UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Meat goat producers looking for information on how to make their livestock enterprise more profitable can take advantage of a home-study course offered by Penn State Extension this winter.
The course, which begins Feb. 3, will cover profit-enhancing production principles for raising meat goats. Lessons are available online, through email, and through conventional mail delivery. The course contains six weekly lessons.
Lesson topics include production basics, nutrition, health, reproduction, marketing, and financial issues. Each lesson has information about the topic and a worksheet for producers to complete, which will then be mailed or emailed back to Penn State Extension for comments. Producers also can submit questions they would like to have answered. A new feature this year will be the option to join three zoom meetings to review worksheet questions and answers. Zoom meetings can be accessed by computer or by phone.
“This course is a great way for producers to learn new information without having to rearrange their schedule to accommodate a meeting,” said Melanie Barkley, Extension educator based in Bedford County, who is coordinating the course. “Producers can study the lessons at their leisure in their own home. The courses are designed for beginning producers and for those who wish to start a livestock operation in the future.”
Worksheet questions are designed to assist producers with analyzing their current operation. Greg Strait, Extension educator from Fulton County, serves as the course instructor. Strait addresses comments to participants’ individual situations to better help them improve their management skills.
According to Barkley, more than 1,000 producers from across the country have taken this course.
“Producers’ comments following completion of the course show that information offered in the course was very beneficial for them,” Barkley said. “Producers are able to adapt the information for use in their own operations.”
For more details or to sign up for a course, go to https://extension.psu.edu/
To speak to one of the instructors, contact the Penn State Extension office in Bedford County at 814-623-4800 or in Fulton County at 717-485-4111.
Cost for each course is $50 if taken via email and online, $85 if taken using U.S. Postal Service delivery with information on a thumb drive, or $125 is taken using U.S. Postal Service delivery with paper copies of the information. Deadline for registration is Jan. 25, 2021.
About Penn State Extension
Penn State Extension is a modern educational organization, dedicated to translating scientific research into real-world applications to drive progress. In support of Penn State’s land-grant mission, extension programs promote a vibrant food and fiber system, a clean environment and a healthier population for Pennsylvania and beyond.
Penn State Extension serves individuals, businesses and communities, helping them address problems and realize opportunities through a robust portfolio of educational programs, products and services. With support from federal, state and county governments, the organization has a tradition of bringing unbiased information and support to the citizens of Pennsylvania for more than 100 years.
–Penn State Extension