Crittenden County is the second largest small ruminant producing county in the stat of Kentucky according to the 2017 Ag Census. The county has a market value of small ruminant products sold of $637,000. To assist these producers ANR Agent Dee Heimgartner has focused programming efforts to include more programming specifically for small ruminants.

During the fall of 2019 Heimgartner hosted a series in cooperation with the Kentucky Sheep and Goat Development Office. The KY Sheep & Goat Development Office has a video series call Small Ruminant Profit School that was utilized as instruction during the series. A total of 16 different producers attended the meetings. One of these producers is a local youth that is starting his own herd separate from his mother's herd on the family farm. He attended all seven meetings to learn the basics of goat production and be better able to make decisions for his own herd,

Heimgartner also has traveled with producers to Versailles, KY and the UK Sheep Research Unit to attend EweProfit field days. Over the past two years six producers have attended and have came back to their own operations with ideas and ways to change their own operations. These changes have included adopting Extension practices to improve animal nutrition, genetics, parasite treatment programs and facility/ handling systems. 

Forage, soil and manure testing has also been utilized by small ruminant producers in Crittenden County. These results have been used to minimize the environmental impact of their sheep operations, increase profits through faster weight gain and reduced expenses through better feed management. 

Seasoned sheep producers are also starting to serve as mentors to their neighbors who are just starting in the business. The meetings that have been held at Crittenden County Extension has helped to facilitate discussion between the two groups and a sharing of ideas.