Most summer camps are devoted to
swimming, nature studies, crafts or sports.
But consider one
where young people actually work from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. washing, feeding, clipping,
grooming, leading and training cattle to show and LIKE IT. |
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| Chris and Carolyn Wilson, Premier Cattle Services, Creston, Iowa, operate a
camp for young boys and girls. In their fourth year they scheduled 12 camps
including four camps exclusively for girls. Chris operates and teaches
the camp and is not a newcomer to cattle exhibition, nor to winning awards. In 1997
he was selected as the Herdsman of the Year by the Saler breed and Overall Herdsman of the
Year at the National Western, Denver, CO. He started his career by being selected
for the FFA National Agribusinessman Degree.
He has raised and sold cattle on three continents, including champions at the
Kansas City Royal, North American International Livestock Exhibition, Canadian Western
Agribition, and National Western. Along with his own cattle, he operates a
commercial fitting and showing service, clipping 7,000 head of sale cattle a year. |
Teaching the
Basics
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Most camp participants are ages
12 - 19. Some have had showing experience; others are novices. There is one
camp devoted entirely to rookies. Camps run from Sunday through Wednesday and are
limited to no more than 10 campers. |
The campers need only bring a
willingness to learn, Premier Cattle Services provides the cattle, equipment, and
meals. |
| Camp graduate have won numerous
showmanship contests and awards. Our proudest moments are the successes of our
campers. |
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When the campers first arrive at camp
they pick out a calf. Calves are from 4 - 5 months of age and have been tied up for
three or four days. One segment deals with hair coat care and how to grow and clip
hair on cattle. They wind up the week with a showmanship contest. We are not
out to pick a winner but to help critique what each camper has learned. |
| Campers have come from 13 states and
rarely know each other. They often build lifelong friendships. |
| We teach campers basic cattle care,
stressing showmanship doesn't start at the fair. They get a quick lesson on feeding
and transportation of cattle. |
| One day is spent at Hawkeye Breeders bull
stud and talk about the importance of presentation of cattle to potential buyers.
One night we have an embryologist come in to flush embryos. But more than
anything else, the campers get hand-on experience preparing cattle for show. |
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For more information
Contact:
Premier Cattle Services
Chris & Carolyn Wilson
2134 130th St.
Creston, IA 50801
Phone: (641) 782-8297 Cell: (641) 745-0323
premiercattle@hotmail.com |
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(click to view a larger image) |
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Page last updated01/08/07
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