For young adult 4-H livestock division participants, strengthening relationships throughout the agricultural field is important to their current and future endeavours.
Dennis Kotowich, assistant 4-H leader of the Elk Point beef club in Elk Point, Alta., believes members must become acquainted with as many aspects of the industry as possible to increase their chances of success should they eventually run their own operations.
“Margins are so slim in our industry and the acceptable loss error is next to nothing,” he says. “If these kids aren’t exposed to everything from cow-calf operations to packing plants and all points in between, they’ll lose out. We need them to gain the experience of multiple viewpoints and options to get as much bang for their buck as possible.”
As a starting point, Kotowich, who runs 730 mostly Simmental-Hereford crossbred females on Evergreen Farms Ranch near St. Paul, Alta., emphasizes health and nutrition to his club participants.
His group recently visited a local veterinarian who spoke about herd health, including vaccination protocols, respiratory diseases, hoof care, pre- and post-breeding inoculations, parasite control and embryo transfers.
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