Around the States

Around the States

TEXAS

Youth Program Returns to Sheep Expo

Hands-on instruction will be the capstone for this year’s Texas Sheep and Goat Expo Youth Program sponsored by the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service on Aug. 18 at the San Angelo Fairgrounds, organizers said.

Marty Vahlenkamp, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service agent in Runnels County and a program coordinator, said the program will end after lunch with a skillathon-style contest.

“The value of this training stems directly from the hands-on knowledge youth participants will receive to give them more insight into what goes into production agriculture in the sheep and goat industry,” Vahlenkamp said.

The youth program is part of the Texas Sheep and Goat Expo set for Aug. 17 and 18 in the First Community Spur Arena at the fairgrounds. The Texas Sheep and Goat Expo – now in its fourth year – is billed as the industry’s largest, most comprehensive educational event in Texas. Aside from the youth component, the expo features a host of topics addressing wool and hair sheep, meat goats, club lambs and Angora goats.

“This is only the second time we’ve offered the youth program, but we are very excited about this year’s event based on the great turnout and positive comments stemming from last year’s event,” Vahlenkamp said.

Vahlenkamp said the Sheep Skillathon is a knowledge-based competition for 4-H and FFA youth, which is meant to add to their educational experience by incorporating production and industry perspectives. The San Antonio Exposition will award a $10,000 scholarship to the winner of the contest.

To register, call Vahlenhamp at 325-365-2219 or email [email protected].

CALIFORNIA

Sheep Specialist Position Open

The University of California Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources, in collaboration with the School of Veterinary Medicine, UC Davis, is seeking a full-time assistant specialist in cooperative extension in the area of sheep and goat herd health and production.

The focus of this statewide position is sheep and goat health, welfare and production for California’s diverse sheep and goat industries, such as: commercial production (e.g., meat, fiber and dairy sheep and goats), targeted grazing for vegetation control (e.g., fire suppression, browse reduction, vineyard and orchard weed management and invasive species control), youth projects (e.g., 4-H, FFA, club lamb/goat), and small and backyard holdings.

To begin the application process, interested applicants should register online at https://recruit.ucdavis.edu and read the full position description.

Applications should be submitted by Aug. 17.