HOWARD — East Knox FFA recently competed in the Ohio FFA Equine Career Development Event (CDE) held at the Ohio State Fairgrounds in Columbus on March 22.
Miranda Fawcett, Ava Page, Peyton Harris, Laureyah Neely, and Rhyan Williams competed against 114 other teams and 381 individuals from across the state and finished 26th.
The top 10 teams in the state compete in the finals at a later time where they judge additional classes of horses and give oral reasons on each class.
In the contest team members judge four halter classes where the horses are evaluated based on conformation and two performance classes based on how the horse handles and completes patterns and various gaits.
They also place a class of hay based on stage of growth and quality.
In addition contestants identify general equipment and tack; bits, bridles, and saddles; shoes and farrier equipment; driving equipment; forages, weeds, grains, and minerals; and internal and external parasites.
The members also take a written test covering all aspects of horses, management, and horsemanship.
The horse management CDE is an educational activity designed as a practical method of teaching students current horse evaluation and selection techniques and management.