Youth for the Quality Care of Animals
For Beef Cattle, Dairy Cattle, Dairy Goat, Meat Goat, Sheep & Swine
What is it?
Youth for the Quality Care of Animals (YQCA) is a new, national, multi-species youth livestock quality assurance program that covers food safety, animal well-being, and character development through age-appropriate educational curriculum
Who Needs to get certified?
County Level
This is not required at the County Fair.
State Level
Any youth 7 years of age and older who will be exhibiting a market or breeding animal in the Kansas State Fair Grand Drive or Kansas Junior Livestock Show (KJLS) is required to obtain certification. Exhibitors who will be participating as a 7-year old will be exempt for this year. YQCA certification number will be submitted through the nomination process for market animals, and at the time of entry for exhibitors who only have registered purebred breeding animals. All youth should complete the training by June 15, 2021.
YQCA 2021 Information
Only the 2021 forms will be accepted- current forms have “February 2021” on the bottom. This year’s forms continue to be form-fillable PDF files. So, you may complete the paperwork electronically and save your contact and animal information before printing the forms to be signed by all parties.
This information can be found here: http://www.asi.k-state.edu/research-and-extension/youth-programs/nominated-livestock/. It may be smart to bookmark this page in your web browser to access it easily in the future.
2021 DEADLINES:
May 1 – Market Beef nominations due (includes steers and market heifers)
June 15 – Commercial Heifer, Market Swine, Commercial Gilt, Market Lamb, Commercial Ewe, and ALL Meat Goat nominations due
Updates – The updates for this year are provided below and are attached. There are not any significant changes in the process this year, except for now requiring the gender of sheep and goats. Families will need to mark on their paperwork if each tag number is a wether, doe, or ewe. It has been included on the swine paperwork for several years.
YQCA – The YQCA requirement began in 2019 and will continue in 2021. It will also be required for 7-year-olds exhibiting at KJLS this year.
7-Year-Old YQCA – The YQCA Board has provided an option for Kansas 7-year-olds to become officially certified. The state communication is that they must attend an instructor-led class with a parent/legal guardian. However- Sedgwick County will not be offering in person training this year- as I have not been trained to conduct this program at this time. Below is the certification process our county will follow for 7 year old certifications:
- 7-year-olds have permission to take the currently available 8-year-old web-based course through the YQCA website as an online option.
- They will register and complete the class, like any other web-based course and receive a certificate.
- They will not be able to re-certify online next year when they are a true 8-year-old, until their current certification expires.
- If they chose to do the class online as an 8-year-old next year, that’s fine, they’ll just have to wait until their 2021 certificate expires. The system will try to “help them out” and not let them re-enroll in a class they’ve already taken.
- Example: If they complete the class on March 31 this year, they won’t be able to re-certify until April 1, 2022. At that point, the system will let them in and select the 8-year-old course.
- To clarify- your 7 year old will take the age 8 class twice (This year while they are 7- and next year when they are 8). They should NOT continue taking the course for the next age up in the future. We don’t want them to be off track for their entire show career.
- If you have any questions or would like further clarification, don’t hesitate to give me a call and we’ll discuss it.
Commercial Does – Both state shows now have a commercial breeding doe show. All does will continue to have to be nominated, as neither show has a purebred or papered doe show. Please make sure you understand that any meat goat you plan to show has to be nominated, regardless of if it’s a market goat or breeding doe. It is also important to remember that only wethers may show in the market division at KJLS.
Rookie Guide – The “Rookie Guide” has been updated to reflect current information. This resource includes updated versions of the standard nomination information and resources released, as well as some more specific instructions and a FAQs document. Hopefully, this will help reduce the overwhelming nature of the nomination process for our first time families. YQCA’s step-by-step guide to becoming certified, including how to print the certificate, have been added to the end of the Rookie Guide.
Tuesday Tip – The State Livestock Team will continue releasing a “Tuesday Tip” for the nomination process this year on the youth livestock Facebook page (@ksuylp). Please follow this page and check it out. Tips will start next Tuesday (March 23).
More 2021 UPDATES from the state:
Ø Livestock Quality Assurance Requirement Continues for ALL Exhibitors
A copy of each child’s YQCA certificate must be attached to the Declaration Form and submitted with their state nomination materials. Nominations received without a YQCA certificate will be considered incomplete. This requirement also includes 7-year-old KJLS exhibitors for the 2021 show.
Ø Verbiage Updated on Forms
The Declaration and Nomination Forms have been updated. Forms should be read in their entirety before being signed by the appropriate parties. Reminder – if animals are not housed at the exhibitor’s primary residence, this must be disclosed on the Declaration Form and explained in Section 2.
Ø Gender Required on Sheep & Meat Goat Nominations
A gender field has been added to the sheep and meat goat nomination forms. Families will need to designate each animal as a wether, ewe, or doe, in addition to 4-H tag number, breed (sheep), and full scrapie tag #.
Ø KJLS Adding Berkshire Division to Swine
KJLS will be adding a Berkshire division to the swine show. Families may select that specific breed on their nomination form, rather than classifying those pigs as Dark AOB.
Ø “Extra” Forms Available
The “extra” nomination forms for swine, sheep, and meat goats are available to nominate more animals than there is space on the regular form (more than 4 swine or 5 sheep/meat goats). Therefore, if only the “extra” form is submitted, it will be returned as incomplete. DO NOT turn in the extra forms alone! It has to be combined with a regular specie form.
Ø Ear Notch and Scrapie Tag Requirement Continues
Continuing in 2021, the ear notches for all swine nominated must be included on the swine nomination form. Exhibitors need to draw the ear notches exactly as they appear in the pig’s ear for each animal nominated, in addition to writing the notch number in the field provided. Scrapie Tag #s are also required for all sheep and meat goats nominated. The full scrapie tag number, including Flock ID/Premise ID number and individual animal number, must be submitted (Example: KSS0035 16121). Custom/Farm names will not be accepted in lieu of the Flock ID. If families have trouble locating the Flock ID, they should try looking on the back of the tag.
Other Important Nomination Notes
KSU Nomination # - this is the 5-digit number issued to a family when they submit state nominations for the first time. A list of family/household names and KSU Nomination #s is attached. If a family has nominated before, just not for several years, they may not appear on the attached list. If this is the case for any of your families, please call/email me and I will get your number from the state. We want to try and avoid a family receiving duplicate KSU Nomination #s. If your family is new, please make sure you check “new” on the top of the declaration form and leave their KSU Nomination # blank; the system will generate one once your nominations are received.
Mail/Postmark Dates – all deadlines are postmark dates. The date that will be used to determine if an envelope is accepted and has met the deadline, is the printed postmark date on the envelope. Families, you are HIGHLY encouraged to use certified mail. Generally, it is received on campus more quickly AND you have proof of mailing. If you request a return receipt, a postcard will be returned to you confirming your nominations were received. This service is in addition to the standard postage rate for the envelope/package and ranges from $4-$8 for peace of mind. If you know you will be cutting it close getting to the post office, you are encouraged to see what the cut off time is for getting mail postmarked for the current day at their local location, or have the envelope hand stamped by a USPS employee when you deliver it. The cut off time for postmarks varies by location and is typically before the post office closes. Leaving nominations in your home mailbox for carrier pick up or dropping them directly into the general mail bin, especially near the deadline, is HIGHLY discouraged. K-State, KJLS, and/or the Kansas State Fair are not responsible for late, lost, or misdirected mail.
Show Entry - please understand that nomination does NOT constitute an entry. You must officially ENTER each show in which you would like to participate, after you have completed the nomination process. Grand Drive entries for the Kansas State Fair are due by July 15 and KJLS entries are due August 15. Each show is responsible for their own rules and entry process and will release entry information this summer, as entry time approaches. This information may be found on their respective websites or social media pages.
Kansas State Fair (Grand Drive) - http://www.kansasstatefair.com
KJLS - http://www.kjls.org
YQCA Login & Course Complete Step by Step Instructions: click here
1: Login and Creating An Account
2. Navigating the Account
3. Purchasing a Course
4. Purchasing a Course and Taking Pre-Course Survey
5. Completing Certification
To Login & Create Account: click here
