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Feature Story

April 16, 2001 - Filed Under: Pets

By Allison Matthews

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- House training is the hard work that goes along with the fun of owning a new pet, but consistent and patient owners won't have to wait long for successful results.

Jane Yeatman, a member of the Golden Triangle Kennel Club, teaches Superpuppy training classes at Mississippi State University. She said owners should expect puppies to have accidents, but spending extra time with an animal is helpful in teaching the desired behavioral habits.

April 16, 2001 - Filed Under: Pets

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Heartbroken pet owners and their veterinarians can keep the memory of a cherished animal alive through a unique memorial program.

Mississippi State University's College of Veterinary Medicine offers the Fund for Companion Animals Require Excellence program to honor deceased pets. Fund for CARE allows friends or owners of the deceased pet to make donations which aid MSU's Animal Health Center and improve the training given to new veterinarians.

April 16, 2001 - Filed Under: Pets

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- With low startup costs, easy maintenance and good looks, freshwater fish are staking their claim as a popular American pet.

Dr. Skip Jack, aquatic medicine specialist at Mississippi State University's College of Veterinary Medicine, said more money is spent on aquaria, fish, food and equipment than on dogs and cats.

"Fish are the No. 1 pet animal in the United States," Jack said.

Part of their popularity is due to them making ownership easy.

April 12, 2001 - Filed Under: Wheat

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Two years of record wheat yields and low prices on all crops should have prompted Mississippi growers to increase their wheat acreage, but the weather during planting season last fall had the final say.

"Wheat acreage is down about 18 percent compared to the previous year," said Erick Larson, grain crops agronomist with Mississippi State University's Extension Service. "In addition to the recent record yields, wheat is appealing because it produces income early in the season when growers could really use it."

April 9, 2001 - Filed Under: Children and Parenting

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- In well-functioning communities, youth sports may seem like just a pastime, but their value is seen most clearly in their absence.

Youth desire places to congregate and things to do. If these are not provided, they will find their own, often gathering in parking lots, cruising streets or taking up undesirable activities.

April 9, 2001 - Filed Under: Health

By Allison Matthews

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- As loved ones age and begin to need some level of nursing or assistance in their daily activities, consider a variety of care options to make the most appropriate selection.

Adult children often face difficult decisions about how to care for their aging parents. Needs of the elderly vary depending on their physical and emotional health. Family members have several choices about the types of care available.

April 9, 2001 - Filed Under: Family Financial Management

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Making advance arrangements for extended health care is one of the more important things a person can do to make the twilight years easier.

Money matters tend to dominate these decisions. Many patients either don't have enough assets to pay for extended care, or don't want to see a lifetime's savings evaporate rather than be passed on to family. Nursing homes in Mississippi currently charge about $100 a day.

April 6, 2001 - Filed Under: Crops

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Most crop prices have been declining all year, causing Mississippi farmers to make tough decisions on which crops to plant.

"Major commodities have been in a free fall since Jan. 1," said Charlie Forrest, Extension agricultural economist with Mississippi State University. "When you look at futures charts, most of our crops are showing steep, sustained declines. Prices are below the cost of production, causing many decisions about planting to be made based on farm programs."

April 2, 2001 - Filed Under: Remote Sensing Technology

By Rebekah Ray

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Wild radish, winter peas, wild mustard, vetch and curly dock may sound like ingredients of a savory green salad, but these wild host plants harbor bugs that are unsavory for Mississippi crops.

April 2, 2001 - Filed Under: Food Safety

By Rebekah Ray and Charmain Tan Courcelle

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station food researcher Juan Silva is making it safer to eat the five to seven servings of fruits and vegetables the U.S. Department of Agriculture recommends for daily consumption.

April 2, 2001 - Filed Under: Mississippi Homemaker Volunteers

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Volunteers across Mississippi are sewing for a cause, finishing up quilts which will be auctioned off in support of literacy efforts.

Mississippi Homemaker Volunteer chapters in nearly every county are quilting projects they will donate for auction. Proceeds from the auction will build a scholarship fund that will eventually grant college money to relatives of homemaker volunteers.

Maggie Harris, Extension home economist in Simpson County, is heading up this year's auction.

March 30, 2001 - Filed Under: Crops

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- The absence of positive incentives is influencing Mississippi growers to adjust planting intentions to the crops with the fewest strikes against them: cotton and sorghum.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's prospective plantings report released March 30 predicts Mississippi farmers will plant 15 percent more cotton and 11 percent more sorghum than last year. The only other crop showing any increase in acreage is rice, which is expected to increase about 2 percent. The biggest loss will be for soybeans, down 12 percent from 1.7 million acres to 1.5 million.

March 26, 2001 - Filed Under: Water

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Two years of drought lowered Mississippi's underground water supplies, but recent rains have stopped the loss and should be helping replenish formations.

Aquifers are underground water stores found in sand and gravel confined between layers of clay or solid rock. These geologic formations overlap each other at varying depths and extend for miles. Individuals and municipalities tap into these aquifers with wells to supply the population's water needs.

March 26, 2001 - Filed Under: Food and Health

By Allison Matthews

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Soft drinks, fast foods and super sizing are among the bad snacking habits of most Americans, and the rate of obesity in young people reflects the trend.

The increasing number of obese and overweight children is so significant that many health officials consider it an epidemic. With the extra pounds, children also gain an increased risk of diabetes and heart disease.

March 26, 2001 - Filed Under: Beef

FOXWORTH, Miss. -- Donald Pounds of Marion County depends on the Gelbvieh breed's reputation for heavy weaning weights and maternal characteristics, and his cattle depend on his reputation as a smart and honest producer.

Pounds has owned cattle since he was 12, but he officially entered the commercial (crossbred) cattle business with his uncle in 1969. He purchased his first Gelbvieh bull in 1987 and was so impressed with the results that he began purchasing registered (purebred) cows in 1990. He is slowly phasing out his commercial cattle in favor of a totally registered herd.

March 19, 2001 - Filed Under: Pesticide Applicator Certification

By Allison Matthews

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Hundreds of Mississippians apply pesticides for private or commercial purposes, and training sessions help ensure applicators handle chemicals safely for humans and the environment.

March 19, 2001 - Filed Under: Soils

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Rising fertilizer costs brought on by natural gas price increases are no longer a future worry but a present problem for Mississippi farmers.

Natural gas prices rose from $2.30 per million British thermal units to almost $10 between January and December 2000. Much of that increase came in the last couple months of the year. But why do high gas bills affect farmers more than workers in other industries?

March 12, 2001 - Filed Under: 4-H

By Allison Matthews

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Something fishy in Mississippi schools is motivating students to learn all about the state's fishery resources.

A new school enrichment module, "Something's Fishy in Mississippi," is now available to fourth grade classrooms through local 4-H agents. The traveling module features a large interactive display accompanied by two personal computers and CD-ROMs, as well as lesson materials to help teachers plan for two weeks of learning activities.

March 12, 2001 - Filed Under: Soils

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- What goes into farmland as additives impacts the The Total Maximum Daily Load, or TMDL, is the amount of a particular pollutant that can be released safely to surface water per day. TMDLs are set by the state Department of Environmental Quality, and are designed to ensure that state waters continue to meet quality standards.

March 5, 2001 - Filed Under: Plant Diseases

By Allison Matthews

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Tomato spotted wilt virus is a persistent and growing problem for commercial tomato producers and home gardeners, but new resistant varieties are available for this growing season.

Alan Henn, Extension plant pathologist at Mississippi State University, said spotted wilt is a common strain of tospovirus that is becoming a more costly threat to many crops in the South and the rest of the nation.

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