Block and Bridle club offers variety of activies for students of all backgrounds
by Kathleen Sprouse, posted Oct. 3, 2007
The College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources has students from rural and urban backgrounds, and Block and Bridle offers students an opportunity to try something new.
Block and Bridle is an animal science organization that participates in many CAFNR events, such as Fall Roundup, CAFNR Week, CAFNR Fall Fest and the Missouri State FFA Organization’s annual convention. The club’s annual Country Cured Ham Show and Sale is its largest fundraiser and lets club members compete in curing hams.
In the fall, the club participates in the annual Little American Royal. Students can groom and show their choice of cattle, sheep, hogs, dairy cattle or horses. Competent showmen give demonstrations on proper techniques. Students compete in novice, intermediate or experienced divisions, depending on their level of expertise, according to Block and Bridle’s Web site.
Members also promote agriculture and the dairy industry by traveling to St. Louis to the Missouri Botanical Garden and assisting the public in milking a dairy cow at the Milk-A-Cow booth.
“We take baby animals with us,” said Stacy Youse, vice president of programs.
John Thompson, a senior animal sciences major, suggests students join Block and Bridle if they “enjoy livestock, the industry and would like the opportunity to see systems and meet new people from all over the nation.”
Block and Bridle, along with other clubs, has dances, hayrides, picnics and bowling parties throughout the year.
“We have a passion for agriculture and lots of fun,” Youse said. “It’s a great way to meet new people and make new friends.”
Block and Bridle meetings are at 7:30 p.m. on the second and fourth Tuesdays of each month in the Animal Science Research Center, room S147.
