Education
Agriculture
New sheep workshop series focuses on flock health
The Indiana Flock Exchange program will share with producers about current sheep health issues in Indiana. (Purdue Agricultural Communications photo/Tom Campbell) WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Purdue Agriculture’s Indiana Sheep and Wool Market Development Program and the Indiana Sheep Association (ISA) are jointly sponsoring a new program called the Indiana Flock Exchange, which will take place in three regions of the state starting in July.
Along with ISA, Cora Reinbolt, Purdue Extension small ruminant specialist, is organizing the program and intending to make it annual. The Indiana Flock Exchange strives to reach all areas of the Indiana sheep industry, with the three inaugural workshops focusing on flock health and parasite management.
“Indiana’s small ruminant industry is vibrant, made up of producers that have been working with sheep for generations and those just starting out,” Reinbolt said. “Producers are interested in all sectors of the industry, from meat to fiber, show lambs to sheep dairies and beyond.”
The first event is Sunday, July 26, at Purdue’s Creighton Hall of Animal Sciences, 270 S. Russell St., West Lafayette. The other two events, featuring the same program, will take place Sunday, Sept. 13, and Sunday, Nov. 22, at the Southern Indiana Purdue Agriculture Center, 11371 E. Purdue Farm Road, Dubois, and Pinney Purdue Agriculture Center, 11402 S. County Line Road, Wanatah, respectively.
Reinbolt said the goal of the workshops is twofold. “First, we want to provide an educational offering that is beneficial to all of our producers, and second, we want to go beyond a single event toward building a network of sheep farmers across each region,” she said. “This network would be a way for all producers, no matter their level of experience, to be able to rely on one another for support and build events, marketing opportunities and educational offerings of their own.”
Program activities for all events will be:
- FAMACHA certification training for all participants.
- FAMACHA is a proven method of screening sheep for parasites to avoid excessive deworming, which can lead to parasitic resistance.
- A session by the Indiana State Board of Animal Health about current state health issues affecting sheep.
- A panel of experienced sheep producers, who will discuss their experiences in flock health and answer questions specific to the workshop region.
The program will provide dinner, included in the $10 registration fee. The July 26 workshop at Purdue will begin check-in at 1:30 p.m. ET, with the program beginning at 2 p.m. Registration for the event can be found at https://cvent.me/dw5z20 or the ISA website homepage at www.indianasheep.com.
If you are in need of accommodations to attend this program, please contact Reinbolt at carter34@purdue.edu by July 17. For special dietary needs, contact Reinbolt at carter34@purdue.edu by July 17. If you need an interpreter or translator, please contact Reinbolt at carter34@purdue.edu by July 17.
General questions about the program should be directed to Emma O’Brien, ISA executive director, at executive@indianasheep.com.
Registration and detailed information for the other dates will be shared at www.indianasheep.com.
About Purdue University
Purdue University is a public research university leading with excellence at scale. Ranked among top 10 public universities in the United States, Purdue discovers, disseminates and deploys knowledge with a quality and at a scale second to none. More than 106,000 students study at Purdue across multiple campuses, locations and modalities, including more than 57,000 at our main campus locations in West Lafayette and Indianapolis. Committed to affordability and accessibility, Purdue’s main campus has frozen tuition 14 years in a row. See how Purdue never stops in the persistent pursuit of the next giant leap — including its integrated, comprehensive Indianapolis urban expansion; the Mitch Daniels School of Business; Purdue Computes; and the One Health initiative — at https://www.purdue.edu/president/strategic-initiatives.
Writer: Emma O'Brien, executive@indianasheep.com
Media contact: Olivia De Young, odeyoung@purdue.edu
Source: Cora Reinbolt, carter34@purdue.edu
