The recently re-formed Nicola Valley 4-H Club has been very busy this spring.

Following a very successful public speaking competition in early March, the local club held a pair of judging seminars recently.

On March 29, close to 20 youngsters gathered at the home of Hope Thomas for a session on horses.

“Our instructor was our 4-H horse leader Melanie Gilmar who’s from Logan Lake,” said Nicola Valley 4-H spokesperson Tanya Starrs. “She’s been in 4-H for quite some time. She showed all the kids what to look for in a horse in terms of confirmation, disposition and temperament. She went over the names of all the parts of the horse, too.”

On April 12, the 4-H members converged on Guichon Ranch at the head of Nicola Lake for a similar judging session with lambs.

“Allison Guichon is our lamb leader, and she covered similar points with the kids in terms of judging lambs and then ewes,” Starrs said. “Because the sheep have wool, their confirmation is much harder to determine, so the kids had to get right in there with their hands and feel for the confirmation. They’re actually touching the animals.”

This past Saturday, 15 members of the Nicola Valley 4-H Club joined 10 other clubs (and close to 150 other members) from around the Interior at a rally at the stock yards in Kamloops.

“All the kids judged horses first, then they got to judge a second class of any animal they wanted,” Starrs said. “There was sheep, dog, rabbit, beef and even photography. The leaders and parents weren’t allowed to help. The kids have to do it all on their own.”

At Saturday’s function, Nicola Valley 4-H members Maya Starrs and Ella McEwen had the opportunity to present their demonstration on how to make a tasty horse treat from oats, molasses and other yummy ingredients.

“It was quite an experience,” Maya’s mother said. “There was a huge audience and they got to use (clip-on) microphones for the first time, which they really liked. It was definitely a good experience for them. They learned a lot.”

Sunday, the young 4-Hers were back at it, doing some community service. They gathered at the rodeo and fair grounds in Collettville to paint the fencing around the practice arena.

On the May 23 weekend, the local 4-H club will be helping with the provincial cattlemen association’s convention that is taking place in Merritt.

“We’ll be doing various setup and cleanup activities for the event,” Starrs said. “Whatever needs to be done to help out.

“We’re just in the process of planning to possibly go to some shows, whether it be the PNE or some local shows, we’re not sure. At the end of September, there’s the Provincial Fair in Barriere which sort of closes out the season.”

In addition to small group sessions scheduled throughout the week, the Nicola Valley 4-H Club meets as a whole on the first Thursday of each month at the MSS multi-purpose room.

For more information on 4-H activities, contact Starrs at 250-378-8785.