Pilot Program Pairs 4-H Students With Livestock
By Matthew Weaver, Capital Press
DAVENPORT, Wash. ‹ Spokane County youngsters are discovering the answers to all sorts of important ranching questions. Among them: How do you check whether a cow is pregnant? Where do you stand to milk a cow to avoid getting kicked? And what do you do when a cow hops a fence?
Warren Hasenyager is owner of the Triple H Cattle Company in Davenport, Wash.
The Washington State University Spokane County Extension 4-H Working Ranch Horse is a 3-year-old pilot program, county 4-H coordinator Kate McCloskey said. "We're hoping to allow them to better understand the cattle industry," she said. "Having kids go from the very bottom and working their skills to advance builds a lot of independence and a sense of mastery."
Monthly programs include pregnancy testing, spring calving, horsemanship and an annual camp. "The horse and the cattle are carrots that get the kids here early in the morning," she said. "We've done pregnancy testing in the snow. The parents are all ready to go home, but the kids are fine and could be here all day."
More than 75 students ages 8 to 19 participate, McCloskey said. Most have a background in ag or a desire to enter the industry, but an agricultural background is not required. Brooke Pefley, 13, a Spokane home-schooler, is interested in everything ranch life has to offer. Her favorite aspects are the horses and cows and roping. Elizabeth Wright, 18, who will enter Spokane Falls Community College, grew up around the industry and sees the program as a way to experience it without having to own 50 head of cattle. She hopes to pursue veterinary medicine at WSU.
WSU and Spokane County 4-H provide staff funding, but the program is self-sufficient, McCloskey said. Kids and volunteers raise money or pay for camps or clinics. McCloskey wants to hear from industry members who would like to speak with the students. Warren Hasenyager is owner of the Triple H Cattle Company in Davenport, Wash., where he raises about 600 head of cattle. As one of the partner agencies offering facilities to the program, he hopes to provide ranching experiences to future consumers and industry advocates. "When we started this program, I thought the kids would be really reluctant to get hands-on, or they would see things as icky or yucky," he said. "It's just the opposite ‹ they dive right in there."
Similar programs operate in Idaho, Oregon, Wyoming and Texas. McCloskey would like to see the pilot expand. Hasenyager advised ranchers to enjoy the experience. "I have as much fun as the kids do, maybe more," he said.
Online
Spokane County 4-H: www.spokanekids.wsu.edu
Posted October 2012
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