News Photo by Steve Schulwitz A judge prepares to judge chickens raised by the youth of 4-H at the Alpena County Fair on Monday. The kids work many months to raise and care for their animals while learning about the breed they selected.

ALPENA — The youth members of 4-H in Alpena County work hard raising animals to show off for judging during the Alpena County Fair.

On Monday, the kids showed off the small fowl they raised. The birds will eventually be auctioned off and the funds used to reimburse the kids for the money they spent raising the animals and to help support local 4-H as a whole.

Michelle Eagling, 4-H program coordinator, said the fair represents the culmination of months of hard work for the kids and their projects to raise and care for the animals. She said that, during the process, the kids learn much about the species they select and they are always eager to see how the animal scores when judged and how much money it will sell for.

“They learn the anatomy, the financial implications, the nutrition aspect, and there are a lot of educational pieces to their projects,” Eagling said. “They also learn the clinical pieces, like the showmanship of their animal, so it looks the best in the market.”

Raising an animal for the 4H project isn’t cheap, Eagling says. First, the member has to decide what type of animal he or she wants to raise and then purchase one. Then they have to cover the cost to provide food and other essentials and any bills that may arrive if the animal has a health issue.

She said some members take out small loans to cover the expenses, which also teaches them about the banking system and economics.

“Alpena Alcona Area Credit Union offers loans to the 4-H youth, interest-free, and the loan has to be paid back after the market sale,” Eagling said. “Kids that didn’t take out loans take the money and save it for college.”

Eagling said kids who are involved with 4-H often stay active after they become adults.

“Some of the families have been doing this for three, four, or five generations,” she said. “A large portion of the kids stay engaged when they get older. It really is a lifestyle I think.”

Today, the kids will have their goats and alpaca judged beginning at 9 a.m. The sheep will be graded beginning at 5 p.m. On Wednesday, rabbits will be judged at 9 a.m., draft horses at 11 a.m., and pleasure horses at 3 p.m.

Steve Schulwitz can be reached at 989-358-5689 at sschulwitz@thealpenanews.com. Follow him on Twitter @ss_alpenanews.com.