual training has been approved by local fair boards for 2020 as well.

All trainings will be held during QA Week, the week of April 27 using Zoom.

April 27 – 10am, 3pm, 7pm

April 29 – 10 am, 3 pm

April 30 – 10am, 3pm, 7pm

Each session will hold a maximum of 40 participants. No more than two family members on one Zoom connection.

Participants must sign-up and reserve a training spot at https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70A094EADA72CA1FD0-virtual . A Zoom link to attend the training will be emailed one day prior to the training time.

Attendance will be taken throughout the training session. If someone doesn’t attend the full training, the training will have to be repeated.

A face to face session will also be held after July 6 for members that are not able to attend a virtual training due to limited or no internet access. This date will be announced later.

How to attend a virtual training using Zoom:

Steps to attend a Zoom meeting on a computer

  • Click on the QA invitation link that will be sent via email one day prior to the training
  • You will need to allow your computer some time to download Zoom
  • Enter the meeting ID if necessary
  • Allow access to Camera & Sound
  • Your controls are at the bottom for microphone and camera
  • Need more help? Here is a quick video https://www.youtube.com/embed/hIkCmbvAHQQ?rel=0&autoplay=1&cc_load_policy=1

Steps to attend a Zoom meeting on a mobile phone

  • Open App Store and download Zoom Cloud Meetings
  • Open App, sign-up, enter email address, first name, and last name, email will be sent, verify account, initial setup complete
  • Make sure Zoom App is downloaded and ready
  • Click on the QA invitation line that will be sent via email one day prior to the training
  • Enter the meeting ID if necessary
  • Allow access to Camera & Sound

https://www.facebook.com/OhioStateWashingtonCounty4H/videos/227160201710467/

Calling all Cloverbuds – Virtual Cloverbot Challenge

Calling ALL Cloverbuds! This year’s 4-H Cloverbot Challenge means virtual fun for everyone!

Since teams cannot get together to plan their project, the 2020 Cloverbot Challenge is for individual Cloverbuds. The theme is still “On the Move” and your project will be displayed in an online photo gallery. Find all the details at https://ohio4h.org/families/cloverbuds/cloverbot-challenge

Individual Cloverbuds can construct their models with LEGO’s or whatever kind of interlocking blocks they have available. Then they can send a picture to us for display in a virtual gallery on the state 4-H website. A certificate will also be emailed to each participant. The deadline is June 13, 2020.

4-H Club Officer Training Zooms – March 13-16

We will be hosting 4-H Club Officer Training on Zoom – March 13-16 at 7:00 pm each evening. The sessions will be recorded and shared later for viewing. See the connection links below for Zoom or  by phone. If you are using a smart phone make sure you download the Zoom App prior to connecting to the training.

You might want to connect early in case you have trouble. If you have never used Zoom, here is a quick tutorial video. https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/201362193-Joining-a-Meeting?fbclid=IwAR3PVvOPWoS8mtyGM-wCFbE1KmtbWC1nxZC49cUfOTIVettfdPIk-uKlkFs

We will use the same meeting link for ALL of the sessions

Join Zoom Meeting
https://osu.zoom.us/j/319154110

Dial in using your mobile phone
+13126266799,,319154110# US (Chicago)
+16468769923,,319154110# US (New York)

Meeting ID: 319 154 110

Monday, April 13 – Presidents & Vice Presidents: Sierra Sinclair

Tuesday, April 14 – Treasurers: Alexis Lane

Wednesday, April 15 – Secretaries & News Reporters: Tyler Hartline & Historian & Club Scrapbooks – Haley Tornes

Thursday, April 16 – Health & Safety Officers – Melina Matics, Recreation Leaders – Alex Bauerbach, & Community Service – Maggie Gottfried

https://www.facebook.com/OhioStateWashingtonCounty4H/videos/1305118529698239/

Horse Updates – State Fair Information

Many horse events in Washington County are now being cancelled due to the recent notice of all 4H events being cancelled through July 6th.  Please be advised that the following events are cancelled Equine Sessions #1 and #2 scheduled for April 25 and June 25. The Mandatory Parent meeting scheduled for May 14, The PAS show scheduled for June 6, and  Applebees Pancake Breakfast scheduled for June 13th.  The Saddle Horse Committee will be meeting virtually to discuss rescheduling of events and requirements for the 2020 County Fair and State Fair Season On May 4.  Please be aware that your horse paperwork and declarations are still due by June 1st.  Members are encouraged to mail in their forms to the Extension Office at 202 Davis Ave, Marietta Ohio 45750 and the required forms may be found on the Washington County OSU Extension website.  We are please to announce that State Fair horse participants will not be required to attend a PAS Show this year.  Registration for State Fair opens on June 1 and is limited to the first 850 participants on a first come basis.  We are excited for our youth to have this opportunity and please stay tuned for details about the county requirements to attend.  Attached to this announcement you will find the letter regarding state fair with all the details.  JHS Update April 8

State 4-H Announcement

4-H Families and Volunteers:

Please take time to read the following message from our State 4-H Leader. As we look ahead to our County 4-H Calendar I will be following up in the coming days concerning all events scheduled after July 6. At this point we are diligently planning and organizing events past July 6 including 4-H Project Judging, Public Speaking Contest, Skillathon, etc. Stay tuned for our plans how Livestock Tag-ins and Livestock Quality Assurance training will happen. Also, we are extremely disappointed to notify you that all Ohio 4-H Camps including Hervida 4-H Camps have been cancelled for the summer. Please read the message below in its entirety.

Bruce Zimmer

Extension Educator,

4-H Youth Development

 

April 7, 2020

Dear 4-H members, families, volunteers and supporters,

It is with a heavy heart that I share this news with you. Due to ongoing health concerns related to the COVID-19 pandemic, the decision has been made to cancel all Ohio State University Extension in-person programming through July 6. This includes all 4-H programs, activities, and events. Additionally, we’ve made the very difficult decision to cancel all 4-H camps thru August 31. Although in-person programming is cancelled, we will continue to offer virtual 4-H experiences.

We know this is an incredible disappointment and recognize how much everyone looks forward to our cherished 4-H summer events. As 4-H professionals committed to providing positive youth development programming, we share your sense of loss.

Given available information, we anticipate the next few weeks and months will continue to be critical times for stemming the spread of the COVID-19 virus. It is our duty to keep ourselves and those we serve safe through the education we provide and the modeling of safety-conscious behaviors. We do not want to get to the other side of this pandemic and wish that we had done more to keep our future generation of leaders safe and healthy.

While we are making decisions regarding the youth events we organize and manage (such as camps and 4-H project judging), we are deferring to local decision-makers and Governor DeWine’s administration on the events owned by others, such as county fairs. Our decision to cancel in-person 4-H activities and events through July 6 and summer camps, should not automatically imply that local county fairs are also canceled at this time. Please keep in mind that 4-H and our FFA colleagues support the education and development of youth, but the decision about whether fairs will occur is in the hands of others. This continues to be an evolving situation that will require some negotiation and monitoring depending on decisions. We will be ready should fairs move forward and to pivot if they are cancelled.

As we work through the impact of these decisions for 4-H activities and events in the weeks ahead, county OSU Extension 4-H professionals will share important updates and information with you as we develop and provide new online opportunities. We know the experiences will be different than we had hoped, yet we remain committed to working together to grow future generations of true leaders.

Yours in service to 4-H,

Kirk

 

Kirk Bloir, Ph.D.
Assistant Director, 4-H Youth Development

College of Food, Agricultural and Environmental Sciences – Ohio State University Extension

Nationwide & Ohio Farm Bureau 4-H Center, 2201 Fred Taylor Drive, Columbus, OH 43210

Backyard Poultry Production – From Tim McDermott, OSU Extension-Franklin County

There has been a resurgence of people who wish to raise their own food for personal and family food security, both with produce and with poultry.  I am increasingly getting asked about backyard poultry keeping so I wanted to put a resource together to assist you in getting the knowledge you need for safe, healthy and productive backyard poultry keeping.

FIRST THING:  Find out the regulations in your city or municipality that governs the keeping of backyard poultry and follow those rules carefully. 

Click the image to start the webinar.

 

CLICK HERE for Backyard Poultry Production Webinar  (apologies as it was zoombombed by a Cloverbud named Becky who added to the graphics in her own personal way)

We also have a number of Fact Sheets hosted on Ohioline to support poultry keeping:

There is also a fact sheet on Selling Eggs in Ohio: Marketing and Regulations that details safe handling, washing and storage of eggs.

If you need help finding a Veterinarian that sees poultry,  we have a list plus a map to assist you with that.

I will be hosting another webinar on Backyard Poultry Production for Ag Madness for OSU Extension on Wednesday April 29th at NOON.  CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS.

If you have questions regarding the keeping of poultry after watching the webinar then feel free to contact me at mcdermott.15@osu.edu

You can subscribe to Tim’s Franklin County Blog at: https://u.osu.edu/growingfranklin/

Kids in the Kitchen – From Coshocton County

Kids in the Kitchen – Facebook Live!

Join Emily Marrison and her children, ages 10 and 12, every Thursday in April at 11 a.m. for Kids in the Kitchen – Facebook Live. The Coshocton County Kids in the Kitchen program provides a great opportunity for you and your children to learn how to make kid-friendly recipes, together.

Time conflict? No worries, you can also watch and download the recorded programs and recipes from Ohio State University Extension’s Coshocton County Facebook page at facebook.com. Recipes thus far have included Carrot Cake Pancakes with Maple Cream Cheese Topping, Creamy Peanut Butter Dip, White Chicken Chili, Double Corn Bread, Microwaveable Omelet in a Mug and Chocolate Mug Cake.

Like all of us, school-aged children have been experiencing tremendous change over the past few weeks. Establishing and sticking to a routine is challenging for any family juggling school and possibly working from home. This virtual program could be just the thing to give your children more confidence in the kitchen and get some new healthy snack and meal ideas.

We hope you’ll join us live! Again, programs are every Thursday in April (2, 9, 16, 23 and 30). Check coshocton.osu.edu to view recorded programs.