Month: March 2025

Livestock Housing Agreements – Due April 1

Do you house your 4-H or FFA Livestock at another location that is different from your home address?

Here is the form: Livestock Housing Agreement

This form applies to all livestock projects (market or breeding) in which the animal(s) is housed away from the exhibitor’s home. Housing away from home is defined as “any amount of time where an animal(s) is taken care of away from the exhibitor’s home location with the exception of shows/exhibitions.”

If the animal is shown in another exhibition, the exhibitor must not show a breeding project as a market project
or visa versa.

Any exhibitor found to be housing their animal away from home without a completed form will loose the right to
show and sell any project at the Waterford, Washington County, and Barlow Fairs for the duration of the project
year.

Form is due to the Extension Office, 1115 Gilman Ave., Marietta by April 1st of
the project year. One form each year per project.

Quality Assurance Training – Session #2 – April 5

Please remember that QUALITY ASSURANCE is mandatory for all youth (taking market livestock and lactating dairy cattle/goat projects) and one parent/guardian must attend in order to be eligible to participate in junior fair events, shows and sales at the fairs.

Test-out Option – Youth ages 12-14 and 15-18 may participate in the test-out option. The test will be offered immediately following each QA session.

Looking for study material to prepare for the test: https://washington.osu.edu/sites/washington/files/imce/Quality%20Assurance%20Test%20Study%20Guide_1.pdf

Horse Immunization Clinic – April 19

The Washington County Saddle Horse Committee is hosting a Horse Immunization Clinic on Saturday, April 19, 2025.  The clinic will be held at the Washington County Fair Grounds – Horse barn.  Members must contact Dr. John Groah’s office prior to the clinic to schedule the vaccinations needed.  Dr. Groah may be reached at 740-962-2665. All 4-H members exhibiting at fair this year are required to have immunizations and a negative Coggins test.  Please refer to the 2025 horse packet for details.

Clinic Flier: Immunization Clinic 25

Register here: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70A094EADA72CA1FD0-horse

Horse Clinic Planned for June 8

The Washington County 4-H Saddle Horse Committee is hosting a horse clinic on Saturday, June 8, 2025.  4-H members may bring their horses and work with clinician Mike Schmidt.  The event will be held at the Washington County Fairgrounds. The Clinic will begin at 9am and conclude at 2 pm.  4-H members need to wear appropriate attire including helmets.

Register to attend here: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70A094EADA72CA1FD0-55832435-horse

Bull’s Eye Fundraiser at Applebees

Marietta Applebees will be partnering with Bull’s Eye 4-H Club on April 2 and will contribute 25% of your order to support the club. Mention or show this flyer to your server when you place and order or a to-go order.

The promotion is good for all day at their Pike Street location.

Ohio 4-H Food Challenge

Date: August 1, 2025

Location:  Nationwide & Ohio Farm Bureau 4-H Center

A new opportunity for youth to build skills, develop a passion for food and nutrition programming, and have fun with a team of 4-Hers! The Ohio 4-H food challenge will allow 4-Hers to reach new heights with just some mystery ingredients, a pantry of food and imagination.

Links in the Email:

Ohio 4-H Food Challenge Cooking Kit Order Form: https://go.osu.edu/o4hcookkits

The one contest will have a planning, cooking, and presentation portion that will all factor into the final score. There will be a Junior and Senior level contest. The winner of the senior contest will be selected to represent Ohio at the National 4-H  Food Challenge Contest during the Texas State Fair. This event often takes place in late September to early October.

Contest Kits AVAILABLE:

To reduce costs, we are offering Food Challenge Kits at half price with the help of the Ohio 4-H Foundation. We are offering 1 kit for each county at a cost of $100. If counties are interested in purchasing a kit for an additional team, we will also be offering a second kit at full price. The kit includes a plethora of kitchen supplies and will be EVERYTHING you need to get started. The order form is available at go.osu.edu/o4hcookkits. You must purchase kits by March 31, so we can get you kits ASAP!

Registration Information:

                Registration will take place between May 1 and July 1. A link will be available at a late date

  • Each county may enter one (1) junior and one (1) senior team of two (2) – four (4)contestants. The team may be selected by any procedure that the county deems to be appropriate. Each contestant must be currently enrolled in a 4-H project, a member in good standing with the county they represent.
  • This contest is limited to 18 junior teams and 18 senior teams and will be filled on a first come, first served basis. See Registration for additional details.
  • Junior Contestants must be at least 8 years of age and in third grade and under 14years of age as of January 1st of the current year. Junior Contestants are eligible to compete in this contest in subsequent years.
  • Senior Contestants must be at least 14 years of age on January 1st of the current year and not be more than 18 years of age on January 1st of the current year.

Rules and Guidelines:

Attached are the Ohio 4-H Food Challenge Rules for 2025, as well as the score sheets.

ohio_food_challenge_scorecard_presentation_2025

ohio_food_challenge_scorecard_preparation_2025

Ohio 4-H Food Challenge Rules 2025

Glossary of Feed Analysis Terms

This article was posted on the OSU Small Rumenant Team Blog: https://u.osu.edu/sheep/2025/03/18/a-glossary-of-feed-analysis-terms-and-how-to-interpret-them/

Haley Campbell, Lecturer, The Ohio State University ATI

As we get closer to spring grazing, we’re itching to put our sheep out to pasture to enjoy the lush growth carpeting the fields. However, at least in the Midwest, we still have a few weeks before pastures are ready to be trodden down by cloven feet. In the meantime, the sheep can get by on hay, stored forages, or grains. But do you know what nutrients are in those feeds? Feed companies already give nutrient contents and those can be found on the feed tag. Forages are another story – visual appraisal can only get us so far. By submitting a forage sample (hay, silage, baleage, fresh pasture, etc.) to an analysis lab, like Rock River, DairyLand Laboratories, DairyOne, and others, we can accurately know what nutrients we can provide to our sheep. When those results come back, they are filled with a plethora of terms and acronyms that can be difficult to interpret without any background knowledge. Below, I’ve picked a few that are usually the most important to know and understand.

Dry Matter (DM)– the amount of feed in feed! It is the percent of nutrients left behind after all moisture/water has been removed from the feed. This is what all other nutrient percentages are based on. Dry matter is used for diet formulations to eliminate the variability of moisture in feeds.

As Fed (AF) – Sometimes written “as-is” or “as provided;” this is the feed as you would offer it to the animal and contains all moisture.

Crude Protein (CP) – the total protein in the feed based on the percent nitrogen as determined in the lab.

Neutral Detergent Fiber (NDF) – The full fiber fraction of the feed that includes cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin which are found in the cell wall of plants. NDF is an indicator of intake; more NDF, less intake. Grasses should have an NDF no more than 55% and legumes no more than 45%.

Acid Detergent Fiber (ADF) – A portion of the NDF and only includes cellulose and hemicellulose and estimates digestibility.

Lignin – The indigestible portion of fiber that increases the “woodiness” of a plant. Lignin will increase as plants get older (more mature) to provide more support and structure to a larger plant. If a forage has more lignin, it is not as digestible.

Non-Fiber Carbohydrate (NFC) or Non-Structural Carbohydrate (NSC) – The starches, sugars, and pectin found in a plant. This value indicates the amount of quickly digestible/fermentable nutrients in the feed. Greater NFC/NSC means there is more energy in that feed.

Neutral Detergent Fiber Digestibility (NDFD) – How much NDF is digested after a set amount of time; usually 48, 72, 12, or 240 hours. This shows how much fiber can be digested in the rumen of the animal. Usually the 48-hour value is referenced when discussing feed quality. The greater the value, the more digestible. Animals will be able to get more nutrients from that feed.

Undigestible Neutral Detergent Fiber (uNDF) – The amount of fiber that is unable to be digested after 240 hours (10 days).

Total Digestible Nutrients (TDN) – The portion of nutrients that can actually be digested and used by the animal. Hopefully very high!

Net Energy for Maintenance, Lactation, or Gain (NEM, NEL, NEG) – The amount of energy that can be used for maintenance of the animal, milk production, or gain (for finishing or growing animals)

For more information, check out:

Oklahoma State University: Forage Quality Interpretations – https://extension.okstate.edu/fact-sheets/forage-quality-interpretations.html

List of National Forage Testing Association Certified Labs – https://www.foragetesting.org/_files/ugd/24f64f_3e42dad1cfd74595979b18d9e3e3ed63.pdf

Local Feed Clinics to be Held in April

Route 7 Feed & Supply would like to invite our county 4-H and FFA members and families to attend one or all of their clinics:

  • FOC Feed Clinic – Mineral Wells, WV Tuesday, April 8th at 6:30pm
  • FOC Feed Clinic – Albany, OH Wednesday, April 9th at 6:30pm
  • Tribute Feed Clinic – Albany, OH Wednesday, April 9th at 6:30pm

Route 7 will be providing pizza, snacks, drinks and prizes at each clinic! If you have any questions or are looking to RSVP please call 740-667-0085.  RSVP appreciated, but not required.

Attached are the flyers

FOC Clinic – Alexander 4-9-25

FOC Clinic – Wood County 4-8-25 (1)

Tribute Clinic – Alexander 4-9-25

Experience the Outdoors – May 17

Saturday, May 17 at 4-H Camp Hervida

Experience The Outdoors is:
● an educational program in which to learn various outdoor skills.
● designed primarily for women and an opportunity for anyone 14 years of age or older.
● held in a nurturing environment to foster success and develop camaraderie.
● $40 for registration, t-shirt, refreshments and lunch.
● an exciting, informative, fun-filled day! . . . . . . . Rain or shine!

Flyer: ETO Flyer 2025

All Day Country Store open! Tickets, available all day.
8:00 am Registration & Light Refreshments
8:20 Welcome & Program Overview
8:30 Group Picture
9:00 Session 1 (check flyer for descriptions)
10:45 Session 2
12:30 pm Lunch
1:30 Session 3
3:15 Session 4
5:00 Country Store Drawing & Evaluation

Ohio State Fair Updates & Possession Deadlines

Remember in order to exhibit at OSF:
• QA completed 45 days prior to opening day of exhibition
• Washington County QA completion deadline is June 1, 2025

Online Entries
• All Junior Exhibitors must enter their projects online.
• No late market or breeding junior entries
• Schedule notes:
• All grand drives will remain in the barns
• Horses, Goats (boer and dairy) and Llamas/Alpacas will take place before the fair
• Dogs will conduct their show in June

BEEF BREEDING
• Crossbred breeding heifers will be required to submit a DNA packet with 840 EID tag information, reach out to
Andi Hershey for packets (a.hershey@expo.ohio.gov )
• Due Date: Postmarked by June 1st