HARRISBURG - Kristen and
Scott Hazlett, of State College, won
top honors in the swine division of
the 1965 Keystone International
Livestock Expostion held at the
Following his sister Kristen's lead, Scott Hazlett topped
KILE's carcass contest. (Penn State Ag Communications
photos.)
Pa. Cattlemen schedule
UNIVERSITY PARK - Sur
viving in the cattle business, im
proving pasture management for
greater productivity, handling
cattle facilities and using
microcomputers in beef operations
are among the topics to be
presented at the 1986 Pennsylvania
Beef Cattle Conference, held Feb.
21-23 at the Allenberry Resort,
Boiling Springs. The annual event
is sponsored by the Pennsylvania
Cattlemen’s Association, The
Pennsylvania State University,
Pennsylvania Beef Council and
. Pennsylvania Department of
Agriculture.
Guest speakers will include Jo
Ann Smith, president of the
National Cattlemen’s Association;
Henry Gardiner, president of the
Beef Improvement Federation;
Bruce Bainbridge, cattle
marketing specialist from Virginia
Polytechnic Institute; Jeanne
Sowa, promotions manager for the
Beef Industry Council, National
Livestock and Meat Board; and
National, state
Through a special membership
drive by the National Cattlemen’s
Association and the Pennsylvania
Cattlemen’s Association, the dues
structure for the National mem
bership has been reduced.
Members of the Pennsylvania
Cattlemen’s Association can
become full members of the
National Cattlemen’s Association
and receive NCA’s magazine for a
LIVESTOCK
LATEST
Junior exhibitor wins KILE carcass show
Harrisburg Farm Show complex
November 8-13. Both exhibited
market hogs in the junior show
held during the week long event.
Kristen, 11, won junior cham
Jerry Palen, noted bronze sculptor
and author of “Stampede” car
toons.
Several specialists from Penn
State will discuss new
management procedures for both
the purebred and commercial
cow/calf operator and the cattle
feeder or grower. During a hands
on session, participants can ex
plore the uses of microcomputers
in beef operations.
Jerry Palen will be the guest
speaker at the Cattlemen’s
Banquet on Friday evening, and Jo
Ann Smith will speak at the
Saturday luncheon.
Cattle producers and other in
terested individuals may register
for the entire conference or for
separate sessions, meals and
lodging. For more information and
a registration packet, write to the
Pennsylvania Cattlemen’s
Association, 862 Webster Drive,
State College, PA 16801, or to the
Department of Dairy and Animal
Science, The Pennsylvania State
Cattlemen offer joint membership
flat rate of $2O, or weekly
newsletters and the magazine for
$5O.
The Pennsylvania Cattlemen’s
Association co-sponsors many of
the important beef cattle industry
events and programs in Penn
sylvania, as well as helping to
promote beef to the consumer.
The National Cattlemen’s
pion-on-foot with her barrow, a
Hampshire-Spotted cross. Her
barrow had a live weight of 212
pounds. Scott, 15, won overall
grand champion carcass with his
Duroc-Spotted crossbred barrow.
The barrow weighed 249 pounds
live, 188 pounds butchered and
prepared for sale, and had
superior carcass characteristics.
This was the first time the grand
champion carcass was shown by a
junior exhibitor.
Kristen and Scott bought the
barrows from Keith Bard, who
operates a swine farm near
Lewistown. They reused them as a
4-H project. After they were
judged on foot the hogs were
processed at the Hatfield Packing
Company, Hatfield. The carcasses
were then entered in the carcass
division for Specific Show
Characteristics.
The Exposition, in its 29th year,
holds competitions for several
breeds of beef cattle, swine, sheep
and draft horses. Dr. John Ziegler,
professor of meat science at The
Pennsylvania State University, is
the superintendent of both the open
and junior carcass barrow shows.
Entries are open to 4-H and FFA
members and livestock breeders
and owners. The Exposition is
sponsored by the Pennsylvania
Livestock Association.
Kristen attends the Lemont
Elementary School and Scott is a
sophomore at the State College
Area Intermediate High School.
They are the children of Vernon
and Jean Hazlett. Vernon is th 6
swine herdsman at the Penn State
Swine Center.
conference
Jo Ann Smith
University, 324 Henning Building,
University Park, PA 16802.
Association is primarily active in
promotion of legislative actions by
the federal government on issues
that affecbthe beef cattle industry.
More information with regard to
membership in either the Penn
sylvania or National Cattlemen’s
Associations can be obtained
from: Pennsylvania Cattlemen’s
Association, 862 Webster Drive,
State College, PA 16801.
Kristen Hazlett's KILE on-foot champion market hog
f \ Beef
Briefs
yv
Are Junior Livestock Shows
Editor’s Note; Livestock Latest
readers may notice that Forest
Muir’s poultry column, which
normally appears on the second
Saturday of the month, was
published last week. In his place
this week is Les Burdette, who
normally appears on the first
Saturday. Apologies from the
Livestock Editor who was asleep
at the switch.
The title is a question we are
often asked and sometimes even
ask ourselves. With the Farm
Show upon us it seems to be a good
time to address the issue. The boy
or girl who shows the champion
steer, lamb, or pig would certainly
say yes. And'so would the parents
and grandparents.
We do seem to hear increasing
criticism about some of the junior
shows. Comments such as,
“What’s wrong with the judge, why
did he pick that animal, it doesn’t
represent what I topped the
market with last week?” “It’s not
fair, his (her), parents do all the
work.” “It’s getting to be a game
for the rich because I heard his
father paid SXXX for it as a
feeder” Or, “What does he leam
that will make him a better far
mer?”
There is a grain of truth to some
of these comments. When we pick
a judge all we ask for is his opinion
and that is just what we get.
Everyone is free to disagree but
for that day there is only one of
ficial opinion and that is the one the
money is paid on.
Yes, sometimes with another
judge, or even the same judge on a
different day, another animal
would be champion. Judging is not
glory, it is hard work. People who
do judge do a lot less criticising
than non-judges.
Just as with Little League or
other activities, some parents do
get carried away and seem to want
to relive their own childhood. On
by
Dr. Lester Burdette
Penn State Extension Beef Specialist
Worth It?
the other hand, the families where
the parents take an active interest
and offer lots of encouragement
seem to be the ones were the
children get the most benefits from
youth programs.
Studies show that only five to 10
percent of the boys or girls will end
up with careers in agriculture, so
we don’t try to emphasize
productive agriculture in many of
the club activities. They may not
all end up as farmers but they will
all be consumers. I don’t think we
will get negative reactions about
agriculture from this group of
future consumers.
Most of the real benefits of club
work come from group activities
back on the local level. They leam
about parliamentary procedure,
forming committees, working
together, standing up to give
reports, or serving as officers in
clubs. Hopefully they learn about
winning and losing because life is
all about competition. They learn
to live with rules and regulations.
We all know the consequences of
exceeding the speed limit.
Sometimes when the carrot at
the end-or in this case the price of
the champion-is too large we do
get some people who go to ex
cessive lengths to win it. Never
theless, we do believe that junior
livestock shows are worth it.
Maybe the problem is the name.
Maybe we should call them kid
shows, after all, most people go to
watch kids. They just have to have
an animal to get into the ring to
compete.
If you go to the Farm Show to
watch one of these kid shows ob
serve how much fun they seem to
have and how clean and
wholesoime this group of boys and
girls are. We should be proud of
what they are doing and offer
constructive comments rather
than sour grapes criticism.
V'lv
** > V-