College of Agriculture & Natural Resources



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|Clare County | |

|Clare County MSU Extension |P: 989-539-7805 |E-mail: msue.clare@county.msu.edu |

|225 W Main St, PO Box 439 County Building Harrison, MI 48625-0439 |F: 989-539-2791 |Web: msue.msu.edu/Clare |

| |May 2008 |

|MSU Extension program helps farmers save calves and money | |

| |Farmers who completed a survey following the program said that what they |

|Livestock farmers know that finding a large animal veterinarian can be a hard |learned enabled them to increase their knowledge of calving management by 44 |

|task, especially at 2 a.m. when a cow is having calving problems. |percent. |

|In northern lower Michigan, and across the state, there is a shortage of large |One farmer noted that his employee who attended the program showed a |

|animal veterinarians and access to animal health professionals is a continuing |considerable improvement in skills after attending the program. |

|problem. |Calves are valuable and veterinarian farm visits are expensive. Coupled with a|

|To help address the issue, MSU Extension educators hosted a series of calving |shortage of large animal veterinarians, the need for this program was evident.|

|management was programs in January. Topics covered included: | |

|Sire selection |Contact: Kable Thrulow, thrulowk@msu.edu |

|Cow mineral programs | |

|Vaccinations |[pic] |

|Calving facilities |Foreclosure Prevention campaign |

|Understanding the normal calving process | |

|Diagnosing signs of calving difficulty |The billboard above is located on 127 at M-10. It is part of a campaign |

|Proper pulling techniques |sponsored by MSU Extension in partnership with the USDA and Clare County |

|Care of the newborn calf |Enterprise Community and is one of several methods for helping residents avoid|

|Knowing when to call for help |mortgage foreclosures. |

|What can be done before the vet arrives | |

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|Seven beef farmers from Clare and Gladwin counties attended the three-part | |

|series, which was held in Tustin. Extension educators from the area conducted | |

|the program in concert with local veterinarians and a specialist from the MSU | |

|Large Animal Veterinary Clinic. | |

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|[pic] |Michigan State University Extension helps people improve their lives through an educational process that applies knowledge| |

| |to critical issues, needs and opportunities. Offices in counties across the state link the research of the land-grant | |

| |university, MSU, to challenges facing communities. Citizens serving on county Extension councils regularly help select | |

| |focus areas for programming.  MSU Extension is funded jointly by county boards of commissioners, the state through | |

| |Michigan State University and federally through the US Department of Agriculture. | |

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| |Teen Livestock Committee members build skills while having fun |

|SPARKS students learn to eat a rainbow everyday | |

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|The Farwell Area Schools’ and Harrison Community Schools’ SPARKS programs and MSU|Last October, the Clare County 4-H Livestock Council created a Teen Livestock |

|Extension-Clare County partnered for a series of nutrition classes focusing on |Committee (TLC) to offer educational activities for 4-H’ers and to give youths|

|the importance of regularly eating a variety fruits and vegetables. Students were|the chance to build their leadership skills. |

|encouraged to eat produce in a variety of colors daily.   |This is the first time in many years that the 4-H Livestock Council has had a |

|Activities included identifying and sampling fruits and vegetables and making |group of teens working on programming in Clare County. The group was formed in|

|bracelets with pony beads to represent their colors. MSU Extension Family |response to a need to engage young people in the 4-H program. The TLC members |

|Nutrition Program associate Ingrid Anderson worked with 140 students in grades |are learning communication and decision making skills. |

|K-5 during the after-school program during March and April. |The youngsters are also gaining confidence and learning public speaking when |

|Another aspect of the series included visits by a character named “Henry the |they go to the adult board and to request financial support and report on |

|Hand” who helped students learn the importance of thorough hand washing. Other |their activities. |

|topics discussed during the series included the food guide pyramid and the value |The first project the TLC members undertook was planning a workshop called, |

|of physical activity. |“Exploring the Science of Large Animals.” This event was held on March 8 at |

| |Mid Michigan Community College. |

|Contact: Ingrid Anderson, ande1110@msu.edu |Nearly 30 youths attended from Clare and Gladwin counties. They had the |

| |opportunity to dissect a beef heart and learn about its different parts and |

| |how they function. Participants also had a lesson in artificial insemination |

| |and proper care and health of large animals. |

| |The TLC members also organized team building group activities that allowed the|

| |participants to get to know each other. |

| |The TLC members include Blair Williams, Nicole Iuzti, Kelsey Casebere and Adam|

| |Gott. They conduct activities with assistance from 4-H adult volunteer leader|

| |Elizabeth Gott. |

| |The TLC is planning more activities throughout the summer and the members look|

| |forward to having more fun with livestock projects. |

| |The Clare County 4-H Council is continuously looking for more ways to get |

| |teens involved in 4-H programs and to help them gain skills they need to be |

| |successful adults. This teen livestock committee is just one great example of|

| |this initiative. |

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| |Contact: Michelle Neff, hydemich@msu.edu |

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|MSU is an affirmative-action, equal-opportunity employer. Michigan State University Extension programs and materials are open to all without regard to race, |

|color, national origin, gender, gender identity, religion, age, height, weight, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, marital status, family status|

|or veteran status. Issued in furtherance of MSU Extension work, acts of May 8 and June 30, 1914, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Thomas |

|G. Coon, Extension Director, Michigan State University, E. Lansing, MI 48824 |

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MSU Extension Clare County Staff

Michelle Neff, County Extension Director

Ed Kerr, Community and Economic Development

Sharon Jeffery, Family and Consumer Sciences

Kable Thurlow, Agriculture and Natural Resources

John Parker, Community and Economic Development Associate Director

Ingrid Anderson, Family Nutrition Program

Sharrol Dundas, Breastfeeding Peer Counselor

Nancy Petree, 4-H Program

Marybeth Denton, Office Manager and Master Gardener Coordinator

Rachel Abram, Office Assistant

Florence Fontaine, Office Assistant

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