April 2020 Wisconsin Sheep Breeders Coop Newsletter

President’s Message It was certainly disappointing to postpone our annual meeting. Remember it will be held Saturday, September 12 at the Wisconsin Sheep and Wool Festival.

The current Board remains in place until that date when the election will be held.

Your Board is establishing the 2020 meeting dates and proceeding with business.

We have just received the financial review recommendations and are discussing the suggestions at this time.

Please review the videos and documents that have been uploaded on the Annual Meeting page of our website. You’ll be able to see the activities that WSBC has completed this year. The Communications Committee Report and the Youth and Education Report are both in video format as a picture is worth a thousand words. https://wisbc.com/membership/annual-­‐meeting.php The Board has just completed employee performance reviews with the recently completed new job descriptions as the base document. Salary adjustments were also reviewed.

We are certainly in confusing and uncomfortable times. Obviously we will get past this period and will often refer to it as a surprising event. I find some reality and calmness when I go to the barn to do chores. Maybe that’s part of the reason I like being a shepherd. Please take care, stay healthy and be patient.

WSBC President – Doug Wilson

Lamb Producers Raise Quality

Cottage Grove, WI – Some people will be having lamb for Easter dinner. Lamb producers such as the Paskey family of Cottage Grove would like consumers to think about eating lamb at other times of the year as well. Lisa Paskey said ground lamb is versatile; it can be used in any number of dishes – from gyros to burgers to tacos and spaghetti sauce.

Paskey along with her mother, Shelby Paskey, and brother, Scott Paskey, has raised Suffolk sheep since the 1970s. Scott Paskey started with six lambs.

For the Paskey family of Cottage Grove, Wisconsin, raising Suffolk sheep is a family affair. Scott Paskey began raising Suffolk lambs in 1976. He’s joined by his mother, Shelby Paskey and sister Lisa Paskey. Lynn Grooms Photos, Agri-­‐View

Currently the family has a couple of dozen brood ewes, about a half-­‐dozen replacement ewes and a couple of rams. They sell antibiotic-­‐ and hormone-­‐free pasture-­‐raised lamb and sheepskin as well as breeding stock and market lambs to 4-­‐H members from their certified-­‐ scrapie-­‐free flock. “We sell quality over quantity,” Scott Paskey said.

Elmer and Etta Held of River Bend Farm near Oakfield, Wisconsin, have sold ewes and rams to the Paskeys for several years. “Through paying attention to genetics, they’re always trying to improve their flock and breed,” Elmer Held said. He added that few flocks in the United States are scrapie-­‐free. Scrapie is a transmissible spongiform encephalopathy affecting sheep and goats. The presence of classical scrapie in the U.S. sheep and goat population affects the industry through production losses, lost exports, and increased production and disposal costs, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.

Since slaughter surveillance began in 2003, the percent of culled sheep found positive at slaughter has decreased 99 percent, according to the service. Surveillance is conducted through the National Scrapie Eradication Program, a cooperative state-­‐federal-­‐industry program.

The Paskeys have found buyers – especially in ethnic markets. America’s largest group of consumers of lamb are Middle Easterners, Greeks and Hispanics. Population demographics and immigration patterns favor an increase in demand for both lamb and goat.

But overall the U.S. market for lamb and mutton has weakened through the decades. Since the 1960s per-­‐capita consumption has decreased from about 5 pounds to about 1 pound, according to the USDA’s Economic Research Service. The decline is due in part to declining acceptance of lamb from a growing segment of the population, as well as competition from poultry, pork and beef.

“Improving the quality and consistency of our products to ensure consumers have a great eating experience every time, increasing our industry’s productivity and stabilizing our prices are all critical to the success of creating demand for American lamb,” said Jim Percival, chairman of the American Lamb Board.

One of the reasons that Lisa Paskey and Scott Paskey have been drivers behind the Pen of Three competition at the annual Wisconsin Sheep and Wool Festival is to bring more attention to breeding efforts to improve lamb quality. The competition was launched in 2015.

“They’ve been leaders of the competition from beginning to end,” said Dan Schaefer, University of Wisconsin-­‐Madison animal-­‐science professor emeritus. “And the lamb harvested from the competition last September sold very well.”

Elmer Held said Lisa Paskey has done an outstanding job in her role as the coordinator of the Pen of Three Carcass evaluation. And Shelby Paskey helps at the Wisconsin Sheep and Wool Festival’s information desk. In addition to their work with the event the family has been a long-­‐time supporter of the Suffolk-­‐breed association.

Reprinted with permission from Agri-­‐View, Lynn Grooms, April 9, 2020

Suffolk Breeders select for improvement in performance, carcass quality, fertility, survivability, soundness and disposition, according to the United Suffolk Sheep Association.

Visit suffolks.org for more information.

Lynn Grooms Photos, Agri-­‐View

USDA Service Centers Taking Precautionary Measures to Help Prevent the Spread of Coronavirus U.S. Department of Agriculture Service Centers are encouraging visitors to take proactive protective measures to help prevent the spread of coronavirus.

USDA Service Centers in Wisconsin will continue to be open for business by phone appointment only and field work will continue with appropriate social distancing.

While our program delivery staff will continue to come into the office, they will be working with our producers by phone, and using online tools whenever possible. All Service Center visitors wishing to conduct business with the Farm Service Agency, Natural Resources Conservation Service, or any other Service Center agency are required to call their Service Center to schedule a phone appointment. In the event a Service Center is closed, producers can receive assistance from the closest alternate Service Center by phone.

Producers can find Service Center phone numbers at farmers.gov/service-­‐center-­‐ locator.

FPAC agencies continue to look at the flexibilities to deliver programs on behalf of producers, just as they have in past situations, such as natural disasters. Farmers and ranchers are resilient and FPAC agencies will continue to deliver the farm safety net programs and resource conservation programs that keep American agriculture in business today and long into the future.

Online services are available to customers with an eAuth account, which provides access to the farmers.gov portal where producers can view USDA farm loan information and payments and view and track certain USDA program applications and payments. Online NRCS services are available to customers through the Conservation Client Gateway. Customers can track payments, report completed practices, request conservation assistance, and electronically sign documents.

Customers who do not already have an eAuth account can enroll at farmers.gov/sign-­‐in.

For the most current updates on available services and Service Center status visit farmers.gov/coronavirus.

Questions?

Please contact your local FSA Office.

USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer and lender. To file a complaint of discrimination, write: USDA, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, Office of Adjudication, 1400 Independence Ave., SW, Washington, DC 20250-­‐9410 or call (866) 632-­‐9992 (Toll-­‐free Customer Service), (800) 877-­‐8339 (Local or Federal relay), (866) 377-­‐8642 (Relay voice users).

April 7, 2020 The Honorable Sonny Perdue Secretary of Agriculture U.S. Department of Agriculture 1400 Independence Avenue, SW Washington, D.C. 20250

Dear Secretary Perdue, On behalf of the American Sheep Industry Association (ASI), we write to request that the USDA consider damages to our industry as a result of the current COVID-­‐19 pandemic, as originally submitted on March 27th. Specifically, we strongly support our inclusion in whatever vehicle you construct using the CARES Act provided $14 billion increase in the CCC’s spending authority and $9.5 billion livestock relief fund.

We also request modifying or temporarily waiving USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) Livestock Mandatory Price Reporting (LMR) confidentiality guideline for lamb. Slaughter lamb price data cannot b e reported under LMR as a direct result of the COVID-­‐19 pandemic on food service sales for American lamb and associated reductions in lamb processing.

Since the onset of the COVID-­‐19 pandemic, auction prices for feeder and slaughter lambs have declined more than 40%. The number of slaughter lambs being processed this time of year has been reduced drastically due to lost food service sales. Food service dine-­‐in sales account for more than 50 percent of the value of American lamb. According to the Livestock Marketing Information Center (LMIC), the loss in consumer demand is expected to result in a near 40% decline in annual slaughter and feeder lamb prices this year compared to 2019. Based on this significant year-­‐to-­‐year loss in slaughter lamb prices, the expected direct losses at the farm level is estimated at $125 million with an estimated total economic impact to the American sheep and lamb industry in excess of $350 million.

The American lamb industry has become increasingly concentrated at all levels of the production chain.

The Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing of the industry’s second largest lamb processing company coupled with suspension of operations at some processing plants and reductions in lamb slaughter due to lost consumer demand is preventing USDA-­‐AMS from reporting market price data under LMR. The loss of this data has eliminated price discovery and is no longer providing a tool that is more vital than ever, one used by sheep and lamb producers, feeders, and packer-­‐processors. The absence of information and decrease in market transparency available to sheep and lamb producers may lead to potential market manipulation.

The USDA Livestock Risk Protection Insurance Plan for Lamb Program (LRP-­‐Lamb) is dependent on LMR market price data. Since USDA is unable to report market lamb prices under LMR, the LRP-­‐Lamb program cannot be offered to sheep and lamb producers. The lamb industry does not have any other means to offset production risk during this heightened time of uncertainty. Not having LRP-­‐Lamb further compounds the economic impact and sustainability of the American lamb industry.

The American sheep industry was already in a state of heightened uncertainty and economic pain due to the loss of exports to China, our most important wool and pelt market. Combine that with the COVID-­‐19 losses in the lamb market and not having available market information or a risk management program, and the industry impacts are dire. We appreciate your efforts in these challenging times, particularly as they result in providing the information and tools needed for America’s sheep farmers and ranchers to survive these challenging times.

Sincerely, Benny Cox, P resident American Sheep Industry Association

ASI is requesting relief within the $14b increase in CCC funding authority and $9.5b for livestock and others contained in the CARES Act. FROM ASI: The analysts that built the damage estimate see the market concerns unfolding faster than expected and increased the loss figure to $350 million. We encourage USDA to target this amount in the financial assistance. We understand the pressure is on at USDA to produce the package for agriculture and it is likely to be announced in the near future.

We had an opportunity this week to visit directly with USDA Undersecretary Northey who is the point on the team at the Department designing the livestock stimulus and market facilitation payments. Each sector of the industry from lamb feeders, to sheep producers to wool markets to lamb processors relayed the extensive damage already occurring in the industry.

Slaughter lamb prices have declined one-­‐third in just three weeks. Feedlots are locked into substantial losses on their current lambs due to this decline and anticipate that that damage will be realized through the 2020 lamb crop affecting all producers and feeders. Assistance needs to be equitable to involve producers and feeders, lamb and wool and sheepskin. In addition to asking that USDA target assistance at the $350 million damage we have thoroughly documented, suggestions were posed for per head payments.

USDA is being inundated with requests from agriculture so the way to get your sheep request for assistance at the $350 million level noted, is if it is sent to USDA by your Senator or Representative.

Please share with your congressional delegation with the ask that they contact USDA with support of assistance for the sheep industry. We have seen very dramatic points made by producers in their correspondence relaying their experiences such as no bids on wool, no bids on lambs, Yesterday the national wool review was published for the past week and showed no price reports for any class of wool sold in America.

DAMAGES TO THE U.S. SHEEP INDUSTRY

DAMAGES TO THE U.S. SHEEP INDUSTRY

As of April 1, 2020, wool prices are 43% lower (in USD) than the previous year and prices continue to drop. For premium unshorn pelts, rather than producers receiving money for the value of a pelt, they are being charged $2.00 per unit to have the pelt rendered. This is in response of the absence of a market and uncertainty regarding consumer demand from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Wool Prices March 26, 2020

April 1, 2020

The American Sheep Industry Association The American Sheep Industry Association (ASI) represents the nation's 100,000 farm and ranch families that produce American lamb and wool in all 50 states.

The industry has an annual economic impact of over $5.8 billion to the U.S. economy.

As of April 1, 2020, wool prices are 43% lower (in USD) than the previous year and prices continue to drop. For premium unshorn pelts, rather than producers receiving money for the value of a pelt, they are being charged $2.00 per unit to have the pelt rendered. This is in response of the absence of a market and uncertainty regarding consumer demand from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Wool Prices March 26, 2020

April 1, 2020

Source: AWEX Weekly Wool Market Reports

Source: AWEX Weekly Wool Market Reports

Sheepskin Prices

Sheepskin Prices

Source: USDA-AMS, Compiled by Livestock Marketing Information Center

www.sheepusa.org 303.771.3500 info@sheepusa.org

Source: USDA-AMS, Compiled by Livestock Marketing Information Center

The American Sheep Industry Association The American Sheep Industry Association (ASI) represents the nation's 100,000 farm and ranch families that produce American lamb and wool in all 50 states.

The industry has an annual economic impact of over $5.8 billion to the U.S. economy.

www.sheepusa.org 303.771.3500 info@sheepusa.org

WSBC YOUTH SCHOLARSHIP FUNDS Download the 2020 Scholarship Application Form at https://wisbc.com/scholarships.php

*Scholarships: Up to $4000.00 in scholarships will be awarded annually based on qualified applications submitted.

Scholarships to be divided at the Scholarship Committee member’s discretion.

CRITERIA FOR SCHOLARSHIP APPLICANTS • Parents or applicant must have been members of the Wisconsin Sheep Breeders Coop for a minimum of (2) consecutive years including the year of application.

• Must be a high school senior graduating in 2020 or college student age 25 or younger.

• Applicant must be enrolled in UW-­‐Madison Agriculture Short Course, technical school, community college or an accredited 4-­‐year college in the fall of 2020.

• Previous WSBC scholarship winners are not eligible to re-­‐apply.

• Applicant must have carried sheep as a 4-­‐H or FFA project for a minimum of 2 years.

• Scholarships will be paid any time after January 1, 2021 upon submission of scholarship recipient’s Fall 2020 college transcript, reflecting a minimum of a 2.0 GPA and a Spring 2021 class schedule.

DEADLINE: Postmarked by June 15, 2020.

Late applications will not be considered.

Return to: Wisconsin Sheep Breeders Cooperative Wisconsin Sheep Breeders Cooperative 5621 Cty Road F Janesville, WI 53545

wisconsinsheepbreeders@gmail.com

Checkoff and Sheep Center Director Nominations Due to ASI by April 24

The American Sheep Industry Association is seeking nominations of sheep producers to serve on both federal boards affiliated with the sheep business. ASI is certified to nominate producers and feeders to the American Lamb Board and is the only organization that can nominate directors to the National Sheep Industry Improvement Center.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced in March that it is accepting nominations to serve on ALB and NSIIC beginning in 2021. The deadline to submit nominations to ASI is April 24. USDA requires two nominations for each vacant position.

The American Lamb Board has five openings for three-­‐year terms that will begin in February 2021: a producer with 100 or less lambs; a producer with more than 500 lambs; a feeder with less than 5,000 lambs; a first handler; and a seedstock producer.

Any American producer, feeder, first handler or seedstock producer who owns or purchases lambs may be considered for nomination. To satisfy the requirements of the Lamb Promotion and Research Order, either the producer with 100 lambs or less or the producer with more than 500 lambs must be from Region 1.

The 13-­‐member American Lamb Board is industry-­‐funded and supports the national marketing and promotion of sheep and sheep products.

The NSIIC board of directors has three openings. There are two vacancies for sheep producers and one vacancy for a person with expertise in marketing.

The board of directors comprises seven voting members and two non-­‐voting members.

Voting members include four active sheep producers, two members with expertise in finance and management and one member with expertise in lamb or wool product marketing. Non-­‐voting members include USDA’s Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs and Under Secretary for Research, Education and Economics.

Application forms are found at this link:

https://c8e3i7k7.stackpathcdn.com/wp-­‐content/uploads/2020/03/Form-­‐AD-­‐755-­‐ Fillable-­‐ALB.pdf

Apply Now for the Sheep Heritage Foundation Scholarship

The Sheep Heritage Foundation Memorial Scholarship – offered through the American Sheep Industry Association – in the amount of $3,000 is being made available for sheep-­‐related graduate studies.

May 31 is the deadline to apply, and a final selection is expected to be made in June or July 2020.

The scholarship is for the advancement of the sheep industry – lamb and wool – through financial support of a graduate-­‐level (MS or Ph.D.) student who is attending a school in the United States.

Applicant requirements:

• Be a graduate student involved in sheep and/or wool research in such areas as animal science, agriculture economics or veterinary medicine with proof of graduate school acceptance;

• Complete an application;

• Present two letters of reference.

The application form can be downloaded from the ASI website or obtained by writing to the American Sheep Industry Association, Attn: Memorial Scholarship, 9785 Maroon Circle, Suite 360, Englewood, CO 80112-­‐2692, calling 303-­‐771-­‐3500 ext. 107 or emailing angelaa@sheepusa.org.

Download the application at this link: https://c8e3i7k7.stackpathcdn.com/wp-­‐content/uploads/2020/03/ASI-­‐memorial-­‐ scholarship-­‐application-­‐2020.pdf

Lamb Industry Presses for USDA Meat Purchases

The American Sheep Industry Association and the National Lamb Feeders Association sent a letter to USDA Under Secretary Greg Ibach today calling for prompt solicitation of bids under a Feb. 19 Pre-­‐Solicitation Notice Announcement for Trade Mitigation Purchase of Lamb Products.

Lamb meat sales to food service industries are struggling thanks to developments surrounding the COVID-­‐19 pandemic that has led to the closure of many restaurants around the United States.

“The Easter/Passover season is traditionally the single largest lamb consumption period of the year, so the loss of sales is devastating,” read the letter. “Decreased slaughter during this run up to the largest lamb processing period can lead to back-­‐up of live lambs in the feedlots, which again supports an aggressive use of USDA lamb meat purchases. We ask that every consideration is made of any additional lamb products for near term solicitations, as well as use of Section 32 procurement funds, as appropriate.”

ASI maintains a complete database of COVID-­‐19 resources aimed at informing producers of correspondence written on our behalf and other information of value to sheep producers.

For links to ASI resources,: https://sheepusa.org/covid-­‐19-­‐resources

Make It With Wool Entry Forms Go Online As part of an ongoing effort to reduce catalog printing costs, the 2020 Make It With Wool national, state and novelty contest entry forms will only be found online at the Wisconsin Sheep & Wool Festival website.

Go to www.wisconsinsheepandwoolfestival.com and click on Competitions -­‐ Make It With Wool, where printable forms for the contests may be found. As in previous years, contestants may then complete and mail their entry forms to the addresses provided.

For more information on the Wisconsin Make It With Wool program, contact State Director Wynn Wittkopf at 262-­‐370-­‐1433 or wynnwittkopf@gmail.com .

All About – Make It With Wool

Who Can Enter? (Ages as of 1/1/20)

Preteens

Ages 8 -­‐ 12 Juniors

Ages 13 -­‐ 16 Seniors

Ages 17 -­‐ 24 Adults

25 and older Made for Others Any age Novelty Item Any age

What Can I Enter? Preteens & Made for Others Any garment, any number of pieces.

What Can I Enter? (Ages 13 & Up) One-­‐Piece Garment: Dress, jumper, jacket, coat or cape.

Two-­‐Piece Garment: Coat, jacket, cape, blouse/shirt, vest or sweater With….Dress, jumper, skirt, pants or shorts.

Ensemble: 3 or more garments worn together at one time.

Novelty: See Novelty Contest for details.

What Fabrics/Yarns Can I Use? Fabric and yarn requirements are a minimum of 60% wool or specialty fiber for each fashion fabric or yarn used. Specialty fibers include Mohair, cashmere, alpaca, camel, llama and vicuna.

A garment may be lined with a non-­‐wool lining.

What Are the Judging Criteria? *Appropriateness to contestant’s lifestyle *Coordination of fabric/yarn with garment style and design. *Contestant’s preparation. *Construction quality. *Creativity. *Judging is private and decisions are final.

IMPORTANT! Test your fabric prior to construction of your garment. Junior, Senior, and Adult Division contestants must send a 5 x 5” swatch of each fabric to the State Director, Wynn Wittkopf, along with $8 per swatch. These will be sent to the Yocum-­‐McColl Testing Lab in Colorado for verification. Once your fabric passes the fiber content test at the lab it will be certified to be used in the contest.

Swatches sent with the entry forms must be received four weeks prior to the contest to allow for testing.

Construction Awards for 2020!

Nancy Zieman Productions, LLC will sponsor two sewing construction awards at the 2020 Make It With Wool contest. Two $100 cash awards will be presented to the Best Constructed Garments. See rules and entry forms for the MIWW competition. For additional information, contact State Director, Wynn Wittkopf at 262-370-1433 or wynnwittkopf@gmail.com .

Pen of 3 Carcass Competition – Building Blocks for Profit

The 2019 Wisconsin Sheep & Wool Festival welcomed six entries from two states for the Pen of 3 Competition held at the Jefferson County Fair Park. The eighteen lambs included Dorset, Hampshire, Suffolk, Shropshire and Polypay crosses with live placings as follows:

1st Debbie Petzel, Centuria, WI -­‐ Shropshire Cross 2nd Paul & Lori Abel, Arpin, WI -­‐ Suffolk/Hampshire Cross 3rd Courtney Meyer, Iron Ridge, WI -­‐ Suffolk Cross 4th Lillian Schutt, (Scott), Belding, MI -­‐ Suffolk Cross 5th Ty Thorson, Columbus, WI -­‐ Hampshire 6th Tim Jergenson, Almena, WI – Dorset/Polypay Cross

John Kane of Raising Kane Livestock did the in-­‐pen placings, stressing the need for soundness and commenting that overall it was a “Very nice bunch of lambs, good quality.” All the lambs were harvested and indexed by University of Wisconsin-­‐Madison Meat & Biologics Lab and participants were able to obtain information to assist with breeding, feeding and genetic decisions. The harvested lambs were placed as follows: 1st Courtney Meyer 2nd Paul & Lori Abel 3rd Lillian Schutt, (Scott) 4th Tim Jergensen 5th Ty Thorson 6th Debbie Petzel

Following the carcass placings, participants were encouraged to provide feedback through a survey which asked about their genetics, breeding and feeding programs and for their input on changes and improvements that would enhance future Pen of 3 competitions.

Lisa Paskey, Cottage Grove, WI, served as the Coordinator for the Pen of 3 and emphasized the importance of sponsorships for the competition, noting the 2019 supporters which included Central Livestock, Nasco, Equity Co-­‐op, Fleet Farm, Bloomington Livestock, Sydell, Inc., Paskey Suffolks, Insight FS, Blaschka Mill, and Landmark Services. Paskey was also pleased to report that financial support for the 2020 Pen of 3 has increased, welcoming Mountain View Machine and Udderly EZ Milker as new sponsors. She also expressed her appreciation for the support of the six consignors as well as the Wisconsin Sheep Breeders Co-­‐op and noted the assistance and encouragement of Dave Thomas, Elmer Held, Scott Paskey, Ron Russell, Tim Jergensen, Bernie O’Rourke, Dan Schaefer and for the judging services of John Kane. “Without the positive input, physical help and consistent encouragement of so many people it wouldn’t have happened!”

For information on the 2020 Pen of 3 Competition or about the festival, go to www.wisconsinsheepandwoolfestival.com or contact Lisa Paskey at lrpaskey@gmail.com or 608 669-­‐3996.

Focused on building profit potential for commercial producers, the 2019 Pen of 3 Carcass Competition drew enthusiastic support from nine businesses and the University of Wisconsin-­‐ Madison.

Grading the 2019 Pen of 3 Carcass Competition Lambs Ron Russell, Senior Lecturer, UW-­‐Madison, Meat & Animal Sciences

Our approach to ranking lamb carcasses in a pen competition closely mirrors the same criteria where each carcass is evaluated separately on its own merits. In a pen competition -­‐ uniformity, consistency and marketability of the entire pen plays a definite role

1st Place -­‐Pen 4 was a relatively uniform pen which excelled in carcass composition. All 3 carcasses were quite acceptable in terms of fat cover from a pure carcass evaluation perspective.

Ribeyes of nearly 3 inches were desirable as well. The pen had a high resulting projected % retail yield of 46.63% and a high average carcass index of 79.3.

nd 2 Place -­‐ Pen 6 was a very uniform set of carcasses, although a bit on the heavy side with carcass weights of 80# and more. The group was very heavily muscled with ribeyes of 3 inches and more. Fat covers of .2 inches and slightly more are quite acceptable industry wide.

Overall a very desirable set but with a bit of composition challenge to move up in placing.

3rd Place – Pen 1 was the highest indexing pen in terms of projected retail product yield on a % basis as well as the highest indexing average. The high projected yield and index are explained primarily through the leanness of the pen and the low weights of 2 of the carcasses.

Had the 2 lighter weight lamb carcasses been more on par with the third, this pen would have moved up in overall rank.

4th Place – Pen 2 was a very uniformly finished pen in terms of fat cover. 2 of the lambs were on the light side of carcass weight to compliment the pen and as a group these lambs were relatively average with respect to muscling.

5th Place – Pen 3 was a very close placing to Pen 2 for 4th. Data wise the groups are very close.

Pen 3 had fat covers tending to be a little higher with respect to their carcass weights which proved to be a deciding factor. Overall though, still very desirable in terms of industry acceptability.

6th Place – Pen 5 was arguably from a group that was quite productive in terms of growth and performance. This set of lambs was very good in terms of muscling. The fat cover on these lambs moved them out of contention to place higher. That being said, in terms of industry desirability they were still quite good.

In pure carcass shows, those of us engaged in carcass evaluation often let the numbers speak largely for themselves. Projected % retail yield and carcass index are our primary tools as they utilize fat cover, ribeye area, carcass weight and leg score in their determination. We still tend to look are market conditions relative to desired weight ranges and acceptability of fat cover (too little is more often a problem than too much) as well.

University of Wisconsin Small Ruminant Webinar Series -­‐ April 15th, 2020 https://fyi.extension.wisc.edu/wisheepandgoat/small-­‐ruminant-­‐webinar-­‐series/ The University of Wisconsin Animal Sciences Department and the Division of Extension will be hosting a small ruminant webinar series on April 15th, 2020 . The program will start at 7:30 p.m. and end by 9 p.m. CST. These meetings can be taken from your home using a computer, a phone, or at your local extension office using Zoom technology. Check with your extension office if they plan to host. Zoom meetings allow for more natural interaction between the presenters and participants and provide an opportunity to ask questions and have a discussion with other online users.

Jeff Swenson will be joining as April’s guest speaker talking about direct marketing options for Wisconsin producers. Jeff joined DATCP in November 2006 as an Economic Development Consultant specializing in livestock and meat in the Department’s Division of Agricultural Development. The division assists farmers and ag businesses to find ways to add value to their farm production, modernize and expand. His primary responsibilities are working with beef, pork and sheep producers as well as Wisconsin’s meat processing facilities. He is directly involved with outreach to Wisconsin’s livestock associations and agribusiness groups. His past experience includes working for Equity Cooperative Livestock Sales Association, Semex Beef and the Sitel Corporation. Jeff grew up on a beef and dairy farm in southeast Minnesota. He has a B.S. from the University of Wisconsin-­‐Madison How to connect to the webinar: Join Zoom Meeting: https://uwextension.zoom.us/j/836392661

Meeting ID: 836 392 661

One tap mobile +16465588656,,836392661# US (New York)

Dial by your location +1 646 558 8656 US (New York)

Of note: A phone connection will allow you to hear the speaker while a computer or mobile app connection will allow you to hear and see the speaker, other participants, and presentation slides.

Review this video ahead of the meeting on how to join a meeting. https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-­‐us/articles/201362193-­‐How-­‐Do-­‐I-­‐Join-­‐A-­‐Meeting-­‐

For more information, please contact Megan Nelson, Livestock Outreach Program Manager, UW Division of Extension at (608) 282-­‐5572, megan.nelson@wisc.edu.

University of Wisconsin Small Ruminant Webinar Series, May 20th, 2020

The University of Wisconsin Animal Sciences Department and the Division of Extension will be hosting a small ruminant webinar series on May 20th, 2020 . The program will start at 7:30 p.m. and end by 9 p.m. CST. These meetings can be taken from your home using a computer, a phone, or at your local extension office using Zoom technology. Check with your extension office if they plan to host. Zoom meetings allow for more natural interaction between the presenters and participants and provide an opportunity to ask questions and have a discussion with other online users.

“We are excited to bring back this type of remote education for sheep producers across Wisconsin,” said Todd Taylor, UW Madison Shepherd. These webinars are a new spin from the long-­‐standing and widespread sheep ETN meetings that retired Dr. Dave Thomas, sheep specialist, hosted during his tenure at the University of Wisconsin.

Dr. Tom Murphy will be joining as May’s guest speaker and will be discussing how to use Estimated Breeding Values to select more profitable sheep. Dr. Murphy is a research geneticist with the USDA ARS at the Roman L. Hruska Meat Animal Research Center in Clay Center, Nebraska. His research program investigates breed and other genetic effects that influence the performance, health, and meat and wool quality of sheep in intensive and extensive production systems.How to connect to the webinar: Join Zoom Meeting https://uwextension.zoom.us/j/220373952

Meeting ID: 220 373 952

One tap mobile +16465588656,,220373952# US (New York)

Dial by your location +1 646 558 8656 US (New York)

Of note: A phone connection will allow you to hear the speaker while a computer or mobile app connection will allow you to hear and see the speaker, other participants, and presentation slides.

Review this video ahead of the meeting on how to join a meeting. https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-­‐us/articles/201362193-­‐How-­‐Do-­‐I-­‐Join-­‐A-­‐Meeting-­‐

For more information, please contact Megan Nelson, Livestock Outreach Program Manager, UW Division of Extension at (608) 282-­‐5572, megan.nelson@wisc.edu.

Archives of past webinars can be found at this link: https://fyi.extension.wisc.edu/wisheepandgoat/small-ruminant-webinar-series/

FESTIVAL ON TRACK FOR SEPTEMBER

While planners continue to monitor the evolving COVID-­‐19 situation, the Wisconsin Sheep & Wool Festival remains on schedule for September 11-­‐13. As they are received, updates for shows, activities and competitions will placed on the festival website. The festival catalog and annual Wisconsin Sheep Breeders Co-­‐op membership directory will be mailed in early June.

NO HARD COPY ENTRY FORMS For exhibitors planning to enter the Fleece Shows, Make It With Wool, Handspun Skein and Design Challenge competitions at the 2020 festival there will be no hard copy entry forms in the catalog this year. Instead, those forms will be found on the website and may be printed off.

We’re looking for volunteers to help at the Wisconsin Sheep & Wool Festival!

Coordinator – Hall of Breeds Starts May 1: Sends out exhibitor letters, helps with pen set-­‐up, signage, record keeping, assigns pens, collect pen fees.

Donations for Silent Auction Friday: Collects donations from Country Store vendors. Able to drive golf cart with a smile! 5-­‐6 hours est.

Silent Auction Friday-­‐Saturday: Help with set up, recording donations, payments. 6 hours est.

Wonders of Wool Classroom Setup Wednesday-­‐Thursday of festival week: Help with setting out tables and chairs in classrooms, pitting out class signage. 5-­‐6 hours est.

Setting up Signage on the Grounds Wednesday or Thursday of festival week: Able to climb in and out of a trailer, lift up to 40 pounds. Able to drive golf cart. 5-­‐6 hours est.

Pen set up Wednesday or Thursday evening of festival week: Help with setting up exhibitor pens. 5-­‐6 hours est.

Taking down signage/pens, clean up Country Store vendor areas Sunday and/or Monday following festival: Take down and load signage. Able to drive golf cart and lift up to 40 pounds. 4-­‐5 hours est.

Skillathon Saturday-­‐Sunday: Assist Sam and Pat Wiford at Skillathon stations.

Shifts usually run for two hours, starting at 8:00 a.m. Should enjoy working with kids ages 5 to 21!

Used Equipment Auction: Wednesday thru Saturday: Check in, arrange, label and record consignments, assist auctioneer.

Do not have to be continually on-­‐site except for Saturday until 3:00 p.m. Able to lift 40 pounds.

Contact Bob Black, rbblack6443@gmail.com or 920 623-­‐3536 (leave message) or text/call 920 626-­‐2693.

Virtual Farm Tours Please join us for Virtual Farm Tours at the Arlington and Lancaster Research Stations every Friday at 1 p.m. We'll be visiting the sheep, swine, beef units as well as the farm center and feed mill. Attendees will get the opportunity to view an animal surgery suite, facilities, tractors getting ready or in the fields, baby lambs, baby calves and so much more. Click on links to pre-­‐ register. The Zoom connection links will then be sent through email.

Sheep -­‐ https://bit.ly/sheepunit -­‐ This Friday! April 17

Swine -­‐ https://bit.ly/swineunit -­‐ April 24

Beef -­‐ https://bit.ly/beefunit -­‐ May 1

Farm Center/Feed Mill -­‐ https://bit.ly/farmcenter -­‐ May 8

For more information go to the Wisconsin Youth Livestock Program Website for many more resources. https://fyi.extension.wisc.edu/youthlivestock/

Benefit For Blake Sikora Blake Sikora, age 14, was helping a neighbor on March 31 with cutting wood and was almost done when his sleeve got into the PTO shaft. He went to the ER in Eau Claire and then was airlifted to Mayo in Rochester. That evening, he had emergency surgery to return blood flow in his arm as a major artery in his left arm had been injured as the PTO shaft twisted his sweatshirt and t-­‐shirt off. Three surgeries and a week later, Blake is home. He has a long road to recovery and will need to have more surgeries in the future. Blake is the grandson of long time WSBC members Diane and the late Mark Christenson.

A benefit account has been set up for the Sikora family, initiated and promoted by Chippewa County 4-­‐H at the Northwestern Bank in Chippewa Falls. You can drop off a check made out to the "Sikora Family Fund" at any location or it can be mailed to the Main Branch at 202 N. Bridge St. Chippewa Falls, WI 54729. 715-­‐723-­‐ 4461

Thank you for considering to give to this family during this time of need.

Calling All Photographers!

The Wisconsin Sheep & Wool Festival and WSBC invite you to submit your sheep and wool photos to the annual photo contest. The contest is open to everyone, regardless of whether they raise sheep or are WSBC members.

A panel of judges will select the winning photos based on theme, clarity, content, composition and appeal.

MAIL PHOTO CONTEST ENTRIES BY AUGUST 15 TO: Lynn Lee For full details and information, please see the N8950 Midland Dr WSWF website.

Campbellsport, WI 53010 https://wisconsinsheepandwoolfestival.com/comp Questions? Contact Lynn at etitions/photo-contest (414) 828-­‐9757 or loneroosterfarm@outlook.com

The Wisconsin Sheep and Wool Festival will continue to hold its annual Used Equipment auction in the same location. Consigners are encouraged to drop off items no later than noon on Saturday. The annual Shepherds Auction will be in combination with the silent auction held in the activity center at the festival. The new “Shepherds Choice” auctions will showcase donations from a wide variety of businesses. We hope by making this a silent auction format we can accommodate those who are unable to make it over to the live auctions to purchase items.

The Shepherds Choice auctions will include similar items seen in the past shepherds auctions including sheep equipment, lambing and show supplies, and much more! Anyone who is interested in contributing or has someone in mind as a donor is encouraged to reach out to Ryan Bingen or Lynn Lee. We hope 2020 will be our best auction year yet!

Information of the Used Equipment Auction https://wisconsinsheepandwoolfestival.com/special-­‐events/used-­‐equipment-­‐auction Information on the Silent Auction https://wisconsinsheepandwoolfestival.com/special-­‐events/shepherds-­‐silent-­‐auctions

Meet the Producer Corner View Club Lambs and 5 Star Lamb The Five Star Lamb story started with a 4-­‐H sheep project in 1991. Doug Wilson bought his son Roy a lamb to show at the Shawano County Fair. Roy kept showing and the flock kept growing. Roy graduated from 4-­‐H and Doug started looking for more kids to show lambs. This is when Mike Bohm’s kids and Terri Dallas’ kids started showing lambs. At the end of each show season the kids would sell their award-­‐ winning lambs to family and friends who enjoyed eating lamb as much as the kids enjoyed showing lambs.

Fast forward to 2015, the k ids were done showing but the flock, Corner View Club Lambs, k ept growing. Today, the majority of the lambs are still sold to 4-­‐H kids with the balance sold to Five Star Lamb, a business venture between Doug, Mike, Terri, Roy and his wife Lacey.

Five Star Lamb sells freezer lambs (whole or half) or retail cuts available at the farm or Saturdays at the Green Bay or Shawano Farmer’s Markets. If you’ve traveled on Highway 29, between Shawano and Bonduel, you’ve probably seen our ewes grazing on the pasture.

Today’s flock is made up of Hampshire and Suffolk sheep; breeds known for their flavorful and tender meat. Our lambs are finished on a corn-­‐based diet to bring out the tastiest lamb flavor possible. Five Star lambs do not receive hormones or stimulants. This is the first chapter of the Five Star Lamb story, but we are expecting more chapters.

Roy and Lacey are excited to have their kids showing lambs and continuing the tradition of breeding high quality lambs that win shows and taste great!

CVCL and 5 Star Lamb offer Open Houses to educate the public on sheep.

Top right photo is a cooking demo by Terri Dallas at a Farmer’s Market.

The Baa Booth at the Wisconsin State Fair The theme of the 2020 Baa Booth is Wool – From Farm to Fashion.

The sign shop at WSF is creating the 58" x 20”panels that will tell our story.

The carpentry shop is building the frames will be used from year to year, along with a display cart for our promotional items. We will feature a new story of the sheep industry in 2021. If you miss attending the Wisconsin State Fair, you’ll have a second chance to view this display at the WSWF.

Wisconsin Sheep Breeders Cooperative Master Shepherd Award Winners 1979

Lester & Ardis Schussman Merlie & Bev Nofsinger Ron & Pat Klahn

Purebred Commercial Commercial

Malone Poynette Arlington

1980

Jim & Jack Wilson Vernon & Nellie Stogdill Dave & Jane Woodruff

Purebred Commercial Commercial

Stratford Bay City Wheeler

1981

Duane & Judy Richards Dan, Mae, Jean & Bill Brew Jim & Kathy Dowdell

Purebred Commercial Commercial

Lodi Wisconsin Dells Rio

1982

Jim & Mary Kipp William Black Duane & Gloria Zuhlke

Purebred Commercial Commercial

Loyal Poynette Portage

1983

Steve & Vicky Olson Lyle & Ruby Baltz Ed & Marci Phillips

Purebred Commercial Commercial

Stoughton Elroy Rio

1984

James & Linda Portz Warren & Jacque Deweese Mike & Kathy Nushart

Purebred Commercial Commercial

Waukesha Pardeeville Sussex

1985

Dave & Mary Troxel Dick & Sylvia Roembke Delmar & Vi Capelle Ed & Evelyn Crooks

Purebred Purebred Commercial Commercial

Plainfield Cedarburg Loyal Brodhead

1986

Roger & Barb Douglas Larry & Kathy Becker

Purebred Commercial

Janesville Montello

1987

Matt & Lester Glewen Elaine Considine

Purebred Commercial

New Holstein Portage

1988

Elmer & Etta Held James & Sandy Morris

Purebred Commercial

Oakfield Mosinee

1989

Dr. Art & Betty Pope

Purebred

Verona

1990

Robert Zapatocny Catherine Wineman

Purebred Commercial

Columbus Spooner

1991

Tony Weber Family The Schickel Family

Purebred Commercial

Dousman Mineral Point

1992

George Mann Margaret Waite & Jackie Jackson

Purebred Commercial

Fairchild Clinton

1993

Steve Carlson Don Fischer

Purebred Commercial

Ellsworth Loyal

1994

Tom & Kathi Myers Floyd & Vivian George

Purebred Commercial

Burlington Burlington

1995

Warren & Pam Finder Sandra Severt

Purebred Commercial

Stoughton Marathon

1996

Marlin & Beth Subra Tim Miller

Purebred Commercial

Blair Beloit

1997

Robert, Sharon, Regina & Megan Schaefer

Purebred

Marshfield

1998

David Erb

Commercial

Hillsdale

1999

Myron Bandt David & Gina Stark

Purebred Commercial

Rio Kendall

2000

Kevin Slack Jim Schultz

Purebred Commercial

Lake Geneva Clintonville

2001

Sandy Russell Dave & Debbie Johnson

Purebred Commercial

Cazenovia Wonewoc

2002

Spilde Farms Bob & Penny Leder

Purebred Commercial

Stoughton Bear Creek

2003

Gary & Laurel Vondrachek Vincent & Mary Metcalf

Purebred Commercial

Kiel Montello

2004

Richard Krackow Dale & Judy Dobberpuhl Dan Guertin

Purebred Commercial Dairy

Arcadia DePere Stillwater, MN

2005

MB Genetics Gordon Waite Yves Berger

Purebred Commercial Dairy

Rio Clinton Spooner

2006

Kevin & Sara Kuykendall Werner & Diane Haas Mary Wallace None

Purebred Commercial Wool Dairy

Richland Center

2007

Jim & Donna Lein Ray & Alice Antoniewicz Family Roger & Carol Watkins None

Purebred Commercial Wool Dairy

Arlington, IA Oregon Mount Horeb

2008

Richard & Karen Schambow Gene & Ruth Schrieffer Paul & Carol Wagner

Purebred Commercial Wool

Evansville, WI Dodgeville, WI Valders, WI

2009

Gary Klug Warren & Ellen O'brion David Kier

Purebred Commercial Wool

Denmark, WI Rio, WI

2011

Sam & Sharon Thiel Corner View Club Lambs Sue Ellen Thomsen-Link

Purebred Commercial/Club Wool

Tigerton Shawano Brodhead

2012

Aceline Suffolks/Romaine Ace Family Jeff & Leslie Nevens Family

Purebred/Club Wool

Brooklyn Lodi

2013

Hi-Way C Columbia/Baumer & Hoff Family Gene Stetzer Family

Purebred/Wool Purebred

Mindoro Melrose

2014

Harland & Delight Walker Lloyd & Phyllis Burgener

Commercial Purebred/Wool

Waterloo Richland Center

Cambridge

2015

Kurth Farms Sattler Farms/Darren Sattler Family

Purebred Commercial

Pewaukee Chilton

2016

Cody Hiemke Jeoff Stevens

Purebred Commercial

Stoughton Clinton

2017

Laurel Kieffer Kelly Bartels

Dairy Purebred/Wool

Strum Monroe

2018

Alf Hampshires Kathryn Ashley-Wright

Purebred Wool

Edgerton Viroqua

2019

Impact Hampshires David Hammer

Purebred Wool

Shullsburg Cuba City

Wisconsin Sheep Industry Award 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019

Wisconsin Agriculturist Carl Hirschinger Dr. Art Pope Dr. Woody Lane Roger Harris (Wooltique) Rudy Van Fleet Jim Elphick Rudy Erickson Paul George (Special Service Award) Scott Spaulding Jack May (Kent Feeds) Jane Fyksen (Agri-View) Bob Johnson/Badger State Auction Harold Bockman Jane Metcalf Kelli Gunderson Jim Walker & Mac McDermott Richard & Sylvia Roembke Jerome Huber David Johnson Sue Finley Carol Black Todd & Lynnette Taylor Dr Dan Schaefer Steve Bingen Dr Dave Thomas Rusty Burgett David Kier

Art Pope Award 1995 1996 1997

Nils Nelson Bill Blake Richard & Sylvia Roembke

1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019

Bob & Carol Black Larry & Kathy Becker Dick Vatthauer Onoka & Sharon Pufahl The Country Today Elmer & Etta Held Dave Thomas William & Jean Brew Randy Gottfredson Marv & Ruth Espenscheid Barbara Bishop Sam & Pat Wiford Robert Johnson Yves Berger Larry & Bud Mead James Elphick Dick Boniface Rudy Erickson Todd & Lynnette Taylor Dr Jeffrey Held Tim Jergenson

Agri-Communicator Award 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

Ray & Alice Antoniewicz Robert Leder Steve Pinnow David Kier Greg & Deb Deakin/Banner Magazine Carol Battenberg Sarah Young

Friend of the Wisconsin Sheep Breeders Cooperative 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019

Warren & Ellen O'brion Brian Bolan Leah Dickson Paul & Carol Wagner Richard & Barb Schultz Richard & Sylvia Roembke Etta Held Wynn Wittkopf Kim Ogle Bernie O’Rourke & Ron Patterson Nancy Burton

WSBC annually seeks nominations for its awards and recognition program each year. Recipients of these award are recognized at the WSBC Annual Meeting WSBC members are encouraged to submit nominations throughout the year for four categories of awards.

THE ART POPE AWARD This award is named for the long-time purebred Hampshire breeder and member of the University of Wisconsin-Madison Department of Meat & Animal Science faculty for 43 years. The award, which got its start in 1995, recognizes exceptional service to and active involvement in the sheep industry, both in Wisconsin and nationally, over many years. Dr. A.L. Pope’s outstanding contribution to sheep research and outreach within the sheep industry, both as a professor of sheep science and as a producer of purebred seedstock, exemplifies the type of person this award acknowledges. Nominations are not limited to only Wisconsin residents.

THE WISCONSIN SHEEP INDUSTRY AWARD The Wisconsin Sheep Industry Award recognizes people and businesses with a long history of support and service to Wisconsin’s sheep industry and is limited to Wisconsin residents, businesses and/or Wisconsin Sheep Breeders Cooperative members.

THE MASTER SHEPHERD AWARDS The cooperative’s oldest award recognizes Master Shepherds within four separate categories, Purebred, Commercial and/or Club Lamb, Wool, and Dairy Sheep. The first Master Shepherds were recognized at the 1979 Wisconsin Sheep Industry Conference held in Madison.

Award winners must be current WSBC members.

THE FRIEND OF THE WSBC AWARD A new award, being introduced in 2011 is given to a person, business, or organization that has provided outstanding support and/or service to the Wisconsin Sheep Breeders Cooperative or the Wisconsin Sheep & Wool Festival. Nominations are not limited to only Wisconsin residents, businesses, or organizations. Nominations for WSBC annual awards are due December 1 and should be submitted to; Jill Alf, Executive Secretary, Wisconsin Sheep Breeders Cooperative, 5621 Cty Road F Janesville, WI 53545, Phone: 608-743-9080 Email wisconsinsheepbreeders@gmail.com . Nominations should explain why the nominee deserves the award and the scope of involvement in the sheep industry.

Rob Zelinsky 2020 Art Pope Award Recipient Dr. Dave Thomas, Emeritus Professor of Sheep Management and Genetics, Department of Animal Sciences, UW-­‐Madison

Rob is from Dickinson County, Iowa near Terril (population 367) which is about 20 miles NW of Spencer, Iowa. He grew up around Suffolk sheep, graduating from North Dakota State University (NDSU) with a B.S. degree in Animal Science in 1992, and then completing his M.S. degree in Ruminant Nutrition. He was at NDSU during a time when the university was widely recognized as one of the top purebred sheep operations in the U.S. under the direction of shepherd Wes Limesand, and faculty member, Professor Bert Moore. We were fortunate to hire Rob in 1994 to take over management of the Sheep Unit at the UW-­‐Madison Arlington Agricultural Research Station after the retirement of long-­‐time university shepherd, Jim Elphick. Rob did a wonderful job of management of the sheep flock and working with students and Wisconsin sheep producers. During part of Rob’s tenure at UW-­‐Madison, his wife, Christy, served as the Extension Livestock Youth Specialist in the Department of Animal Sciences. In 2000, Rob and Christy left UW-­‐Madison for Waterloo, Iowa where Rob served as the Animal Science Instructor at Hawkeye Community College. He filled the position upon the retirement of Bob Kimm, another nationally recognized Suffolk breeder. Rob left Hawkeye Community College in 2004 to become the Sheep Unit Manager at South Dakota State University; where he worked with the faculty member in charge of the sheep program and Wisconsin native, Dr. Jeff Held. Rob brings us up-­‐to-­‐date on his more recent activities and those of his family in the following narrative that he supplied to me:

Currently I work for Hubbard Feeds as their Small Ruminant Nutritionist dealing specifically with Sheep and Goat Nutrition, Technical Support, and Sales. I have worked for Hubbard for 8 years and just started this particular role full-­‐time in March 2020. Like many of you, I spend much of my time with family and livestock activities. We still run a flock of purebred Suffolk ewes near Brookings, South Dakota. We have dabbled in cattle, goats, and pigs as the kids have gone through their 4-­‐H years.

The six years we had in Wisconsin working with sheep producers and youth livestock kids were very valuable to Christy and me. I was lucky to be part of such a strong sheep program at UW-­‐Madison that Art Pope and Jim Elphick built and Dave Thomas and Yves Berger expanded and molded that provided great teaching, extension, and research programming for the state and nation. Plus, I had the opportunity to work with such a diverse, talented, focused, and driven WSBC Board and the Planning Committee for their signature event – the Wisconsin Sheep Industry Conference. I learned a lot and found that things were done “First Class”. Wow, what an event!!

Christy works at the Brookings M.S. in an alternative classroom assisting students with academic and emotional support. Her second job is keeping everyone going in the right direction at home, and, lastly, she makes sure everything is in order in the barn. She volunteers in our church, 4-­‐H, Fellowship of Christian Athletes and Friends of Baseball.

Rhett is a Senior at Brookings High School. Christy and I have enjoyed watching him conclude a very successful football season, and we hope to watch him play some baseball this summer. He is headed to William Penn University in Iowa to play college baseball and major in Psychology. If things don’t work out to play baseball this summer due to the Covid-­‐19 issue, we will still enjoy future commutes to Iowa as Rhett continues his baseball career.

Raesa is a Freshman at Brookings High School. She is on the livestock judging teams for both 4-­‐H and FFA, participates in Fellowship of Christian Athletes, spends her summers prepping lambs for shows, and is heavily involved in the day-­‐to-­‐day sheep activities at the farm. She whips her brothers into shape when they get out of line!

Thanks for the recognition with this award. It means a lot coming from a producer-­‐driven organization and being named in Art’s honor. I want everyone who was a part of the WSBC when we were in Wisconsin to know how much Christy and I appreciated the reception and support given to us during that time. We will always look at our time in the “Badger” state very positively.

Rob Zelinsky, Shepherd at the UW-­‐Madison Arlington Research Station from 1994 to 2000 is the recipient of the 2020 Art Pope Award presented by the Wisconsin Sheep Breeders Co-­‐op. (L to R) Rob, Riggen, Rhett, Raesa, and Christy.

JIM & SUE RUPNOW RECIPIENTS OF WISCONSIN SHEEP INDUSTRY AWARD Begun in 1987 by the Wisconsin Sheep Breeders Cooperative (WSBC), the Wisconsin Sheep Industry Award recognizes people and businesses with a long history of support and service to Wisconsin’s sheep industry. The recognition is limited to Wisconsin residents, businesses and/or WSBC members.

The 2020 recipients for the award are Jim and Sue Rupnow of Columbus, whose dedication to agriculture began in their native Illinois. Sue, growing up on a beef and grain farm, taught high school English after graduating from the University of Illinois.

After Jim graduated from veterinary school, the couple moved to Wausau in 1969 where Sue gave up teaching to begin raising a family. On land they had purchased, they became hobby farmers, raising sheep, feeding out a few beef steer and riding horses. Sue became a 4-­‐H leader and eventually President of her county 4-­‐H Federation, the Market Animal Show & Sale Committee, served four years as President of the Wisconsin 4-­‐H Horse Board and on the board of the Mid-­‐ Wisconsin Sheep Producers. Sue was also one of the founding members of the Wisconsin Club Lamb Association, serving on the board for 10 years.

Jim joined the Wausau Animal Hospital and after three years bought out the large animal practice which became Wisconsin Valley Veterinary Service. With the kids in school, Sue began a career in advertising at WAOW-­‐TV in Wausau where she worked from 1981 to 2004 in various capacities, including commercial copywriter and program manager. After 23 years, she took a part time position with the Wausau Area Performing Arts Foundation while she turned her attention to her new business, Profiles Livestock Show Supply and Custom Embroidery which she began in 2002. That business has continued to build with daughter Heidi and her husband Alan Thorson joining Sue and Jim as they make the rounds each year of numerous sheep and livestock shows around the Midwest.

The Rupnow Family Hampshires flock numbered between 30 and 40 ewes, transitioning to a wether-­‐style sheep in the mid-­‐80’s. By 1994 the flock had hit a major milestone when Heidi won the Market Lamb Show at the Wisconsin State Fair with her home-­‐bred Rupnow market lamb. Heidi and Alan would begin Metro Hamps based upon Rupnow genetics and in 2018 Jim and Sue moved to Columbus and the two flocks officially merged after years of working together on strengthening their genetics.

Sue has served Wisconsin agriculture and its sheep industry in numerous roles. In 2007, Wisconsin Secretary of Agriculture Rod Nilsestuen asked her to be his representative to the Wisconsin State Fair Board of Directors and in 2008 Governor Jim Doyle appointed her as a voting member to the Board where she embraced the challenges of many changes that were to face the state fair during her terms. With her strong background of exhibiting livestock she remains committed to preserve the purpose of livestock competitions and has strongly supported both the open and junior state fair sheep shows.

Profiles Livestock Show Supplies and Custom Embroidery has also brought its support of junior exhibitors to the Wisconsin Sheep & Wool Festival, where since 2009 they have provided an embroidered award to the highest placing individual in each of four age categories in the Youth Sweepstakes.

Sue served on the Board of the Wisconsin Sheep Breeders Cooperative from 2008 through 2018 and as its President for 3 years. She is currently serving on the Producer Education Committee of the co-­‐op.

Now “retired” to Columbus to be closer to family and the flock, Sue continues to take a major role in the show supply and embroidery business, while Jim is now a consultant and inspector with Northern Lakes Vet Supply. The Rupnows have four children, Kelly, Brent, Eric and Heidi and 5 grandchildren.

It is with great honor and gratitude for their service that WSBC awards the 2020 Wisconsin Sheep Industry Award to Jim and Sue Rupnow!

2020 Wisconsin Sheep Breeders Cooperative Master Shepherd Award Emerald Valley Oxfords, Laura and Andy Meyer, of Watertown

What started out as a 4-­‐H project and few commercial sheep for high school sophomore Laura Rummler has grown into a nationally respected and competitive flock of Purebred Oxford Sheep. Today, Laura and her husband Andy along with their young sons, Jordan, Landon, and Grayson maintain a flock of around twenty-­‐five ewes.

The transition from commercial sheep to her registered flock took a while as Laura studied Animal Science at UW River Falls. Along the way, she purchased an Oxford ram from Don Lutz to use on her commercial ewes and was impressed with the production and growth that he provided. Once she graduated from college in 1998 and no longer needed to save for tuition, she purchased her first Oxfords, three ewe lambs from Tony Weber. Like many new breeders, it took a while for her flock to grow and in 2002 she exhibited for the first time at the Wisconsin State Fair. While her flock was developing, she also was mentoring a gentleman by the name of Andy, who she actually allowed to help her with sheep chores and showing. The partnership became permanent in 2006 when they got married! As an indication of their seriousness to improving their flock, they invested in a new ram and named him appropriately – Wedding Crusher.

It wasn’t long before Emerald Valley Oxfords became a very competitive program. An early highlight was with a home raised ram named Sumo who in 2009 placed second in class at the North American in Louisville. As a yearling he became their first of their many Wisconsin State Fair Champions. In 2011 their ewe Party Girl was champion at the Wisconsin State Fair and Reserve National Champion at Louisville. Since then they have had Champion Ram at state fair in 2011, 2013, 2017, and 2019. They had the Wisconsin State Fair Reserve Champion ewe in 2013 and the Champion three years in a row in 2016, 2017, and 2018. During these same years, they have successfully shown at the North American with highlights in 2016 when they won both the fall ram and ewe lamb classes as well as having their yearling ewe chosen as Best Headed ewe of the show. This past year their February ewe lamb was chosen as the Reserve Junior Champion and as the Best Headed Female.

While the Meyers have added genetics from Lutz Oxfords, Rocky Hill Oxfords, Misty Meadow Oxfords, and Cedar Lane Farm they take pride in that almost all of their show sheep have been home raised and the result of their breeding decisions and management. While Laura is listed before Andy in their ads, she admits that decisions are made jointly and his title as chief sheep feeder is not real accurate.

In addition to raising fine sheep, Laura has served in leadership positions as well. She has served two terms on the WI Sheep Breeders Cooperative board and two terms on the National Oxford Sheep Board of Directors including three years as President. Since her time on the boards, she has been busy being mom to her three young sons. Jordon has already shown at the All American and helped at bigger shows. Laura refers to Landon and Grayson as her “sheep whisperers” as she watches them connect with sheep that distance themselves from everyone else. It will be fun to watch them grow up.

It is a distinct honor to recognize Emerald Valley Oxfords, Laura, Andy Meyer and sons as the 2020 Wisconsin Sheep Breeders Master Shepherds. Congratulations!

Friend of Wisconsin Sheep Breeders Cooperative Awarded to UW Small Ruminant Club

A long standing and integral part of the Wisconsin Sheep & Wool Festival is the Youth Sweepstakes, a program which encourages youth attending the festival to take part in as many educational and exhibition events as possible in an effort to expand their knowledge and proficiency in all aspects of sheep production. The Sweepstakes also prepares young people across five age categories in 4-­‐H, FFA and other youth programs for future competitions.

While it is only one of a dozen events for which points are given to participants in the Youth Sweepstake, the Skillathon yearly ranks as the activity drawing the largest number of youth participants. In 2019 over one hundred young people ages 5 to 21 took advantage of what can only be described as a rewarding and unique learning experience for anyone taking part, a walk-­‐thru of individual stations where one’s knowledge of sheep and sheep production is tested.

Since 2007, the Skillathon has been brought to Jefferson by Ohio natives Sam and Pat Wiford whose renown in providing high quality educational experiences for kids of all ages is universally recognized in sheep circles. But while the Wifords put together a new and challenging program each year for the festival, the event requires volunteers to make it a successful activity -­‐ lots of volunteers.

That’s where this year’s Friend of the WSBC award recipient comes in. The University of Wisconsin Small Ruminant Club has for many years supplied enthusiastic student volunteers to help the Wifords shepherd Skillathon participants through their learning experience. Alongside the many producer volunteers who also take time from their festival schedules to go one-­‐on-­‐ one with the kids, the vet students step away from the classroom for a weekend to put a face to higher education and setting the bar a little higher for young Skillathon contestants.

The UW Small Ruminant Club is a Student American Veterinary Medical Association (SAVMA) recognized organization for students at the UW School of Veterinary Medicine. The goal of the club is to broaden student experiences with sheep, goats, llamas, alpaca, deer and elk species and member experiences can include activities such as sheep shearing, herd health visits, ultrasounding and featured speakers. In addition, club members are encouraged to take part in campus charities and activities supporting fellow students.

The UW School of Veterinary Medicine, recognized as one of the top veterinary teaching schools in the nation, and last year enrolled 96 incoming students out of 1318 that applied. In 2019 the school was supported by $28.9 million in research and extramural awards and provided $1.98 million is student aid. As part of the instructional programming, the schools clinics recorded over 28,000 visits in 2019.

The Wisconsin Sheep Breeders Co-­‐op established the Friend of the WSBC award in 2011, recognition that is given to a person, business or organization that has provided outstanding support and/or service to the Cooperative or to the Wisconsin Sheep & Wool Festival.

Nominations are not limited to only Wisconsin residents, organizations or businesses.

Congratulations to the UW Small Ruminant Club on being named 2019 Friend of the WSBC!

Video link -­‐ https://youtu.be/rf8n6SqZx4E

Ground Lamb and Veggie Fritatta

INGREDIENTS • 1/2 lb ground American lamb • 1/2 bunch asparagus, trimmed • 2 tbsp olive oil, divided • 1/4 cup chopped yellow onion • 1 cup sliced baby bella mushrooms • 1 garlic clove, minced • 8 large eggs • 2 tbsp half-­‐n-­‐half • 3/4 cup crumbled goat cheese • salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS 1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Spray a small baking sheet with non-­‐ stick cooking spray. Place the asparagus on the baking sheet and drizzle tops with 1 tbsp olive oil, salt and pepper. Cook the asparagus for about 12 minutes or until golden. Remove from oven and cut stalks into thirds. Set aside.

2. In a large oven-­‐proof skillet preheat to medium-­‐high heat add the ground lamb, salt, and pepper. Cook the lamb until no long pink about five minutes.

Next, add mushrooms, garlic, onion, salt, pepper, and remaining 1 tbsp olive oil. Cook until everything has softened about four to five minutes. Stir in the asparagus thirds.

3. In a medium bowl whisk together eggs and half-­‐n-­‐half. Pour the egg mixture into the skillet with the ground lamb and vegetables. Let it cook for about a minute and then sprinkle the crumbled goat cheese on top. Turn off the heat and put the skillet into the oven. Bake until the eggs are set about 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from oven and enjoy!

Calendar of Events

April 24-­‐26

May 8-­‐9

Wisconsin Alpaca Fest, Alliant Energy Center, Madison, WI CANCELLED

Rock County Sheep Producers Fund Raiser, Country Pride Meats, 109 Church St., Clinton, WI. 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. $5 Lamb Burger/Brat Meal Deal POSTPONED UNTIL FALL

May 23-­‐24 Great Lakes Fiber Show, Wayne County Fairgrounds, Wooster, OH.

www.greatlakesfibershow.com WILL MAKE FINAL DECISION MAY 1

May 30 NSC Beef, Sheep and Goat Show St. Croix County Fairgrounds, Glenwood City, WI northernshowcircuit@gmail.com or John Bazille-­‐ 715-­‐684-­‐9529 Check Facebook for current information

June 6 39th Annual Wisconsin Spring Preview Show, Wisconsin Livestock Breeders Assn.

Jefferson County Fair Park, Jefferson, WI. wisconsinlivestockbreeders@gmail.com 608 743-­‐9080.

June 13-­‐14 21st Annual WLBA/Purina Wisconsin Livestock Show Camp. Wisconsin Livestock Breeders Assn. Wisconsin State Fair Park, West Allis, WI. Location subject to change wisconsinlivestockbreeders@gmail.com 608 743-­‐9080.

June 22 – 27 Midwest Stud Ram Sale, Missouri State Fairgrounds, Sedalia, MO https://www.midwestsale.com/

July 2-­‐5 All American Junior Show – East Lansing, MI https://allamericanjuniorshow.com/

July 6-­‐11 American Rambouillet National Show & Sale, Ozark Empire Fairgrounds, Springfield, MO. www.countryloving.com/ARSBA/

July 16-­‐18 Katahdin Hair Sheep National Expo & Sale, Hardin County Extension Center, Elizabethtown, KY. www.katahdins.org Catalog/registration in early June.

July 25 15th Annual Center of the Nation NSIP Sale, Clay Co. Fairgrounds, Spencer, IA. www.nsip.org or Rusty Burgett, 515 708-­‐8850.

August 6-­‐16 Wisconsin State Fair, Wisconsin State Fair Park, West Allis. www.wistatefair.com

August 6-­‐16 Wisconsin Wool Works! 9:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m. daily, Wisconsin State Fair Sheep Barn.

Info: wisbc.com or Carol Black, Manager, carol@ewesfulgifts.com , 920 296-­‐0326.

August 22 11th Annual Wisconsin Summer Spectacular Show, Wisconsin Livestock Breeders Assn. Central Wisconsin State Fairgrounds, Marshfield, WI.

wisconsinlivestockbreeders@gmail.com 608 743-­‐9080

Sept. 11-­‐13

Sept. 12

Sept. 12

Sept. 12

Sept. 12

Wisconsin Sheep & Wool Festival, Jefferson County Fair Park, Jefferson, WI. www.wisconsinsheepandwoolfestival.com Annual Meeting, Wisconsin Sheep Breeders Co-­‐op, 5:00 p.m. Activity Center, Wisconsin Sheep & Wool Festival, Jefferson County Fair Park, Jefferson. Stay updated at www.wisbc.com Wisconsin Make It With Wool State Contest, Jefferson County Fair Park, Jefferson, WI. Contact: Wynn Wittkopf, State Director, 262 370-­‐1433, wynnwittkopf@gmail.com www.wisconsinsheepandwoolfestival.com National Bluefaced Leicester Show, Jefferson County Fair Park, Jefferson, WI. www.wisconsinsheepandwoolfestival.com or www.bflsheep.com.

Wisconsin Sheep Breeders Co-­‐op Used Equipment Auction, Jefferson County Fair Park, Jefferson, WI. www.wisbc.com www.wisconsinsheepandwoolfestival.com .

608 743-­‐9080 (weekdays after 5:00 p.m.) wisconsinsheepbreeders@gmail.com Do you have an event coming up? Let us know!

Debbie Petzel – dspetzel@gmail.com

Do you have a suggestion for a summer field day?

Would you like to help design the 2021 Baa Booth?

Are you interested in joining any of the WSBC committees?

Do you have new ideas for the Wisconsin Sheep and Wool Festival?

Your ideas, thoughts and creativity could be brought to life!

Please contact any of the WSBC staff or Board of Directors with your ideas. https://wisbc.com/membership/directors-committees.php We look forward to hearing from YOU!