Annual 4-H cattle weigh-in in Westminster signals kickoff for Carroll County fair projects

Ryan O’Meara brought his black Angus steer named Ace to the Carroll County Agriculture Center in Westminster Friday for the annual 4-H Beef Weigh-in. He was among 136 4-H members who brought nearly 200 cattle for the annual weigh-in on Thursday and Friday, which serves to document each animal’s starting weight, so that weight gain can be demonstrated at the county fair this summer.

The 127th Carroll County Fair is planned from July 27 through Aug. 2.

Last weekend’s weigh-in marks the official start of 4-H students’ beef projects for the year, according to 4-H Educator Becky Ridgeway. During the weigh-ins animals received an ear tag; they must gain an average of 2 pounds per day through July to be eligible to show and be sold at the fair.

O’Meara, 13, of Westminster, is planning to enter Ace in the fair this summer. It will be the fifth year that the 4-H member has entered at least one animal in the fair.

“I love doing it,” he said.

Last year O’Meara’s steer won for rate of gain at the county fair. He said the winning steer started small due to a late birth and was able to put on nearly 800 pounds within several months.

The average weight of beef projects entered in the county fair varies from about 400 to 1,000 pounds, Ridgeway said, and the majority of the cattle weighed this week are likely to qualify. Weight gain is affected by numerous factors and presents many challenges, she said.

“The youth are responsible for the animal’s care and their feeding,” Ridgeway said, “and the goal in the end is that the youth will be able to sell their product come August at the fair.”

Kelsey Zepp, 18, of New Windsor, has participated in beef projects and other 4-H projects, since she was 8. She said the annual weigh-in can be busy and complicated by stubborn calves, but the experience as a whole is great for fostering friendships. Interacting with different animal personalities every year is part of the challenge and part of the fun, she said.

“I’ve met so many new people through this experience,” Zepp said. “I’ve gained so many more friendships.”

The experience of having to feed and tend to animals every morning and every afternoon is a lot of work and a lot of responsibility, O’Meara said.

Ridgeway said the process helps 4-H members learn life skills.

“They are learning responsibility, first off. It’s our responsibility to care for these animals and if they’re not caring for them, then what would happen to them?” Ridgeway said. “So, these animals are a humongous responsibility, and all of these animals are treated extremely well while the kids are raising them.”

Zepp said 4-H has taught her time management and maturity, among other things.

“Those animals are relying on you to feed them in the morning and the evening,” Zepp said. “They rely on you to survive, so just having the responsibility of that is great, especially for a younger 4-H-er to have that, it definitely helps them blossom at an earlier age.”

Participants are also learning communication and good record-keeping practices, Ridgeway said. Documentation of food and other expenses is required along with an animal’s weight information, and it is helpful to know how much revenue each project generates. Many participants set aside earnings as a college fund or reinvest profits into future 4-H projects, she said.

Zepp, a Francis Scott Key High School senior, said she plans to put her 4-H savings toward a college education.

Ridgeway said she completed beef projects when she participated in 4-H as a youth member and appreciates that she gets to help more kids in Carroll have a similar experience.

“The progression I see in the kids when they step in at 8 years old for their first year, and then they are now 18 — I see the personal growth that the program has had on them, and the benefits that 4-H has had,” she said.