GREENFIELD – Iowa State University Extension and Outreach held three skill-a-thons at the 2017 Iowa State Fair, with 210 youth from 58 Iowa counties participating. Skill-a-thons were held for goat, sheep and swine.
Tucker Rohrig, Adair County 4-H’er and member of the Orient Bulldogs 4-H Club, was a member of the champion team in the swine skill-a-thon. Rohrig is the son of Matt and Heidi Rohrig, and is very active in the swine project area, competing in many live open shows and at the county and state level. He joined Brady and Kiley Allan from Plymouth County to form their first-place team.
Each skill-a-thon team was comprised of three individuals and included five stations where youth worked together to solve problems and identify goat, swine or sheep production components. Participants identified feed samples, breeds and meat cuts while also answering questions about genetics, nutrients, quality assurance and physiology.
“One of the main goals of the skill-a-thon is to teach youth life-skills like decision making, critical thinking and communication as well as animal husbandry and the science and math involved with raising an animal,” said Amy Powell, animal science program specialist with ISU Extension and Outreach, who developed and coordinated the event.