SPring Livestock weigh-ins cancelled

 OK parents I am copying andpasting the email that I received yesterday. Goats, lambs, hogs and dairy beef will be tagged like they did in 2020. RFID tags from the extension office need to be put into your animals and then pictures need to be submitted. BUT they would like them submitted through zsuites. I'm really not sure what this will involve, so we can work through this together. 

If you send me a message of how many animals you are entering through Venango's Edge, I will make a trip to get tags for the entire club. Then Gary and I can help get those tags in ears. Submitting pictures is going to be up to you (I don't have access to zsuite accounts) 

If you have a hog - you need to have an 840 tag from the breeder in the ear OR get in contact with your vet ASAP as it appears that they would like those in the hog's ear in order to submit your pictures. 

Deadline for submitting info is May 21st. If you let me know how many tags, I will get those ASAP and we will get thigns taken care of. THANKS

Good afternoon, Venango County leaders!

This is an important update on spring tagging for sheep, goat, swine, and dairy beef. It was voted on in the last livestock meeting to move the tagging to a virtual format. This means there will no longer be an in-person tagging held on May 13^th. Please share this information with your clubs, since this email was only sent to organizational leaders. Here’s what you can expect for tagging this year:

 

1. Tag pickup and Animal ID form/photo submission dates are: 

• Swine, Lamb, Goat – Tag pickup: around May 1, 2022, at the Penn State Extension Office, Venango County.  
• Animal ID Form/ Photo Submission Deadline: May 21^st, 2022 

2. No animals will be tagged after the above date. Absolutely NO EXCEPTIONS. 
3. After the animal has been tagged members must submit an Animal Identification Form and five (5) clear photos for each animal showing. The Extension Office has the right to not accept photos if the animal cannot properly be identified from them: 

• Tagged ear – close-up of locked tag in the ear showing number side 
• Left profile 
• Right profile 
• Rear view 
• Face – The face photo needs to clearly include the whole face so we can read the visual identifier and can see the additional RFID/Scrapies tags are in place.  

4. Animals will not be officially identified until they have been tagged and the requested information has been submitted to the Extension Office. ID forms and photos can be uploaded into each family's digital shared folder*, sent out by Extension Office personnel.  
5. Before members submit Animal ID forms and photos, they must have all the required tags/identifiers:  
• Pigs - 840 RFID tag** (provided from breeder or veterinarian) and a visual identifier tag. 
• Sheep – Scrapie tag and a 982 tag (provided by the office).
• Goat – Scrapie tag and a 982 tag (provided by the office). 
6. If an ear tag falls out it is the owner’s responsibility in conjunction with their club organizational leader to report it to the Extension Office. Your leader will be issued a new tag to help you, and within five (5) days you must submit a new Animal ID form and five (5) new photos to your digital shared folder*.  
• You will receive one free retag per species. Every retag after that will cost $5.

 

Here’s also a few important notes to know:

• *Families will each be sent a link to a SharePoint folder where they can only see members of their household. This is where all photos and documents are to be uploaded prior to the May 21^st deadline.
• The link to this folder will expire after May 21^st so it is important that everything is entered before this date.
• As organizational leaders, you will have access to all family folders in your club to help ensure members are following the May 21^st deadline.
• If you need a tagger, they can be signed out of the Extension office. Please call prior to picking up to ensure we have one available for you. If an individual family is signing out the tagger it must be returned in three (3) days. If an organizational leader is signing out a tagger for a club, it must be returned within seven (7) days. You will be billed for any tagged not returned after the allotted time.
• Tags can be picked-up from the Extension Office during business hours – 8:30am – 3:30pm. To pick tags up outside of these hours please call ahead of time at 814-427-7607.
• If you are tagging in a family spare, the $5 fee per spare is due at the time of pickup of tags. Cash or checks are accepted. Please make check payable to PSCE – Venango.
• **If you do not have an 840-tag placed in your hog’s ear by the May 21^st deadline – the office will make note of this. Please call us to reopen your folder when this tag has been provided by your breeder or vet and placed in the animal’s ear. A new animal identification form with this number will be required with the photos.
• Bred and Owned paperwork is due at the May 21^st deadline. There are blank copies of this form in every family’s Bred and Owned folder. If it is not received by this deadline, your animal will not be eligible for Bred and Owned.
• Be sure to mark what species and the identifier number on this form.

 

To determine how many tags each family needs please have them fill out this survey: https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=RY30fNs9iUOpwcEVUm61Lie4dEP4NjZDmNlomq4CZ6lUQkpZTVhaS1RKTjdTNFRCNU5UTUlHMVQxWi4u

 

Any additional questions, please reach out to myself or Justine Zuchowski.

 

Thank you!

Annah Burke

4-H Extension Educator

Clarion / Venango

814-437-7607 Ext. 5

alb879@psu.edu