Routt County 4-H news & updates
March 15, 2023
Upcoming Events
Click here to access the Routt County 4-H Google Calendar!
March 15, 5pm, Cloverbud Workshop at Extension Office - Open to Routt County Cloverbuds. Space is limited, email us if you are interested.
March 16, 4pm, Cake Decorating Workshop at Extension Office - for Cake Decorating members!
March 19, 2pm, Snow Sculpture Building at Casey's Pond - All Steamboat and North Routt 4-H members are encouraged to join us to build snow sculptures for the residents of Casey's Pond!
March 24, 5pm, Citizenship Washington Focus Applications Due! (Scroll down to "Leadership Opportunites" for more information on CWF)
  • Applications are open on 4HOnline. Routt County deadline to apply is March 24th by 5pm.
  • Interviews (if needed) for delegates will take place the week of March 27th.
March 31-April 2, District Retreat - Glenwood Springs
  • REGISTRATION IS CLOSED
  • Cancellations after March 6th will need to reimburse the full registration, travel, and hotel costs.
  • We are collecting old jeans, fleece, and flannel for the community service project. These materials will be used to create toys and blankets for the local animal shelters! Do you have any of this material laying around, please drop it by our office!
April 3, 6:30 pm, Vet Science Meeting, Steamboat Veterinary Hospital - Meetings held weekly on Mondays. Vet Science meetings are optional. All members must be enrolled in the Veterinary Science program in order to attend practices. ONLY enrolled members in the project are allowed to participate (ie. no younger Cloverbud siblings).
April 4, 6pm, 4-H Monthly Moos Call - join Tami and Millie as they discuss the topic: Animal IDs (Zoom information)

Do you have any questions that you would like covered in the latest Monthly Moo? Please email Millie any questions you would like addressed!
April 5, 5pm, Cloverbud Workshop at Extension Office - Open to Routt County Cloverbuds. Space is limited, email us if you are interested.
April 15, Livestock Judging Team - Washington County Competition
April 19, 5:30pm, Horse Classroom - join us in the BCC Room, as we invite Cassidy Perricone to discusses Horse Safety and Basic Horse knowledge. Pizza will be provided.

Please RSVP using the Google Form.
April 22, Livestock Judging Team - Logan County Competition
April 26, 5pm, Meat Quality Assurance Training - MQA (Meat Quality Assurance Training) is required for all 1st 4-H animal members and 1st year senior animal members. We will conduct the MQA training first followed up by a Livestock 101 for all livestock members.
April 29, 3pm, Market Sheep Workshop - join us in the Trout Creek Room for an informative meeting discussing how to select your market lamb, important upcoming dates, and more.

Are you interested in learning more about the Market Sheep Project, but not enrolled? Feel free to come and attend the meeting to learn more about the project.

BONUS: Rod Wille with the Wille Ranch is donating one market lamb to a member in attendance. Join us at our meeting for a chance to win a Wille Ranch market lamb to show at the Routt County Fair!
May 1, Add/Drop/Change Deadline - members must complete the projects they are signed up for in order to remain in good standing. Members must be enrolled in at least 1 project to be considered a member in good standing. No changes can be made after this deadline.
May 1, Horse and Dog Animal IDs due in 4-H Online. Questions, please attend the April 4th Monthly Moos Meeting, or refer to our website for detailed instructions!
May 2, 6pm, 4-H Monthly Moos Call - Join the call and test Tami and Millie's knowledge on 4-H! (Zoom information)

Do you have any questions that you would like covered in the latest Monthly Moo? Please email Millie any questions you would like addressed!
May 3, County Council Meeting - join us at the Soroco High School for a County Council Meeting. All are encouraged to attend.
May 6, Livestock Judging Team - Elbert County Competition
May 8, 4-6pm, Sheep & Goat Weigh-In at the Routt County Fairgrounds.

Cost is $5 per animal. Please have the Weigh In Form completed before arriving at the scale. You must be enrolled with all fees paid (including past due fees).

Questions? Take a look at the handbook section that discusses spring weigh-ins
May 9, 3-6pm, Swine Weigh-in at the Routt County Fairgrounds.

Cost is $5 per animal. Please have the Weigh In Form completed before arriving at the scale. You must be enrolled with all fees paid (including past due fees).

Questions? Take a look at the handbook section that discusses spring weigh-ins
General 4-H News
4-H Enrollment is Open!
Here is a LINK on how to enroll, clubs, projects and much more.
  • If you are attending club meetings and other 4-H Events, you MUST be enrolled and paid!
  • All returning members who have not enrolled/paid before January 1 will receive a $30 late fee!
PROJECT WORKSHOPS - Exciting Project Workshops are being planned! Scroll to down to your project category for more information.
Cloverbuds - The Junior Leaders are hosting a series of Cloverbud Workshops. Scroll down to the "Cloverbuds" section for more information!
The Routt County 4-H Member Handbook, Policy and Procedures is updated and approve. All members must abide by the Routt County 4-H Member Handbook, Policies and Procedures while enrolled in the Routt County 4-H Program.
2022-2023 Record Books are now posted! Find them here!
  • Livestock members - scroll down for some helpful record book tips!
We have a few extra t-shirts for sale at the Extension Office. $20/shirt. Stop by today to pick one up!
Routt County Fair Sponsorships
  • Would you like to enter a 'Thank You' ad into the 2023 Routt County Fair Book? 4-H Members will receive a 25% discount on all ads a quarter page size or larger!

  • Parents/Guardians, are you interested in sponsoring the Routt County Fair? Visit the Routt County Fair website to learn more about fair book ads and sponsorship packages!

  • Advertising deadline is TODAY, March 15th!

FAIR CAMPING - Opens July 1st at 8am

Flood Days - Wednesday, July 12
The Routt County 4-H High School and Continuing Education Scholarship Applications are OPEN! Visit our website for instructions on how to apply. Applications close on April 1st at 5pm!

Colorado Association of Fairs and Shows Scholarships are open to graduating seniors from Colorado Fairs. Applications close on April 20th. Apply here!
Club Reports
Ranch House 4-H Club
February Meeting
Members had so much fun make Valentine Centerpieces for the residents of the Haven!
Fairbook ads were discussed which are due March 15th. A reminder that the 4H Council Meeting and Parli Pro Training March 1st at 6pm at Hayden FFA Ag Room. Kristen encouraged EVERYONE who could to go to this but especially the officers. Went over and handed out sponsorships which are due May 1st. Kristen wanted to make sure everyone was aware of the handbook changes and have read the 2023 handbook and are aware of any and all the requirements and rules. Reminded the club of the New Member Orientation Dinner March 8th at 6pm. Went over record book tips.
 
Kelsey Stewart
Flat Top 4-H Club
March 12, 2023
On Sunday, March 12, 2023, Flat Top 4-H Club held their monthly meeting at South Routt Elementary School. During the meeting we discussed when upcoming events will be held. Our bank was recently changed From Bank of the San Juan’s to Alpine Bank. Milan completed the March demonstration. We will pass these gifts out to seniors in Oak Creek. New members Ethan, Allie and Jackson attended the new member meeting in Steamboat. Kacie will be doing the upcoming demonstration in May. Our next meeting will be held on April 2, 2023 at 5:30 p.m. at South Routt Elementary School.
Respectfully submitted by: Gavin Ahlgrim
4-H in the News!
Art of Ranching:
  • Take a look at the Art of Ranching project highlighted in the Steamboat Today! Article can be read here.
  • Interested in learning more about the Art of Ranching Project? Join us for our luncheon as a part of Ag Week (March 21st). More info here!
Routt County Youth at the Capitol:
  • In January, some of our members attended LDC and visited with Rep. Megan Lukens and Sen. Dylan Roberts. See more here!
THANK YOU!
Thank you Mr. Wellman for the great Parli Pro training at the March County Council meeting!
A HUGE THANK YOU to Steamboat Ski and Resort Corp. for allowing us to do our Annual 4-H Ski Day! We are grateful for the continued support.
Thank you Dani Anich-Thomas and Melina Bricker for hosting a wonderful Cake Decorating Workshop! We are excited for the year ahead with our Cake Decorating members.
Thank you to all of our new 4-H members who came out last week and joined us for our New Member Dinner! We had a great time meeting everyone, and we hope that you all are excited for the year ahead!
Courtesy Posts
Have you ever wanted to learn the basics of food preservation? Sign up today for this FREE class: Food Preservation 101, brought to you by our Master Food Safety Advisors. Learn the basics of freeze-drying, dehydrating, fermenting, water bath, and pressure canning, and then choose what you’d like to learn more about this spring!

Saturday, April 15th from 10am-11:30am in the Trout Creek conference room in the county building on 6th and Oak in Steamboat. Register here!
Are you interested in learning more about sheep shearing? Moffat County Extension is hosting a 3 day Sheep Shearing School! Scholarships are accessible to 4-H and FFA members wanting to attend. Contact Megan for more info!
Wondering what to do with all of your old lick tubs once the snow melts away? Our Routt County Master Gardeners are collecting lick tubs for a new program of container gardeners. Drop off any of your old lick tubs to the Extension Office so that they can be repurposed for gardening this summer!
HPAI is still surging in Colorado. Please educate yourself on the risks of your backyard flock mingling with wild birds, and introducing new birds to your flock.
Calling all trainers! The Meeker Mustang Makeover is looking for horse trainers for their 5th Annual mustang makeover. This is an excellent summer project with tangible benefits for 4-H Youth (but open to all)! Applications due April 1, 2023. More information can be found here.
New Member Information
4-H Enrollment is Open! Here is a LINK to how to enroll, clubs, projects and much more. Call our office with any questions - we are here to help you!

Learn more about Routt County 4-H on our WEBSITE.
  • See a list of our 4-H clubs and when they meet.
  • Learn about all the projects 4-H has to offer.
  • The Colorado 4-H WEBSITE also offers project information and record book links. Click on the area of a project of interest (word on picture square), then click on the project you want to learn more about.
4-H Monthly Moos - Do you have questions about the Routt County 4-H Program? Starting in January, Tami and Millie will be holding monthly Zoom Calls to help with all things 4-H! Monthly meetings will try to have a specific topic, but all questions are welcome anytime. 4-H Monthly Moos will start January 3th and will run on the first Tuesday of the month (besides July) at 6pm through August 1st. Zoom Link Here!

Information from prior Monthly Moos can be found on our website.

  • April 4 - Animal IDs - What's needed, how do I do it, when are they due by?
  • May 2 - Test our knowledge!
  • June 6 - Yay! Record Books!
  • July 11 - Completion Weekend and Exhibit Day
  • August 1 - Fair 101
4-H Project Area Information
Practice Schedules - Practice Start Dates are Tentative

Important Shooting Sports Dates -
  • May 1 - Add/Drop deadline for all projects
  • July 6 - Completion Weekend Registration Due
  • July 16 - Shooting Sports Completion Weekend for Air Rifle, Air Pistol & .22 Pistol
  • July 22-23 - Shooting Sports Completion Weekend for .22 Rifle, Archery & Shotgun
  • July 26 - Exhibit Day

Meets, Invitationals, and Expos -
These are meets we are sharing from other counties for members to participate in. The postings are for your information. They do not necessarily reflect the views of Routt County Extension.
  • June 3rd - Weld County Shooting Sports Invitationals: Rifle, Pistol, Archery, Muzzleloading. More information here.
  • June 4th - Weld County Shooting Sports Invitationals: Shotgun (Trap and Skeet). More Information here.
Livestock Judging -
  • Looking for a fun way to expand you judging game, learn about livestock evaluation, increase your skill in public speaking? Join the Routt County Junior Livestock Judging team as they travel and compete throughout the spring and summer! All ages are welcome to join.
  • Practice starts on March 9th.
  • Practices will be held on Thursdays from 5-6:30pm in the Trout Creek Room.
  • Meet Schedule:
  • April 15 - Washington County
  • April 22 - Logan County
  • May 6 - Elbert County
  • May 13 - Tri-River Contest
  • June 21 - State Judging Contest (Ft. Collins - Sr's ONLY)
  • For more information, please call Rod Wille at 970-846-4365, or Kody May at 303-913-6609.

Livestock Notes -
  • Thinking about choosing your animals for this year? Email Millie for a webinar highlighting how to pick out your perfect animal!

  • Colorado State Fair Information -
  • Colorado State Fair Nomination forms are available for pick-up at the Extension Office. Please make sure you understand all competition rules and requirements for the Colorado State Fair!
Horse Members -
  • HORSE WORKSHOPS - We are hosting two horse workshops with the help of Cassidy Perricone. All horse members are strongly encouraged to attend these workshops, pizza will be provided. Please RSVP using this Google Form.
  • SUMMER RIDING SCHEDULE - We are working on a schedule of summer rides for our members. Check back in April for completed schedule.
Beef Members -
Sheep Members -
  • Market Sheep Workshop -
  • Join us in the Trout Creek Room for an informative meeting discussing how to select your market lamb, important upcoming dates, and more.
  • Are you interested in learning more about the Market Sheep Project, but not enrolled? Feel free to come and attend the meeting to learn more about the project.
  • BONUS: Rod Wille with the Wille Ranch is donating one market lamb to a member in attendance. Join us at our meeting for a chance to win a Wille Ranch market lamb to show at the Routt County Fair!
  • Handbook Updates - There has been some question in the past as to what we meant by “extreme docking” in our member handbook. This year, with help from the FFA Advisors, Sheep Superintendents, and us here at the Extension Office, we decided to update the wording in the member handbook to make this rule more clear. The wording that we are using is coming straight from the Colorado State Fair Rulebook!
  • Extreme docking of lambs: (complete tail removal) is not an acceptable animal husbandry practice. We will be using the same rule for the Colorado State Fair regarding docking. Market Lambs shall show no evidence of surgical docking, prolapses, purse strings, sutures, etc. If any of these are evident in any sheep, that animal will be disqualified from the show
  • There will be a team of people checking lambs at spring, and fair weigh-ins

Goat Members -
  • Handbook Updates - This year, there will no longer be a separate meat breed and non-meat breed showmanship class for goats. There will be one showmanship class regardless of the breed of goat. The showmanship class will be judge on how you show and present your animal based on their breed standards.
Poultry Members -
Livestock Dates -
  • April 19 - Routt County Horse Classroom (Horse Safety and Basic Horse Knowledge)
  • April 26 - Meat Quality Assurance and Livestock 101. All first year seniors and first year animal members are required to attend.
  • April 29 - Sheep Workshop
  • May 1 - Animal IDs due for Dog and Horse
  • May 1 - Add/Drop Date for all projects
  • May 8 - Sheep and Goat Weigh In at the Routt County Fairgrounds. Cost is $5/animal. Please have all your weigh in forms completed before arriving at the scale.
  • May 9 - Swine Weigh In at the Routt County Fairgrounds. Cost is $5/animal. Please have all your weigh in forms completed before arriving at the scale.
  • May 24 - Routt County Horse Classroom (Conditioning and Proper Feeding)
  • June 1 - Animal ID deadline for market beef, swine, sheep, and goat
  • June 12-13 - Northwest Colorado 4-H Expo Horse and Dog
  • June 15-16 - Northwest Colorado 4-H Expo Livestock, Poultry and Rabbit
  • July 1 - Animal ID deadline for ALL breeding animals
  • July 11 - Registration deadline for Fair
  • July 12 - Flood Days
  • August 9 - Fair Clean-Up/Set-Up Day
  • August 11-20 - Routt County Fair
  • September 19 - Animal/Livestock Record Books Due
Jackpots, Shows, and Expos -
These are shows we are sharing from other counties for members to participate in. The postings are for your information. They do not necessarily reflect the views of Routt County Extension.
  • April 1st - Beef Blow N Go Show in El Paso County. More information here!
  • May 6th - Mesa County 4-H Rabbit Field Day. More information here!
  • May 12th - CAHC No Frills Horse Show & 4-H Spring Extravaganza. More information here.
  • June 10th - American Rumble 2023, North Park Jackpot. More information posted in April!
  • June 16th-18th - Kip Fladland Horse Clinic at the Hayden Fairgrounds. More information here. Register here!
  • August 24th-27th - Colorado State Fair 4-H Championship Horse Show in Pueblo Colorado.
2022-2023 Record Books can be downloaded here!

Pages that can be completed NOW -
Pages to be working on through project -

Record Book Tips -
  1. Keep columns Consistent
  2. Add more pages as needed
  3. Dates need to be in chronological order
  4. Read all page directions completely and carefully
  5. NEVER leave a page blank

Important Record Book Dates -
  • October 1 - Start of 4-H Year
  • June 6 - Monthly Moo Topic: Yay! Record Books!
  • June - Record Book Check from Club Leaders
  • September 19 - Animal/Livestock Record Books Due
Robotics Schedule - All members must be enrolled and attending practices by January 26th in order to participate in the Routt County Robotics Program!

Veterinary Science Schedule - Vet Science meetings are optional. All members must be enrolled in the Veterinary Science program in order to attend practices. ONLY enrolled members in the project are allowed to participate (ie. no younger Cloverbud siblings).

Beekeeping Workshops - Routt County Beekeeping Association will be holding a workshop series for our Beekeeping Members. Schedule will be released soon! Interested in attending these workshops? Enroll in our Beekeeping Project today!

Knitting Workshops - Routt County 4-H has a knitting leader this year. Are you interested in joining and learning more about knitting this year? Email us!

Cake Decorating Workshops - Cake Decorating workshops for enrolled members will be held in March. Sign up for the Cake Decorating project and join us for some fun cake decorating workshops.

Small Engine Group - Are you interested in the Small Engine 4-H Project, but don't know how to start? We just secured a Small Engines leader for the 2022-2023 4-H Year! Keep an eye out for announcements of workshop dates. Email Tami if you are interested in joining this project!

Important Dates -
  • May 1 - Add/Drop Date for all projects
  • July 11 - Registration deadline for Exhibit Day
  • July 26 - Exhibit Day
Routt County 4-H Leadership Opportunities
Routt County 4-H Council - Did you know that you can hold 4-H officer positions at the club, county, district and state level? Our 4-H council meetings are held on the first Wednesday of the month (every other month) across Routt County. At these meetings county wide information is shared including updates to the handbook, voting on the buckle/reserve champion awards, sale committee updates, upcoming events and more. All members are encouraged to attend the 4-H Council meetings and at least two representatives from each club attend each meeting.
  • March 1 - 4-H Council meeting 6pm at Exhibit Hall in Hayden
  • May 3 - 4-H Council meeting 6pm at Soroco High School
  • July 5 - 4-H Council meeting 7pm at Exhibit Hall in Hayden

Routt County Jr. Leader - Are you interested in being an ambassador of Routt County 4-H? Our Junior Leaders help put on all 4-H Events in the county, while learning new leadership skills along the way. All senior aged (14-18 year old) members are encouraged to come and learn more about the Jr. Leadership Program. The Jr. Leaders meet monthly in the Trout Creek Room!
  • February 15 - 6pm
  • March 15th - 6pm
  • May 24th- 6pm
  • June 14th- 6pm
  • July 12- 6pm

Leadership Conferences - attend different conferences around the state!
  • March 31-April 2 - District Retreat in Glenwood Springs for ages 10-18.
  • Cancellations after March 6th will need to reimburse the full registration, travel, and hotel costs.
  • We are collecting old jeans, fleece, and flannel for the community service project. These materials will be used to create toys and blankets for the local animal shelters! Do you have any of this material laying around, please drop it by our office!
  • June 25-30 - Citizenship Washington Focus in Washington DC for 4-H members 15-18 (as of January 1, 2023).
  • Learn more about this premier leadership and civic engagement national 4-H conference experience here.
  • Routt County will be selecting two delegates to attend CWF.
  • Applications are open on 4HOnline. Routt County deadline to apply is March 24th by 5pm.
  • Interviews for delegates will take place the week of March 27th.

Routt County 4-H Fun Day - June 7th at the Kvol's Ranch for ages 8-13. Your Jr. Leaders have a fun packed day of STEM activities, games, crafts, dancing and great food.

Routt County Over Night Retreat - All Jr. and Int. members are invited to join us for an overnight retreat in September at the Exhibit Hall in Hayden. This is a great team building event hosted by the Routt County Jr. Leaders. Interested in more information? Email Tami.
Leaders
Important Updates -
  • We are looking for ideas for the FM Light and Son's Ag Experience. Please discuss with your clubs about new interactive pieces that we can add.
  • Please include Tami and Millie in all 4-H Club related correspondence.
  • Enrollment is OPEN on 4-H Online!
  • Please Re-enroll as a 4-H Leader ASAP!
  • Any members attending meetings and/or holding club officer positions must be enrolled in the current 4-H Year.
Routt County 4-H Cloverbuds
What is a Cloverbud? Cloverbuds are members from 5-7 years old who are not quite ready to participate in many of the projects and activities that the rest of the older 4-H members participate in.

What can Cloverbuds do? The Cloverbud program is focused on participation, teamwork, and learning (not so much on competition). Several of our clubs host Cloverbud events during their regular monthly meetings, and our Routt County 4-H Junior Leaders host 5 Cloverbud workshops throughout the spring and summer to get our youngest members excited about 4-H.

Routt County Junior Leader Cloverbud Workshops -
All of these workshops will be held prior to the Routt County Junior Leaders meetings at 5pm in the Trout Creek Room. Register here!
Routt County CSU Extension - 4-H