There are premium books posted for Livestock, General and Family & Consumer Sciences, and Dog. These documents outline all of the divisions and classes available for each project, with information of what is required to submit and the class numbers to enter in the fair. Be sure to watch for Junior, Intermediate, and Senior.
Interview Judging will open shortly in Fair Entry. Interview Judging is separate from entering your project in the county fair, and is a great experience! We encourage everyone entering an exhibit in the fair to participate in Interview Judging.
Scheduling for interview judging will open on July 1, and we’ll post more information when we have it.
Important note: The time of your interview willnot be included in your confirmation email after you register (we are working to change this in the future), so you are responsible for writing down the time you select for your interview(s) at the time you select them in Fair Entry.
Our 4-H club, the High Country Handiworkers, is the largest club in the county by quite some margin. That being said, we should have a lot more member involvement. As this year’s fair rapidly approaches, I am reminded of the 4-H parade last year. I would argue that our float last year was one of the emptiest in the entire parade. That not only reflects badly on the leadership in our club, but it also reflects poorly on us as members of the club. I would estimate that fewer than 20 members attended the parade last year, not including the Cloverbuds. There were some conflicts on that date, but for those families with prior obligations, most still came the Friday night before to help build the float.
As club members, it is your responsibility not to treat 4-H as an afterthought or something that you only do when you have spare time. The key to 4-H is treating it like a sport. I know for a fact that those of you who play sports do not show up to practice on rare occasions, then stride in right before the big game. Then why do you treat 4-H like that? As the member of a sports team, you make it your priority to come to practices, then before the big game you make time to come to the warmup before the start. The parade is the playoff leading to our championship game, the county fair.
Don’t get me wrong, I understand that life happens and you cannot make it to every event. But for the size of our club, it certainly seems like the same few families come to almost every event without fail because they treat 4-H with the respect it deserves. As members, it is your responsibility to make 4-H a priority. It is tiring for our leaders and participating families when so few people step up. The date for this year’s fair parade on July 30 was released in plenty of time for you to mark it on your calendars and make it a priority to attend.
This lack of participation goes further than just the fair parade. Even within the families who attend our meetings, very few members read the minutes from the previous meetings. It only takes a few minutes and needs to be a priority. The minutes are easily found on our club website at hch4h.org. Equally as important is reading the Clover Connection newsletter each month to stay informed about what is happening in Larimer County 4-H, especially workshops, practices, and events. The Clover Connection should come to arrive in your email or it can be found on the club website as a link under the Newsletter tab.
If there has been a miscommunication about what a commitment 4-H is, then we apologize for this. Becoming a member of 4-H is more than a one-year commitment. Once enrolled most members stay involved for the duration of up to 11 years. It truly is a Learn by Doing experience. 4-H has so much to offer: the knowledge gained from projects, the leadership experiences, time management skills, recordkeeping, responsibility, interviews, giving demonstrations, and most importantly the friendships.
What can you as a family and as individual members do?
Try your best to attend meetings.
Read the minutes from the prior meeting.
Participate in the meetings and ask questions (sometimes leaders forget to explain things well, especially for beginners).
Read the Clover Connection.
Participate in club activities – community service, carnival, fair parade.
Attend practices and workshops for your projects and participate in the county contests.
Most importantly, work on your projects and fulfill the requirements for completion: 4-H community service, demonstration, and showing at the county fair (or presenting to the club if entering the fair is not possible).
Our club should strive to be better about participating for the rest of this year and in the years to come. As a club, we operate as a team. We win as a team, and we lose as a team. When half of the team is not actively involved, they abandon the rest to do double the work with a slimmer chance of winning. If you miss an event, that’s okay. But when it happens repeatedly, something needs to change. Please make 4-H a bigger priority and take advantage of the opportunity this incredible program offers to help your club, your community, and yourself.
Josh Ryan President High Country Handiworkers 4-H Club
Happy Mother’s Day! Thank you to all of the moms who make the 4-H program possible for their kids and all of the other 4-H members in our club and our county. We appreciate you!
CDA has issued an emergency rule, effective immediately, to temporarily suspend all Colorado poultry events including all poultry shows, meets, sales, swaps, and competitions. This rule is in effect for 90 days, unless otherwise modified.
In 2022, avian influenza has been detected in wild bird species across 29 states impacting more than 15 million poultry and birds.
At this time, there have been no detections of HPAI in commercial or backyard poultry flocks in Colorado, but avian influenza is a highly contagious and fatal animal disease that can be transferred from wild bird populations to domestic poultry. The State Veterinarian’s Office will hold an informational webinar on Wednesday, April 6, from 5–7 p.m. and is taking questions until then. Find this form and registration at ag.colorado.gov/hpai.
Registration for our Hunter Education class on March 26–27, 2022 is now OPEN. The registration link will close at 5:00 p.m. onMarch 23. Students will NOT be able to register or cancel after that date/time.
Download and read both of the following documents:
Participants and parents need to read the class information and follow the instructions. This document includes information about where to go, what to bring, class times, etc.
Participants MUST register and complete the online class before March 26. Find information about the online course by clicking here. Upon successfully completing the online class, participants will be prompted to print out their certificate of completion. Participants MUST bring their certificate of completion on March 26 along with the attached consent form to be admitted into the class. We will NOT allow students into the class on March 26 without their online certificate of completion and a signed student consent form.
If you have any questions, contact Cindy at csh@frii.com or 970-481-7993.
Registration is now open on 4HOnline for the 2022 Leadership Development Conference (LDC) in Denver!
LDC is a leadership conference for 4-H seniors held in January each year in Denver. Leaders are also invited to attend, and this year there will be a special track at the conference specifically for adult leaders.
This event provides educational and challenging experiences that will enable young people to become knowledgeable and skilled in their selected areas. Conference highlights usually include a community service project with the Colorado State 4-H Officers, IFYE (International Foreign Youth Exchange) presentation, a guest speaker, banquet and awards presentation, and leader meetings. Members generally have a lot of fun, connect with 4-H members and leaders from across the state, learn, and grow as leaders.
On Monday, January 31 following LDC, which is Colorado 4-H Day, there will be an opportunity to tour the State Capitol and attend 4-H Day at the Capitol where the legislature will issue the Proclamation for Colorado 4-H Day.
When: January 29–30, 2022. 4-H Day at the Capitol will follow the conference on January 31, so all members should plan to be in Denver from January 30–31 if possible. Where: Renaissance Hotel in Denver. Each room will be assigned to two members of the same gender. Please contact Katie Daywalker after you register if you have a roommate preference. If you wish to have your own room, additional costs will be incurred. Please contact Katie Daywalker if you are interested. Cost: The Larimer County 4-H Foundation covers 70% of the cost for members in good standing who have met the 4-H Carnival ticket sales requirement. The estimated cost for these qualifying participants will be $86. Senators and Alternate Senators for Larimer County will have 100% of their fees covered. Registration: Register at v2.4HOnline.com. You must be enrolled for the 2022 4-H year to register. Registration closes at 10:59 p.m. on January 12, 2022.
Larimer County will provide transportation and chaperone(s) for participating youth. Adult volunteers interested in chaperoning should contact Katie Daywalker at kdaywalker@larimer.org.
Here is an opportunity for lamb and goat members. If you have an animal on feed for the Stock Show, this is a chance to get some feedback on your project before that show.
For members who do not have an animal on feed, this is still a good time to learn from some very experienced showmen.
Please refer to the flyer for more information.
If you have any questions, reach out to extension agent Bailey Schilling.
Johnstown SCHEELS is donating $100,000 to the Northern Colorado community through their Giving Campaign this year. We need your help to receive one of the 20 cash donations of $5,000 for Larimer County 4-H!
Please follow the link below and submit a nomination for LARIMER COUNTY 4-H YOUTH FOUNDATION.
The past rule states: Goats are to be born after December 1, 2021. Lambs are to be born after January 1, 2022.
To have a valid, enforceable rule for youthful animals, there will be a maximum weight allowed for animals that tag in on April 25, 2022.
Goats cannot weigh over 85 lb on April 25, 2022. If they do they will not be a valid entry.
Lambs cannot weigh over 125 lb on April 25, 2022. If they do they will not be a valid entry.
As a guideline to stay within the weight limits, birthdates are recommended as in previous years.
County Fair Weights for Sheep/Goats
Market Goats: 60–120 lb (maximum weight put in place)
Market Lambs: 105–170 lb (maximum weight put in place)
Extension Agent is allowed to “mouth” market wethers/does/ewes if there is reason.
Market Hog Program
Photo IDs will be required with hog nominations like 2021.
6 photos will be required: front view, rear view, both sides, and close up of each ear showing all of the notches.
State Fair Nominations
Animals being nominated for the state fair will need to work with Robyn Toft at the Colorado State Fair for DNA packets. We will not be forwarding retinal images for the state fair.
Please reach out to Bailey Schilling with any questions you may have.
