Some of the animals have many purposes in our program. Some are used for our 4-H program. They can also be individually assigned to students to care for, groom, and show at the local county fairs. Horses, sheep, pigs, and cattle are the main stock that our youth learn to care for and show. The 4-H program nationally has been a proven vehicle in helping youth build self-esteem, knowledge, and individual responsibility. This individual responsibility can help teens overcome problems associated with ADD, ADHD, Reactive Attachment Disorder (RAD), anger, depression, lack of discipline, and many other common issues with troubled teens. Sorensons Ranch focuses on helping troubled youth return to a time of tending to their chores and taking care of the work that is involved in running a ranch. Another element that animals provide is unconditional love to their caregivers, and they present non-judgmental companionship, which is especially valuable with troubled youth with reactive attachment issues. Shoveling horse manure, feeding horses, herding cattle, assisting in the birthing process of the animals, fixing fences, watering, grooming, breaking horses, growing crops, hauling hay all these activities prepare the youth at Sorensons Ranch School to learn responsibility and respect. There is never a dull moment and the youth have plenty of things to do! It could be argued that life in a simpler form (ranch life) has a way of soothing the soul. The high mountain valley that provides the backdrop for helping children here at Sorensons Ranch School is a beautiful region with high elevation peaks on each side of the valley. Water arrives by canal down to our farm, which then goes into our sprinkling system. The students help in the preparation of the fields for planting by scouring the freshly tilled portions for rocks, which show up with each new plowing of the fields. The youth remove the rocks by hand or in a wheelbarrow and deposit them in the lower fields. Once the fields are planted the sprinklers are the way our crops are irrigated. The youth then must move the sprinklers on average every twelve hours for crops of oat hay or barley. With alfalfa or alfalfa-grass mixes for horses the sprinklers are moved once daily. Endorphins are produced in the human body by the pituitary gland during strenuous activity. Endorphins give us all a sense of wellbeing. Some have likened endorphins to the bodys natural pain relievers. With this knowledge, we capitalize on the healing/soothing effects in our youths lives by keeping our youth busy in the many activities. There is a simple pleasure to riding a horse through one of our mountain valleys or hauling hay. Often when troubled teens arrive they are reluctant or outright against participating in many of the activities we offer. Some of this stems from basic rebelliousness while often times we find fear to be a factor. Standing by a horse, ready to throw a saddle on it is an intimidating feat for most people. Often as students watch their peers performing these kinds of tasks, it helps them realize that there are many things they can accomplish that were previously considered foolish or impossible. Sorensons Ranch School is an excellent program that helps struggling teens find the answers to the problems that they are facing and helps them learn to find solutions on their own. For more information contact the admissions office at 1-888-830-4802 or visit the Sorensons Ranch website at www.eprogramsearch.com/sorensons-ranch-school.php

When thinking in terms of any type of health and safety work or issues, the term environment is perhaps one of the key elements. The type of environment that someone works in will to a large extent determine the nature of risk that may affect any aspect of their well-being or safety.

Farms are in many ways unique environments, in that they often combine a work place or environment with a family or home environment, which can lead to blurring of lines, and inadvertent lapses in safety management.

Farms can vary considerably in size, and in terms of the products that they produce. Differences in land size can make a difference to safety risks. A farm can potentially be a small as 10 acres, or as large as 10,000 acres, although the majority of farms tend to be between 100 and 200 acres.

Farms can grow and raise a wide priority of different products. Some are animal products such as beef and dairy, sheep and poultry. Other farms will produce different types of crop such as corn, soy bean and wheat.

There are also more specialist types of farms that can produce nuts, fruits and vegetables.

Whatever the size of the farm, and whatever produce is grown or reared, there is an inherent difference regarding farm land.Whilst a lot of farm land can be level, an awful lot it is often also quite hilly or steep.

This can present real practical problems and safety risks concerning tractors, quad bikes and ATVs, which can easily overturn on ground that is not level. Quite often quad bikes and ATVs tends to be used by people in their late teens and early 20s, who may not have sufficient driving experience to fully understand the risks or implications of land that is not level.

The other issue concerning farmland is the weather. Depending upon where the farm is located, there is a considerable dependence on different types of weather conditions. This means that there is impractical terms often very little protection against the elements, even if work is being done in various hangers or sheds.

Whilst these issues can be easily managed and taken care of in terms of risk assessment and health and safety, one of the main issues concerning safety on a farm is that of attitude. Because farms are quite often family environments, even if they employ people as well, there is naturally a much more laid back and warm and friendly approach to both people and the work.

Quite often the discipline of an office or factory environment is lacking, and this is often one of the attractions of farming and farmers to many people. So long as this is understood, and measures are taken to make sure that risk assessment and safety assessment is carried out at professional level, then both can sit quite happily together.

In addition, many farms that are family owned and operated take great pride in the fact that their family is actively involved in all aspects of the running of the farm. This is not to promote child labor, but quite often younger family members do the work that would otherwise be considered a form of employment.

Inevitably, this means that there are not the same labor related restrictions in place as they would be in a factory, and there would not necessarily be the same health and safety regulations that might apply as well.

The other issue concerning the farm as an environment, is that all farms are different. This means that there is no real uniformity which is normally a pre-condition for most health and safety policies in an office or factory type environment.

It means that the farm itself needs to pay specific attention to its own environment, and determine its own level of risk, and put in place any safety measures needed to minimize the risk of harm or injury.

Peter Main is a freelance journalist who specialises in writing about agriculture and farm machinery, with a special focus on manufacturers to provide powerful tractors such as the Kubota L Series and also writes about the importance of checking and verifying manufacturers parts as an important component of deciding which type of tractor to buy.

byadmin

Dealing with stress is something most people have learned to deal with. Regardless of how accustomed to stress a person can become, it can still be a very dangerous force. Finding a hobby will allow a person to relieve some of the stress in their life. Riding UTVs is one of the most popular and thrilling hobbies around. Buying a UTV is an essential part of getting in on this exhilarating hobby. Usually, there will be a number of different UTV dealers in an area. Researching each one will allow the prospective buyer to narrow the search. There are a number of reasons why choosing the right UTV Dealers is important and here are a couple of them.

Getting The Highest Quality MachinesChoosing the right UTV dealer will allow the buyer to get the highest quality machines out there. The right dealer will have a large selection of different UTVs to choose from. The buyer should be able to get some advice from the dealer about which UTV is the right fit for their needs. Selecting an experienced UTV dealer will help to take all of the guesswork out of the buying process. Going online will allow the buyer to get a feel for the type of reputation they have.

Receiving the Best Deal PossiblePicking the right UTV dealer will also allow the buyer to get the best deal on their purchase. Finding the dealership with the best deal will require the buyer to do a good bit of research. Taking the time to research the going price on a particular UTV will allow the buyer to save a ton of money on their purchase. The buyer will be able to check around in their area to see which dealer is able to offer the best deal before making the decision on which one to use.

Selecting the right UTV Dealers is vital in getting the right purchase made. The team at Tuttle Motor have a lot of experience in the industry and can offer the buyer a great deal. Call them or go to Tuttlemotor.com for more information on what they have to offer.

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