June 2014
Dear DFC club members,
Summer time is finally here!!! This gives you more time to work with your calves and to help Mom and Dad around the house and farm. The next meeting for the Dairy Feeder Calf Club will be on Thursday, June 19, 2014. This is going to be a work night for our barn and concession stand. Most of what we are going to be doing is working on the landscaping around the barn and concession stand. We will need lots of help. Please bring your rakes, scoop shovels, pruners, trash bags, etc. We will begin at 7:00 pm.
If you are having problems with a calf or have lost a calf, please let Mike know ASAP (596-1040). Some families weighed extra calves and would be willing to help you out.
ESSAYS!! are due on the 19th!! If you did not participate in either our May service project or the June service project, you need to turn in an essay! Essay topic and length requirements are posted on the website. Also due is all stall requests.
CONCESSION STAND!! We will have sign up sheets out again at our June meeting and would like to see EVERYONE sign up for at least one shift. It is important that we get all the shifts filled up. Sign up will be on a first come, first serve basis. If you have a certain day that works better than others, make sure you get signed up. And if you are able and willing to work more than one shift, please do. You never know who you will get to know better and what friendships may be formed!
Graduating seniors….There is a dairy feeder calf club scholarship that is available for you. We will be giving out two scholarships and forms can be found on our website. The application is due July 1st to Mike Lee.
Important: Regarding the auction program, we have learned that some families with more than 2 parents can have strong feelings concerning which parents are listed in the program and in what order. Parents will be listed in the following format: (Mike & Becky Lee). If you wish it to be listed any other way, (for example: Mike Lee & Becky Lee or vice versa) please let Erica know asap.
If your calf is not dehorned and/or castrated yet, you need to get it done soon! Now that fly season is in full swing, watch your calves closely for signs of maggots and infection.
Hope you are working with your calf everyday.
See you on the 19th.
Your Leaders
Dear DFC club members,
Summer time is finally here!!! This gives you more time to work with your calves and to help Mom and Dad around the house and farm. The next meeting for the Dairy Feeder Calf Club will be on Thursday, June 19, 2014. This is going to be a work night for our barn and concession stand. Most of what we are going to be doing is working on the landscaping around the barn and concession stand. We will need lots of help. Please bring your rakes, scoop shovels, pruners, trash bags, etc. We will begin at 7:00 pm.
If you are having problems with a calf or have lost a calf, please let Mike know ASAP (596-1040). Some families weighed extra calves and would be willing to help you out.
ESSAYS!! are due on the 19th!! If you did not participate in either our May service project or the June service project, you need to turn in an essay! Essay topic and length requirements are posted on the website. Also due is all stall requests.
CONCESSION STAND!! We will have sign up sheets out again at our June meeting and would like to see EVERYONE sign up for at least one shift. It is important that we get all the shifts filled up. Sign up will be on a first come, first serve basis. If you have a certain day that works better than others, make sure you get signed up. And if you are able and willing to work more than one shift, please do. You never know who you will get to know better and what friendships may be formed!
Graduating seniors….There is a dairy feeder calf club scholarship that is available for you. We will be giving out two scholarships and forms can be found on our website. The application is due July 1st to Mike Lee.
Important: Regarding the auction program, we have learned that some families with more than 2 parents can have strong feelings concerning which parents are listed in the program and in what order. Parents will be listed in the following format: (Mike & Becky Lee). If you wish it to be listed any other way, (for example: Mike Lee & Becky Lee or vice versa) please let Erica know asap.
If your calf is not dehorned and/or castrated yet, you need to get it done soon! Now that fly season is in full swing, watch your calves closely for signs of maggots and infection.
Hope you are working with your calf everyday.
See you on the 19th.
Your Leaders
Dear Dairy Feeder Calf Club members, April 2014
Our next meeting will be this Thursday, April 17, 2014 at 7:00 PM in the ECCC building, with registration beginning at 6:45. Our speaker for the night is Robert Kelly. Mr. Kelly works in the Elkhart County Purdue Extension Office with the 4-H Youth Development. Mike will talk about the premise ID numbers and papers that members need to get. If you have not paid your club dues, please come prepared to take care of this! Don’t forget you need to have your dues paid before you can draw your auction number at the May weigh in. Dues this month are $12.00. We are getting new t-shirts this year!!! We need to know your size. Make sure we get your size either at the meeting or at the weigh in. Remember, these shirts are the ones we wear during our show and auction. Each member gets one. We are offering a sweatshirt also that you can purchase. More details on that at the meeting.
Online enrollment is due today, April 15!! Any enrollments received after today will be assessed a late fee in addition to the state fee. Enrollment will not be accepted after June 1st. Check out the website for more information on how to get signed up!! www.dairyfeedercalfclub.com
Do you have your calf? If you are having trouble locating a calf you can give Mike (596-1040) a call. He will help the best that he can.
We would like to give a big THANK YOU to all the members that sold over 3870 geraniums this year. Our top seller was Hunter Mast. He sold a total of 800 geraniums!! Way to go Hunter!! If you sold geraniums, don’t forget they will arrive at the fairgrounds on Wednesday, April 23. All geraniums must be picked up next to the big commercial building on Wednesday, April 23 from 3 PM - 7 PM.
Thank you to those that voted for our queen candidate. Emily Sheets will be representing us in this years queen contest. Good luck Emily!!
IMPORTANT! Our calf weigh-in date is Saturday May 3, 7:30 AM to 11 AM at the fairgrounds. We will be holding our weigh-in at the Dairy Feeder Calf Barn. There are many activities going on at the fairgrounds that day. Last year we had some traffic issues, so we will be working with the fair to have specific directions on traffic flow. Watch for signs and PLEASE obey them!! All DFC club members are required to bring their calves on this date to be weighed and ear tagged. If you do not have transportation for your calf to the fairgrounds, ask another club member or a neighbor to help you. It is your responsibility to have your calves there. There is no minimum or maximum weight for calves at weigh-in. Each member can only tag two calves for the county fair. Digital pictures, which have worked very well for us in the past, will be taken again this year. Also, we will be drawing auction numbers at the weigh in. Don’t forget to draw yours!
There will be three screeners at the weigh in looking for crossbred calves. If they decide your calf is a crossbred animal, you will need to talk with Mike Lee. If this is the only calf you have, you will be allowed to bring it to the fair and show it in the over-weight class. You will, however, not be able to sell this calf in the auction. Mike will discuss this more at our April meeting.
If you are planning on showing at the State Fair, six calves may be tagged total. Be sure to tell the workers at weigh-in if you are planning to take a calf to State Fair so the proper paperwork can be filled out. You may show the same calf at the county & state fairs. If you do this, you are not allowed to sell that calf at the county fair. Ken Metzler will be helping you if you have state fair calves.
Once again, Milford Animal Clinic will be available at weigh-in to give your calves their vaccination shot, dehorning, and castration. The costs of these services are as follows: Dehorn $10, Castrate $10, vaccinate $5, Deworm $2.50, Implanting $2.50. Dehorning, castration, vaccinations, and moving calves to & from weigh-in each puts stress on calves, so we would suggest not doing all of these at weigh-in, especially if your calf has been sick. Calves need to be castrated and dehorned early enough for them to be completely healed by fair week. If you are planning to have these services done, please come prepared to pay. If you have not paid your dues, please come prepared to pay twice!!
ESSAY QUESTION or COMMUNITY WORK PROJECT: Thanks for being patient with us this year with regards to the essay question. We have decided to try something new. You have the option of either completing this years essay question OR being involved in one of the two listed community work projects. We will discuss these more at the meeting. Please ask questions if you have any.
**Community Work Projects**
1. May 17, 2014 from 9 to 11am. with Church Community Services. We will be working in their community gardens. They have several gardens. Our location depends on how many sign up for this day. There will be a sign up sheet at the April meeting and at the weigh in. You will be contacted with the location and specific time once we have that finalized.
2. June 14 or 21, 2014 at the fairgrounds. The fair board has multiple projects for us to work on. They will be getting back with us to finalize which date and a time.
**Essay Question**
What can you do as a 4-Her and dairy feeder calf owner to inform others about your project and how it relates to agriculture and the food chain. Length requirements will be listed on the website. Essays are due at the June meeting!!
Congratulations to the 10 year members: Austin Christner, Brittnie Evans, Steve Hooley, Natalie Hostetler, Tyler Hostetler, Zachary Kropf, Reece Miller, Kaitlin Rohr, Emily Sheets, Jacie Smeltzer, Kimberly Swank, Lauren Wenger, and Sara Yontz. Someone emailed me the other month about missing them on this list I can’t find that email!!! If that was you, please shoot me another email. And if we have missed anyone else, please let us know.
We hope to see you on the 17th.
-Mike, Trent, Ken, Erica, Brad, Tim and Dale
Our next meeting will be this Thursday, April 17, 2014 at 7:00 PM in the ECCC building, with registration beginning at 6:45. Our speaker for the night is Robert Kelly. Mr. Kelly works in the Elkhart County Purdue Extension Office with the 4-H Youth Development. Mike will talk about the premise ID numbers and papers that members need to get. If you have not paid your club dues, please come prepared to take care of this! Don’t forget you need to have your dues paid before you can draw your auction number at the May weigh in. Dues this month are $12.00. We are getting new t-shirts this year!!! We need to know your size. Make sure we get your size either at the meeting or at the weigh in. Remember, these shirts are the ones we wear during our show and auction. Each member gets one. We are offering a sweatshirt also that you can purchase. More details on that at the meeting.
Online enrollment is due today, April 15!! Any enrollments received after today will be assessed a late fee in addition to the state fee. Enrollment will not be accepted after June 1st. Check out the website for more information on how to get signed up!! www.dairyfeedercalfclub.com
Do you have your calf? If you are having trouble locating a calf you can give Mike (596-1040) a call. He will help the best that he can.
We would like to give a big THANK YOU to all the members that sold over 3870 geraniums this year. Our top seller was Hunter Mast. He sold a total of 800 geraniums!! Way to go Hunter!! If you sold geraniums, don’t forget they will arrive at the fairgrounds on Wednesday, April 23. All geraniums must be picked up next to the big commercial building on Wednesday, April 23 from 3 PM - 7 PM.
Thank you to those that voted for our queen candidate. Emily Sheets will be representing us in this years queen contest. Good luck Emily!!
IMPORTANT! Our calf weigh-in date is Saturday May 3, 7:30 AM to 11 AM at the fairgrounds. We will be holding our weigh-in at the Dairy Feeder Calf Barn. There are many activities going on at the fairgrounds that day. Last year we had some traffic issues, so we will be working with the fair to have specific directions on traffic flow. Watch for signs and PLEASE obey them!! All DFC club members are required to bring their calves on this date to be weighed and ear tagged. If you do not have transportation for your calf to the fairgrounds, ask another club member or a neighbor to help you. It is your responsibility to have your calves there. There is no minimum or maximum weight for calves at weigh-in. Each member can only tag two calves for the county fair. Digital pictures, which have worked very well for us in the past, will be taken again this year. Also, we will be drawing auction numbers at the weigh in. Don’t forget to draw yours!
There will be three screeners at the weigh in looking for crossbred calves. If they decide your calf is a crossbred animal, you will need to talk with Mike Lee. If this is the only calf you have, you will be allowed to bring it to the fair and show it in the over-weight class. You will, however, not be able to sell this calf in the auction. Mike will discuss this more at our April meeting.
If you are planning on showing at the State Fair, six calves may be tagged total. Be sure to tell the workers at weigh-in if you are planning to take a calf to State Fair so the proper paperwork can be filled out. You may show the same calf at the county & state fairs. If you do this, you are not allowed to sell that calf at the county fair. Ken Metzler will be helping you if you have state fair calves.
Once again, Milford Animal Clinic will be available at weigh-in to give your calves their vaccination shot, dehorning, and castration. The costs of these services are as follows: Dehorn $10, Castrate $10, vaccinate $5, Deworm $2.50, Implanting $2.50. Dehorning, castration, vaccinations, and moving calves to & from weigh-in each puts stress on calves, so we would suggest not doing all of these at weigh-in, especially if your calf has been sick. Calves need to be castrated and dehorned early enough for them to be completely healed by fair week. If you are planning to have these services done, please come prepared to pay. If you have not paid your dues, please come prepared to pay twice!!
ESSAY QUESTION or COMMUNITY WORK PROJECT: Thanks for being patient with us this year with regards to the essay question. We have decided to try something new. You have the option of either completing this years essay question OR being involved in one of the two listed community work projects. We will discuss these more at the meeting. Please ask questions if you have any.
**Community Work Projects**
1. May 17, 2014 from 9 to 11am. with Church Community Services. We will be working in their community gardens. They have several gardens. Our location depends on how many sign up for this day. There will be a sign up sheet at the April meeting and at the weigh in. You will be contacted with the location and specific time once we have that finalized.
2. June 14 or 21, 2014 at the fairgrounds. The fair board has multiple projects for us to work on. They will be getting back with us to finalize which date and a time.
**Essay Question**
What can you do as a 4-Her and dairy feeder calf owner to inform others about your project and how it relates to agriculture and the food chain. Length requirements will be listed on the website. Essays are due at the June meeting!!
Congratulations to the 10 year members: Austin Christner, Brittnie Evans, Steve Hooley, Natalie Hostetler, Tyler Hostetler, Zachary Kropf, Reece Miller, Kaitlin Rohr, Emily Sheets, Jacie Smeltzer, Kimberly Swank, Lauren Wenger, and Sara Yontz. Someone emailed me the other month about missing them on this list I can’t find that email!!! If that was you, please shoot me another email. And if we have missed anyone else, please let us know.
We hope to see you on the 17th.
-Mike, Trent, Ken, Erica, Brad, Tim and Dale
March 2014
Dear Dairy Feeder Calf Club members and families,
Hello! Our next meeting will be on Thursday, March 20, 2014 at 7:00 pm in the ECCC Building at the fairgrounds, with registration beginning at 6:45 pm. We will meet in the Showalter Room. We are very excited for our program next Thursday night. We will be having Brett Eastburn, a motivational speaker, come speak to us. Brett was born with no arms and no legs. While in school, he played baseball, football and basketball. He is an accomplished swimmer, was a member of his schools wrestling team, has earned a green belt in martial arts, and is a nationally recognized artist. Brett has done over 3000 presentations worldwide and is also a standup comedian. We encourage everyone to come. If you can only make one meeting this year, this is the one!! You are welcome to invite a friend too.
We will be voting on our fair queen representative at this meeting. LADIES…if you are interested and are 16 years old or older, please come to the meeting. Or if you can’t attend, call Mike (596-1040) and let him know you would like to be put on the ballot.
Online enrollment is due April 15. If you have not registered yet, be sure to take care of it as soon as possible. You can access a link to the website by visiting our website. A $15 non-refundable State Program Fee per child is due at the time of enrollment with a maximum of $45 per family for 3 or more children. There is no fee for Exploring 4-H youth. Enrollment and payment of fees are due by April 15, 2014. Enrollments received after April 15th will be assessed a late fee in addition to the state fee. Enrollment will not be accepted after June 1st! Please call the Purdue Extension Office (574-533-0554) if you have any questions. ***NOTE: The $15 non-refundable State Program Fee per child does not take the place of regular club dues that the DFC Club collects.
For those of you who have yet to pay the club dues, it has gone up $1.00 this month. The $11.00 dues from each member to help cover club expenses and auction costs can be paid at this meeting. So please come prepared to take care of this. You will not be able to draw an auction number at the May Weigh-In until your dues are paid! If you wish to pay by check, make it payable to: Dairy Feeder Calf Club.
Now is a good time to get your calves if you don’t already have them. If you are having trouble locating calves, you can call Mike (596-1040). He will be glad to help you if he can. Once again we want you to know …… Your Dairy Feeder Calf Advisory board has expressed some concern about the weights of the calves at fair and the lack of care some calves are receiving after show day. That being said, they would like to help guide you. THIS IS NOT A NEW RULE, but a good minimum weight at our May weigh in should be between 135-150 lbs. They encourage you to get your calves early so you can reach this weight range by weigh in. Like it is stated, we are not going to have a minimum weight at weigh in, but we would like to see bigger and healthier calves at fair time. If you have any questions on this, please don’t be afraid to call one of the leaders or advisory board members.
Geranium order forms are posted on the DFC website. EVERY 4-Her listed on a stall request form must sell one flat (18 flowers) or donate $10.00 to the club. This year pink, red and White geranium plants can be ordered. The plants cost $1.25 each. Our club gets $.25 for every plant sold. Collect the money when orders are taken. Checks should be made payable to the Dairy Feeder Calf Club. Orders and money need to be turned in to Jodi Evans by APRIL 4. We need to write one big check when we turn our order into the extension office. So please have your money and orders turned in on time! Saves us a lot of headaches! Geranium pickup is on Wednesday April 23 at the fairgrounds. Top three sellers will be rewarded with choice of auction order, 1st choice of stalling or 2nd choice of stalling. Go out and sell!!
Our calf weigh in date is Saturday, May 3, 7:30 to 11:00 am at the fairgrounds in the Feeder Calf barn. Every calf must be brought in to be pictured, weighed, and ear tagged. If needed a veterinarian will be on hand to dehorn, castrate, vaccinate, deworm and implant. Also, we will be drawing auction numbers at the weigh in. Don’t forget to draw yours!
Congratulations to the 10 year members: Austin Christner, Brittnie Evans, Steve Hooley, Natalie Hostetler, Tyler Hostetler, Zachary Kropf, Reece Miller, Kaitlin Rohr, Emily Sheets, Jacie Smeltzer, Kimberly Swank, Lauren Wenger, and Sara Yontz. If we have missed anyone, please let us know.
Remember to check out our website regularly! It has lots of good information! www.dairyfeedercalfclub.com
We hope to see you on the 20th!!
-Mike, Trent, Ken, Erica, Brad, Tim and Dale
Dear Dairy Feeder Calf Club members and families,
Hello! Our next meeting will be on Thursday, March 20, 2014 at 7:00 pm in the ECCC Building at the fairgrounds, with registration beginning at 6:45 pm. We will meet in the Showalter Room. We are very excited for our program next Thursday night. We will be having Brett Eastburn, a motivational speaker, come speak to us. Brett was born with no arms and no legs. While in school, he played baseball, football and basketball. He is an accomplished swimmer, was a member of his schools wrestling team, has earned a green belt in martial arts, and is a nationally recognized artist. Brett has done over 3000 presentations worldwide and is also a standup comedian. We encourage everyone to come. If you can only make one meeting this year, this is the one!! You are welcome to invite a friend too.
We will be voting on our fair queen representative at this meeting. LADIES…if you are interested and are 16 years old or older, please come to the meeting. Or if you can’t attend, call Mike (596-1040) and let him know you would like to be put on the ballot.
Online enrollment is due April 15. If you have not registered yet, be sure to take care of it as soon as possible. You can access a link to the website by visiting our website. A $15 non-refundable State Program Fee per child is due at the time of enrollment with a maximum of $45 per family for 3 or more children. There is no fee for Exploring 4-H youth. Enrollment and payment of fees are due by April 15, 2014. Enrollments received after April 15th will be assessed a late fee in addition to the state fee. Enrollment will not be accepted after June 1st! Please call the Purdue Extension Office (574-533-0554) if you have any questions. ***NOTE: The $15 non-refundable State Program Fee per child does not take the place of regular club dues that the DFC Club collects.
For those of you who have yet to pay the club dues, it has gone up $1.00 this month. The $11.00 dues from each member to help cover club expenses and auction costs can be paid at this meeting. So please come prepared to take care of this. You will not be able to draw an auction number at the May Weigh-In until your dues are paid! If you wish to pay by check, make it payable to: Dairy Feeder Calf Club.
Now is a good time to get your calves if you don’t already have them. If you are having trouble locating calves, you can call Mike (596-1040). He will be glad to help you if he can. Once again we want you to know …… Your Dairy Feeder Calf Advisory board has expressed some concern about the weights of the calves at fair and the lack of care some calves are receiving after show day. That being said, they would like to help guide you. THIS IS NOT A NEW RULE, but a good minimum weight at our May weigh in should be between 135-150 lbs. They encourage you to get your calves early so you can reach this weight range by weigh in. Like it is stated, we are not going to have a minimum weight at weigh in, but we would like to see bigger and healthier calves at fair time. If you have any questions on this, please don’t be afraid to call one of the leaders or advisory board members.
Geranium order forms are posted on the DFC website. EVERY 4-Her listed on a stall request form must sell one flat (18 flowers) or donate $10.00 to the club. This year pink, red and White geranium plants can be ordered. The plants cost $1.25 each. Our club gets $.25 for every plant sold. Collect the money when orders are taken. Checks should be made payable to the Dairy Feeder Calf Club. Orders and money need to be turned in to Jodi Evans by APRIL 4. We need to write one big check when we turn our order into the extension office. So please have your money and orders turned in on time! Saves us a lot of headaches! Geranium pickup is on Wednesday April 23 at the fairgrounds. Top three sellers will be rewarded with choice of auction order, 1st choice of stalling or 2nd choice of stalling. Go out and sell!!
Our calf weigh in date is Saturday, May 3, 7:30 to 11:00 am at the fairgrounds in the Feeder Calf barn. Every calf must be brought in to be pictured, weighed, and ear tagged. If needed a veterinarian will be on hand to dehorn, castrate, vaccinate, deworm and implant. Also, we will be drawing auction numbers at the weigh in. Don’t forget to draw yours!
Congratulations to the 10 year members: Austin Christner, Brittnie Evans, Steve Hooley, Natalie Hostetler, Tyler Hostetler, Zachary Kropf, Reece Miller, Kaitlin Rohr, Emily Sheets, Jacie Smeltzer, Kimberly Swank, Lauren Wenger, and Sara Yontz. If we have missed anyone, please let us know.
Remember to check out our website regularly! It has lots of good information! www.dairyfeedercalfclub.com
We hope to see you on the 20th!!
-Mike, Trent, Ken, Erica, Brad, Tim and Dale
February 2014
Dear 4-H’ers and families,
Hello & greetings to everyone! Our second meeting is on February 20, 2014 at 7:00 in the Home & Family Arts Building at the fairgrounds, with registration beginning at 6:45. Remember to watch your local TV station if there is bad weather or check your email. If you know of anyone interested in the Dairy Feeder Calf project bring them along to the meeting or have them call a leader, Mike @ 596-1040, Trent @ 642-2663, Ken @ 533-0726 or Erica @ 361-9051. It isn’t too late to get started in our club.
Mike Hertzel from ADM will be speaking to us at this meeting.
*** 2014 Enrollment*** The 2014 Elkhart County online enrollment is up and running. If you have not enrolled for this year yet, please do. You can access a link to the website by visiting our website. A $15 non-refundable State Program Fee per child is due at the time of enrollment with a maximum of $45 per family for 3 or more children. There is no fee for Exploring 4-H youth. Enrollment and payment of fees are due by April 15, 2014. Enrollments received after April 15th will be assessed a late fee in addition to the state fee. Enrollment will not be accepted after June 1st! Please call the Purdue Extension Office (574-533-0554) if you have any questions. ***NOTE: The $15 non-refundable State Program Fee per child does not take the place of regular club dues that the DFC Club collects.
The $10.00 dues from each member to help cover club expenses and auction costs can still be paid at this meeting. It goes up $1.00 at the March meeting. So please come prepared to take care of this. If you wish to pay by check, make it payable to: Dairy Feeder Calf Club.
Your Dairy Feeder Calf Advisory board has already been meeting and looking forward to a great year. They have expressed some concern about the weights of the calves at fair and the lack of care some calves are receiving after show day. That being said, they would like to help guide you. THIS IS NOT A NEW RULE, but a good minimum weight at our May weigh in should be between 135-150 lbs. They encourage you to get your calves early so you can reach this weight range by weigh in. Like it is stated, we are not going to have a minimum weight at weigh in, but we would like to see bigger and healthier calves at fair time. If you have any questions on this, please don’t be afraid to call one of the leaders or advisory board members.
If you have not yet looked at our website, please take time to do so. We will be using the website to post important information throughout the year including such things as newsletters, the essay question, meeting dates and contact information. It will also serve as a good tool to look up club information. If you have not given us your updated email address, please do so!!
The website address: www.dairyfeedercalfclub.com
Geranium Sales: Order forms are available on the website. Geraniums will be selling for $1.25 again this year and will be available in three colors, red, white or pink. Orders and money will be due to the leaders by April 4, with pickup on April 23 at the fairgrounds.
Important dates:
March 20 - March meeting in ECCC building
April 4 – Geranium orders & money due to leaders
April 15 – Online Enrollment & Payment Due
April 23 - Geranium pick up
May 3 – Weigh In & Auction number draw
We hope to see all of you on the 20th!
Your Leaders
Dear 4-H’ers and families,
Hello & greetings to everyone! Our second meeting is on February 20, 2014 at 7:00 in the Home & Family Arts Building at the fairgrounds, with registration beginning at 6:45. Remember to watch your local TV station if there is bad weather or check your email. If you know of anyone interested in the Dairy Feeder Calf project bring them along to the meeting or have them call a leader, Mike @ 596-1040, Trent @ 642-2663, Ken @ 533-0726 or Erica @ 361-9051. It isn’t too late to get started in our club.
Mike Hertzel from ADM will be speaking to us at this meeting.
*** 2014 Enrollment*** The 2014 Elkhart County online enrollment is up and running. If you have not enrolled for this year yet, please do. You can access a link to the website by visiting our website. A $15 non-refundable State Program Fee per child is due at the time of enrollment with a maximum of $45 per family for 3 or more children. There is no fee for Exploring 4-H youth. Enrollment and payment of fees are due by April 15, 2014. Enrollments received after April 15th will be assessed a late fee in addition to the state fee. Enrollment will not be accepted after June 1st! Please call the Purdue Extension Office (574-533-0554) if you have any questions. ***NOTE: The $15 non-refundable State Program Fee per child does not take the place of regular club dues that the DFC Club collects.
The $10.00 dues from each member to help cover club expenses and auction costs can still be paid at this meeting. It goes up $1.00 at the March meeting. So please come prepared to take care of this. If you wish to pay by check, make it payable to: Dairy Feeder Calf Club.
Your Dairy Feeder Calf Advisory board has already been meeting and looking forward to a great year. They have expressed some concern about the weights of the calves at fair and the lack of care some calves are receiving after show day. That being said, they would like to help guide you. THIS IS NOT A NEW RULE, but a good minimum weight at our May weigh in should be between 135-150 lbs. They encourage you to get your calves early so you can reach this weight range by weigh in. Like it is stated, we are not going to have a minimum weight at weigh in, but we would like to see bigger and healthier calves at fair time. If you have any questions on this, please don’t be afraid to call one of the leaders or advisory board members.
If you have not yet looked at our website, please take time to do so. We will be using the website to post important information throughout the year including such things as newsletters, the essay question, meeting dates and contact information. It will also serve as a good tool to look up club information. If you have not given us your updated email address, please do so!!
The website address: www.dairyfeedercalfclub.com
Geranium Sales: Order forms are available on the website. Geraniums will be selling for $1.25 again this year and will be available in three colors, red, white or pink. Orders and money will be due to the leaders by April 4, with pickup on April 23 at the fairgrounds.
Important dates:
March 20 - March meeting in ECCC building
April 4 – Geranium orders & money due to leaders
April 15 – Online Enrollment & Payment Due
April 23 - Geranium pick up
May 3 – Weigh In & Auction number draw
We hope to see all of you on the 20th!
Your Leaders
Hutch Walk
Greetings,
On January 11, 2014 at 10:00am, we are planning a Hutch Walk. You may ask, “What is a hutch walk?” Well, this is an opportunity to visit an area farm and walk through their 200 calf hutches to look at and talk about crossbreds. We will be discussing what to look for and how to identify a crossbred from a purebred calf. With the breeding today on some of our dairy farms, it’s getting more and more difficult to tell some of these calves apart. I think this would be a great opportunity to get on a farm to look at these animals first hand. The hutch walk will happen no matter what the weather is, so dress warm. Come with all of your questions. If you know of any new members, please bring them along. We will meet at Clinton Center Feed Mill located at 62839 CR 37, Goshen.
Anyone planning on taking dairy steers to the state fair this coming year, you need to have them weighed and ear tagged. You can have this done on February 15, 2014 from 9:00am-noon at the Shipshewanna Auction Barn. If you can not make that date, you must make arrangements with the extension office to have that done.
Feel free to call me if you have any questions about the hutch walk or the dairy steer weigh-in for state fair. Hope to see you there!
Thanks,
Mike Lee
574-596-1040
On January 11, 2014 at 10:00am, we are planning a Hutch Walk. You may ask, “What is a hutch walk?” Well, this is an opportunity to visit an area farm and walk through their 200 calf hutches to look at and talk about crossbreds. We will be discussing what to look for and how to identify a crossbred from a purebred calf. With the breeding today on some of our dairy farms, it’s getting more and more difficult to tell some of these calves apart. I think this would be a great opportunity to get on a farm to look at these animals first hand. The hutch walk will happen no matter what the weather is, so dress warm. Come with all of your questions. If you know of any new members, please bring them along. We will meet at Clinton Center Feed Mill located at 62839 CR 37, Goshen.
Anyone planning on taking dairy steers to the state fair this coming year, you need to have them weighed and ear tagged. You can have this done on February 15, 2014 from 9:00am-noon at the Shipshewanna Auction Barn. If you can not make that date, you must make arrangements with the extension office to have that done.
Feel free to call me if you have any questions about the hutch walk or the dairy steer weigh-in for state fair. Hope to see you there!
Thanks,
Mike Lee
574-596-1040