4-H

Illness or injury to a show animal may be preventable by following a few guidelines. Providing a clean and safe environment and properly feeding, watering, and vaccinating animals will help to reduce the risks of experiencing illnesses and injuries. Owners should also learn how to identify signs of health problems, such as sudden changes in behavior or appearance, and prepare a first aid kit for use in the event of an emergency. Also, being familiar with emergency treatment guidelines will help owners protect themselves, prevent further injury to the animal, and properly administer care to the animal if appropriate.

"Jean Jems" is a simple sewing project guide for 4-H youth. All projects utilized recycled blue jeans to allow youth to learn sewing skills on inexpensive fabric. Projects advance from very simple to more involved.

A Sports Ethics Program is a companion piece to the Josepheson Institute's Character Counts program. Utilizing the same principals as their Pursuing Victory with Honor sports ethics program, 6-4-6 is targeted at youth ages 5-13. Sportsmanship, teamwork and fun are the focus of this easy "user friendly" set of lessons and manual. It is designed to meet the needs of volunteer coaches and increase positive parental involvement in youth sporting events. Portable challenge games that focus on the six pillars of character begin each practice and are the basis for the program. Parents, coaches, and youth sign codes of conduct at the beginning of the sports season to establish expectations for all.

• 6-4-6 Sports Ethics Program
• Caring
• Citizenship
• Fairness
• Respect
• Responsibility
• Trustworthiness

Animal skulls can tell us many things about creatures and how they once survived in their natural environment. This publication explains some of the characteristics of skulls that we use to tell us about how the animals lived. Topics include skull diagrams, activity lesson plans, suggestions for future learning activities and sources of animal skulls.

Sometimes, what should be an enjoyable and challenging experience of showing a project animal becomes a traumatic experience which demoralizes youth participants. Major reasons for these calamities are lack of preparation, inadequate knowledge of how to prepare, selection of show animals that the youth is physically incapable of handling, and/or a lack of time commitment from the youth participant. The objective of this paper is to provide information to help reduce the occurrence of show ring fiascos.

Before you ever purchase a show animal, decide if you have the ability to commit to the minimum of 1 to 1¹⁄₂ hours per day required in caring for a show animal. Also, enlist the help of qualified volunteer leaders in selecting a market animal and in designing a feeding, handling, and animal health regimen.