Author: Levi Berg
Planning Unit: Clark County CES
Major Program: Small Ruminants
Plan of Work: Henry County Livestock Production
Outcome: Long-Term Outcome
Due to Henry County’s topography and soil, animal production has always been strong in Henry County. Even though cattle production dominants the livestock field, small ruminant production such as goats and sheep contribute over $180,000 annual in sales, and there are over 2,100 head of small ruminant in Henry County according to the 2017 USDA Agricultural Census. With this knowledge, Henry County Extension’s Summer Intern and Agricultural Agent decided to host a series of small ruminant workshops focused towards individuals looking to raise small ruminants. During the Small Ruminant Series, three sessions were held covering selection, housing, feeding, forages, financials, health, and management. These sessions were taught be UK Extension Specialist, KSU Extension Specialist, local producers, a local veterinarian, and county extension staff. Eighteen local producers attended the three sessions, and the participants were from 4 different counties. After further discussions, four of those producers have actively started raising small ruminants stating that they felt more comfortable with the idea of raising livestock. A few others decided that raising small ruminants might not be the best decision, but were glad that they came to the class because they felt they had a greater understanding of what it took to raise livestock, and now understood the financial, work, and time issues associated with raising small ruminants. Overall, the class was a large session not only through numbers, but those participants were able to meet other local producers and specialist which they could confined for assistance.
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