Deadline Extended for May 4 PQA Plus® Advisor Training Program
AMES, Iowa -- The application deadline for the May 4 Pork Quality Assurance Plus® (PQA Plus®) Advisors
certification program being offered by the Iowa Pork Industry Center (IPIC) at Iowa State University (ISU) has
been extended. James McKean, IPIC associate director and ISU Extension swine veterinarian, is coordinating
the training program and said those interested in participating now have through Friday, April 29, to submit
their application to attend.
"A few spaces remain for this session and we want to be sure people have ample opportunity to submit the
application," McKean said. "That's why we're extending the deadline to this coming Friday."
The session will be held in the Ensminger Room in Kildee Hall on the ISU campus and will be taught by ISU
animal science and veterinary medicine faculty members who are certified PQA Plus trainers.
McKean said those who qualify and are interested in the program should download, complete and submit the
two-page application form available online at www.ipic.iastate.edu/PQAPapp050411.docx. The form also is
available by fax by calling Sherry Hoyer at IPIC at 515-294-4496.
"If you're interested in attending, please let us know by submitting an application as soon as possible so we can
contact you after receiving your application," McKean said. "The $75 fee for approved applicants can be paid at
the door on May 4."
The qualifications and other requirements are included in the application form.
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Iowa Beef Producers Invited to Grazing Systems Program
CHARITON, Iowa - Beef producers interested in learning the latest on fescue management and
forage-based diet supplementation will want to attend one of two grazing systems workshops in
southern Iowa next month. The program brochure is available on the Iowa Beef Center (IBC)
website.
Iowa State University (ISU) Extension beef program specialist Joe Sellers said both sessions will
have the same speakers and content, so people can choose the most convenient location and date.
The sessions are scheduled for Tuesday, May 17, at the Clarke County Fairgrounds in Osceola
and Wednesday, May 18, at the Wayne County Courthouse in Corydon. Both begin at 7 p.m.
"Our featured speaker is Craig Roberts from the University of Missouri. He'll review
management practices that reduce health problems and increase cattle production on fescue
pastures," Sellers said. "Fescue toxicosis continues to create problems in Iowa beef herds,
particularly where producers have pastures with longer rest periods than normal, resulting in
mature fescue with higher alkaloid levels."
Roberts also will help producers determine which grazing systems may work for their operations.
Sellers will present information on supplementing forage-based diets and will lead a question-
answer session on local issues.
Cost is $10 per person, payable at the door. For more information, contact Sellers by phone at
641-203-1270 or by email at sellers@iastate.edu.
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Update for Veterinarians Program Planned
CHARITON, Iowa - Veterinarians who work with cattle are invited to sharpen their skills and learn the
latest information on a variety of topics at a May 18 workshop in southern Iowa. The 18th annual Update for
Veterinarians will focus on topics of specific interest to beef practitioners, according to Iowa State University
(ISU) Extension beef program specialist Joe Sellers, who is organizing the event at the ISU McNay Research
Farm.
"Our featured speaker is Craig Roberts from the University of Missouri and he'll review management practices
that reduce health problems and increase cattle production on fescue pastures," Sellers said. "Fescue toxicosis
continues to create problems in Iowa beef herds, particularly where producers have pastures with longer rest
periods than normal, resulting in mature fescue with higher alkaloid levels."
The program also will include results from a cow feeding trial at McNay farm and the Iowa Beef Center's hay
quality survey, as well as sessions on disease, euthanasia, grazing systems and coproduct feeding. In addition to
Roberts and Sellers, ISU presenters are Grant Dewell, Mary Drewnoski and Renee Dewell.
"The Iowa Beef Center at ISU and ISU Extension have put together a great program of current topics and
presenters, and it's been approved for six hours of continuing education credits," Sellers said.
Registration begins at 8:30 a.m. with the first of four morning sessions starting at 9 a.m. Three more sessions
will follow lunch. Those who preregister by May 12 will pay $50 per person, which includes the noon meal.
Pre-registrations after May 12 and walk-ins will cost $70.
The brochure with registration form is available on the Iowa Beef Center website. For more information,
contact Sellers by phone at 641- 203-1270 or by email at sellers@iastate.edu.
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Iowa Hosts National 4-H Shooting Sports Instructor Workshop May 15-20
AMES, Iowa - Volunteer shooting sports instructors from throughout the United States will come to Central Iowa for the
National 4-H Shooting Sports Instructor Workshop May 15-20.
Iowa State University Extension and University of Minnesota Extension are co-hosting the workshop at the Iowa 4-H
Center near Madrid. Registration is open to current adult volunteers in state 4-H shooting sports programs. Participants
at national workshops must have the approval of their state's 4-H shooting sports coordinator, said Bryan Whaley, who
coordinates the program in Iowa.
The registration form, schedule and more information are available online at http://www.extension.iastate.edu/4h/projects/
ShootingSports/sessevents.htm.
The registration fee is $325 through April 30; after that date the fee increases to $375 per person. No registrations will be
accepted after May 4, Whaley said.
"We are training volunteer instructors to work with kids to develop skills for their future ? because shooting sports are
lifelong activities," Whaley said. "4-H shooting sports bring together youth and trained adults and emphasize positive
youth development through building shooting, wildlife, conservation and outdoor skills."
During the weeklong workshop, volunteers will receive training to become nationally certified instructors in one
discipline of their choosing: archery, rifle, shotgun, muzzleloader, pistol, coordinator, or hunting skills. The certification
will enable them to teach other volunteer instructors in their own states, Whaley said.
Participants also will have many opportunities to exchange ideas, both formally and informally, Whaley said. "You can
share approaches and tactics that have worked for you and ways you handle situations in your own club, county or state,
as well as learn what is going on in other states. We already have people registered from as far away as Alaska, Oregon
and Mississippi."
In 4-H Safety and Education in Shooting Sports (SESS) youth work with trained adult volunteers to learn safe and
responsible use of firearms and archery equipment, including sound decision-making, self-discipline and concentration.
The shooting sports program promotes the highest standards of safety, sportsmanship and ethical behavior, Whaley said.
The program also encourages youth to develop an understanding of natural resources as well as a personal environmental
stewardship ethic through participation in shooting, hunting and related activities.
Shooting sports is one of the fastest growing 4-H programs in many states, with an estimated 300,000 youth participating
nationally. These programs across the nation have proven effective in engaging both boys and girls and retaining older
youth in 4-H. In Iowa 570 volunteer instructors work with 1,660 youth in 4-H shooting sports activities.
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