‘This is a hands-on clinic’

This is like a practice run for when the animal goes to market.

“So this is a hands-on clinic,” said Crowe. And if a child makes a mistake during the grooming part of the clinic?

“That way the hair can grow back by August,” laughed Crowe, who has two children, Blake, 14 and Morgan 15, who participate in 4-H.

Son Blake was 10 when he was shown by the clinician how to groom his beef with the purpose of making it look as square as possible.

“So we’ve had some very interesting hair cuts, especially from the boys,” said Crowe. “So the clinician actually used Blake’s steer during the demonstration, showing how to flatten the animal’s back. So the clinician did half and then Blake was supposed to do the other half and I went to help my daughter. When I came back, it was a very wavy back and there was some bald spots.”

And that’s why it’s a great idea for the clinic to be held in May, she chuckled.

Every morning at the B.C. Northern Exhibition held in Prince George every August, the children have to bath and groom their animals in anticipation of the crowds coming to view them, as well as preparing for the live auction market. They also clean out the animal stalls to make sure their project is always seen in the best light.

Crowe, whose focus is always directed at 4-H, the other volunteers and the children involved, reluctantly admitted she does pulls all the activities together using strong organizational skills and she also does a lot of fundraising for 4-H.

“Right now we’re trying to buy a new livestock scale, which is a mandatory item for 4-H,” said Crowe. “We have to weigh all the animals at the beginning of the project and at the end of the project.” At the auction, buyers need to now the correct weight of each animal, too.

The children rely on the scale to calculate their feed efficiency, which is a cornerstone in farming profitability or loss, added Crowe.

A scale, to be used throughout the district, is worth $13,000 and fundraising so far is about a third of the way there. On May 14, there will be a dinner dance and silent auction at the Fore Bistro and the Prince George Golf and Curling Club.

For more information call Crowe at 250-960-1026.