Community members and 4-H’ers expressed an interest in once again having a livestock judging team in Pulaski County. This was a priority in the community due to the valuable skills that youth develop through livestock evaluation.

As a result, we created the livestock judging program, working with youth to further their skills in livestock evaluation, decision making, critical thinking, and public speaking. This program consisted of weekly practices where youth were able to work through livestock classes, practice giving reasons in front of their peers, and overall develop their evaluation skills.

Our target audience was any 4-H member interested in learning more about livestock evaluation. This included all 9-18 year olds in our community. Overall we had 10 4-H’ers practicing, and of those 10, six of them were able to attend the state contest.

As initial outcomes, our participants reported gaining valuable skills in decision making and public speaking through placing classes and giving oral reasons to the judges. They also gained confidence in themselves after competing at a state level contest.

As intermediate outcomes, our 4-H’ers that also participate in livestock shows noted how these skills will help them when making choices for future livestock project animals. All of our 4-H’ers expressed interest in participating again and continuing to develop the skills associated with Livestock Evaluation.

Pulaski County youth brought home several awards including: Rookie of the Year, 4^th Place Senior Beef Team, 6^th Place Overall Senior Team, and 9^th Place Junior Individual.