Web site helps 4-H’ers keep records

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — As spring arrives, it’s time for young people who plan to raise a 4-H market livestock project to select their animals.

In addition, they must also begin to keep detailed and accurate records to ensure a true picture of the costs of raising an animal for market.

Keeping those records just got easier and more fun, thanks to a new online record-keeping system available through Penn State’s ANGEL course management Web site, https://cms.psu.edu/frames.aspx.

Opportunities

Bob Mikesell, senior instructor in Penn State’s Department of Dairy and Animal Science, said in addition to employing it as a record-keeping system, young people will be able to communicate with each other using embedded chat rooms and message boards.

He noted that Extension educators and 4-H leaders are being trained on the system, and will be able to track record-keeping records online — another way of establishing and maintaining communication with 4-H’ers.

These online record systems will be available for both market and breeding meat project species: sheep, meat goats, swine and beef cattle.