Vermilion 4-H Sheep Club Report

Nora Newman Club Reporter

I never would have thought that my favourite part of 4-H was public speaking, but yet, here we are! At our January meeting, we had a communications workshop by Greg Barr. He had so many good tips and pointers to help us prepare for our upcoming speeches. Our Club Communications Day was held on February 12th, 2023 at Lakeland College. Overall, for some of us being very nervous, I think everyone did fantastic. We were all winners, but the placings were:

Junior Speeches: 1st - Jase Mudryk, 2nd - Ryan Sargeant

Junior Presentations: 1st - Owen Newman, 2nd - Madison Flanders

Intermediate Speeches: 1st - Nora Newman, 2nd - Mercedes Tobin

Intermediate Presentation: 1st - Katie Sargeant, 2nd - Mackenzie Flanders

Senior Speeches: 1st - Avery Corbiere

Many of our speakers were lucky enough to go on to District Communications, hosted in Lloydminster at their Lakeland College Campus. Our club did very well, with Owen, Nora and Avery all placing 1st in their categories and going on to Regionals in Wainwright later this month. We would like to thank AltaLink for being the sponsor for 4-H Communications again this year and all of the community members who volunteered to be judges!

On February 24th we had our monthly meeting and a workshop on tanning sheep hides. The workshop was done by Emily Henderson from Marwayne. It was so interesting to learn all the steps from taking a dirty sheep hide to a beautiful piece of art, like a sheepskin rug or the fluffy sheepskin pillow from Scotland in my room!

Our next meeting is on March 17th. We better remember to wear our 4-H green!

Lorna Hamilton Reporter

The Student-Managed Farm-Powered by New Holland will be holding their third annual Roundup sale on March 25.

According to the group of students the Roundup has grown to become the showcase for all the beef and equine animal science students, as its opportunity to market and exhibit top quality cattle and horses to the industry.

“There’s been a lot of excitement about this year’s sale from all members of the Purebred Unit, and we can’t wait to see you there!” commented Will Bradford, one of the Purebred Roundup coordinators.

On the beef side of the sale there will be 14 purebred Black Angus bulls, three purebred Red Angus bulls, four purebred Black Angus replacement heifers, and two pens of commercial replacement heifers.

“The bulls are chosen from a 40 purebred head cow herd and the commercial yearling heifers come from 120 cow herd. The bull and heifer pens are full of depth and quality, and every animal offers aspects that can benefit any commercial or purebred herd. In terms of genetics that have been selected and used, we think the animals offer an opportunity to get your hands on some industry leading Angus genetics.” commented Bradford.

Ty Mitchell from the Animal Science Equine program says that the eight 3-4 yearold AQHA geldings are purchased from trusted private breeders.

“The colt starting team has been putting in the hard work training these geldings to make versatile riding horses since the beginning of the academic year in September. The geldings have been exposed to obstacles and ropes since the start of their training, creating long-lasting confidence to carry through to their new homes,” commented Mitchell.

According to their sale catalog the team describes these geldings as accurately as possible, as their training level and suitability vary. The teams wish is to see their horses