This Week in Gillespie 4-H: December 4th

Monday - December 4th, 2023

Scholarship Training @ 6:00 PM at FHS Library (open to all High School students)

Tuesday - December 5th, 2023

Willow Creek 4-H Meeting @ 6:30 PM

Wednesday - December 6th, 2023
Meats Judging Practice @ 5:00 PM

Thursday - December 7th, 2023
No Events Scheduled

Friday - December 8th, 2023
No Events Scheduled

Saturday -December 9th, 2023
No Events Scheduled

Sunday - December 10th, 2023
No Events Scheduled

December 13th- Gillespie 4-H Christmas Party
December 15th- DEADLINE for Natural Resources Photography Contest
December 15th & 16th- Harper Livestock Show
January 3rd-6th- Gillespie County Youth Livestock Show & Sale
January 10th- DEADLINE for Dog Validations

Club Meetings

**** Meetings sometimes change after dates and locations have been posted. Please

always verify meetings with Club Managers****

New News

Quality Counts is required for county and major livestock show entries and must be completed at each grade level division (junior – grades 3-5, intermediate – grades 6-8, senior – grades 9-12). It does not have to be renewed every year.

EACH CHILD WILL NEED A DIFFERENT EMAIL ADDRESS

If you are having login or technical issues, please contact: learnonline@ag.tamu.edu.

Quality Counts Website

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PET FOOD DRIVE!!!

The Gillespie County 4-H Dog Project is holding a pet food drive through December 18th. The Fredericksburg Animal Shelter is in need of dog and cat food, pet shampoo, toys and treats! Let's remember to send a little love to our furry friends who don't have a family yet over the holidays! Drop off your donations at the Extension Office by December 18th!

Upcoming Photography Contest Information

NATURAL RESOURCES PHOTOGRAPHY CONTEST
We are excited to announce the continuation of the state-level Natural Resource Photography Contest. It is open to junior, intermediate, and senior members, and categories are focused solely on the Natural Resource project areas.

Here are a few key points:

Open contest (no qualifying required) to all counties
Open to juniors, intermediate, and senior age divisions
10 Natural Resource themed categories
Same scoring matrix and general rules as the state contest
Entry timeline is December 1-15
DEADLINE to Enter: December 15th
No late entries accepted

STATE PHOTOGRAPHY CONTEST

The rules for the 2023-2024 state contest are also attached. For those who may be new to Extension, the state 4-H photography contest is a senior-only qualifying contest where photos qualify directly from COUNTY to STATE. Each county may submit no more than 1 photo per category (15 total). As stated in the rules, counties are highly encouraged to have some type of selection process in place to determine which photos are eligible. The timeline for entry is April 1-15.

Key points:

Qualify from county level (district contests have no bearing on qualifications)
Open to senior age division only
15 categories (includes a new “Abandoned” theme for this year)
Entry timeline is April 1-15
No late entries accepted

Rules & Guidelines

Applications for youth to participate in the 2023 National 4-H Conference on April 19-24, 2024, in Arlington, VA will open on 4Honline on December 1, 2023. Youth must be 15 – 19 years old to attend. Click the button below for the announcement for Texas 4-H members and information about National 4-H Conference. Applications will close on December 15, 2023, the delegation will be announced early January 2023. Want to know more about Texas 4-H members experience? Click Hereto read a story about last years' Conference!

Youth Day

4-H, FFA, & FCCLA members from across South Central Texas gather at the San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo to showcase their talents, organization activities and project work. Members set up exhibits and hands-on activity booths for visitors and guests attending the Stock Show & Rodeo. An additional activity to this event is the Wagon & Wheelbarrow Parade. Youth Day is hosted by the San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo School Tours Committee on - Saturday February 10, 2024.

The link to register for youth day is https://www.sarodeo.com/f/75

Below is a schedule for the day's activities.

8:30 a.m.	Open for Exhibitors
10:00 a.m. - 4:30p.m.	Interactive & informative Exhibits and Activities
12:00 Noon	Youth Day Best of Show Awards Presented
2:30 p.m.	Line Up for Wagon & Wheelbarrow Parade
3:00 p.m.	Wagon & Wheelbarrow Parade
4:30 p.m.	Exhibits close

The deadline for entries is January 12th, 2024.

Include the total number of youth and adults that you expect to participate in activities and your exhibit. List the address of a school or county extension office as these are the only locations passes will be mailed. You are invited to participate in as many Youth Day activities as you would like but please note that there will only be one exhibit table for each club or chapter.

School Tour Guide Information

For more than 30 years, 4-Hers from around the state have volunteered to lead San Antonio-area K-3^rd grade youth around the San Antonio Stock Show Grounds. It doesn’t matter what county you are from, you can still volunteer to be a tour guide! The dates for these opportunities are:

· Tuesday, February 13, 2024

· Wednesday, February 14, 2024

· Thursday, February 15, 2024

· Friday, February 16, 2024

· Tuesday, February 20, 2024

· Wednesday, February 21, 2024

· Thursday, February 22, 2024

· Friday, February 23, 2024

The Website to register your youths to be a tour guide is https://www.sarodeo.com/f/124 On here, you will select 4-H or FFA, and select “tour guide”…the lunch bunch option are typically filled by SA Area FCCLA programs. I am planning on doing a training in January for agents and youths that are not familiar with the school tour guide program. Please note, that for your 4-Hers to be eligible for the SALE school tours scholarship, they MUST participate as a tour guide! Additionally, if your youths show and place an animal for auction, you can put their name on our list in the Freeman Coliseum, and the committee will try to do an add-on.

The School Tours Program offers students a wonderful opportunity to practice the leadership skills that 4-H, FFA, and FCCLA strives to develop in our youth. As we prepare for the upcoming San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo, we are looking for enthusiastic, responsible students in grades 9 -12 (Special exceptions can be made for deserving 8^th grade students) to take part in this unique leadership opportunity. Your students will grow by being tour guides to younger children and by educating them on agriculture and its’ importance to our daily lives.

Please read the following information prior to filling out the entire School Tours Guide Registration Form, for more information or questions about the School Tours Program please email schooltours@sarodeo.com

Tour dates are assigned on a first come, first serve basis
Be sure to provide us with the number of students you can commit on the days you chose to volunteer
Students must commit to volunteer from 7:45 am to 2:30 pm on their tour day
Do not schedule students on the day they sift, classify, or show an animal
Additional correspondence will be e-mailed after we receive your initial commitment
Final count and list of student names is due by 5:00 pm on January 12, 2024
If you have a senior who cannot attend your tour date, we will work with your student's schedule to ensure they are included in all scholarship opportunities
Remember to make arrangements to have your students excused from school for their tour date(s)
Registration is handled by the County Agent or Advisor/Sponsor for FFA, 4H and FCCLA
Parents, DO NOT contact School Tours to register your student
Registration Deadline is December 15, 2023 at 5:00 pm

Livestock Corner

Broilers

Spread wing bands around day 7. Video : https://youtu.be/eFJU00ifcxA (https://youtu.be/eFJU00ifcxA)

Pick one day each week and weigh and record weights. Our family does this on Sunday afternoons. Ten bird average weight 5.47oz on day six.

Lift heat lamps to 21 inches and approximate temperature should be 80F from day 8-14.

Sheep & Goats

Working on showmanship!

Working on showmanship is a tough thing to do as if you are practicing wrong you can create bad habits, not get desired results! Showing sheep and goats requires the most physically. Here are a few things to think about if you are struggling. As always best thing to do is set up an appointment with Brad or I for help if your struggling or just learning.

1) Don’t pull! Sheep and goats are prey animals meaning their natural instinct is to flee from danger. You are the danger - if you are pulling on their head they are most likely going to fight and pull back.

2) Get in front! It is important that you are making contact with the chest/shoulder pocket with your leg. If your hips are to not in front of the animal you can’t get in the right position.

3) Head up, Head Back! If your head is not up and back it is hard to get your legs in the correct spot because the animals head and neck in the way. Remember don’t pull, just use your hands to guide that head up and back creating 90 degree angles where their shoulder meets their neck.

4) Square! Animals legs should be set square.

If you ever need help with your project please contact our office and set up an appointment with Brad or Emily.

4-H Spotlight

This week's spotlight highlights our 4-Hers who attended the National 4-H conference in Washington D.C.! Jace Raab and Brylie Roeder did a great job of representing D10 and Texas 4-H!

If you have someone you would like to nominate for 4-H spotlight please email emily.grant@ag.tamu.edu

STAY CONNECTED WITH GILLESPIE COUNTY 4-H

There are ALOT of opportunities available for 4-H youth on a county, district, and state level and through external organizations. We do our best to keep you updated with these opportunities through the following methods! If you have any questions please let us know.

The members of Texas A&M AgriLife will provide equal opportunities in programs and activities, education, and employment to all persons regardless of race, color, sex, religion, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, veteran status, sexual orientation or gender identity and will strive to achieve full and equal employment opportunity throughout Texas A&M AgriLife. The Texas A&M University System, U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the County Commissioners Courts of Texas Cooperating

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