More than 100 campers from three states attended the seventh annual Badger Dairy Camp held on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus June 9 to June 11.

The camp included dairy cattle showmanship and dairy cattle judging competitions. The 116 campers were divided into three divisions for showmanship based on age and experience levels. Brienne Hendrickson of Belleville, Wis. won the novice division, Brett Hildebrandt of Hustisford, Wis. won the intermediate division, and Emily Treu of Berlin, Wis. won the advanced division. Each winner received a show halter donated by Nasco International Inc., which sponsored this portion of the camp.

In dairy cattle judging, campers participated in junior and senior age divisions. In the junior division, Joel Barlow of Lake Mills, Wis. was the overall winner edging out Kyle Natzke, Fond du Lac, Wis. by two points.

In the seniors, the overall high individual was Ben Voelz of Tilleda, Wis. with a score of 360, one point ahead of second-place Hannah Iverson, Plum City, Wis. The Oral Reasons winner in the senior age division was Lydia Hardie of Blair, Wis., with her twin sister, Claudia, coming in a close second.

Sportsmanship and spirit awards were presented to Adam Geiger of Brillion, Wis. and Ann Jens of Sheboygan Falls, Wis., two campers who showed exemplary attitudes, courtesy and cooperation throughout the weekend. Dairy camp counselors and campers voted on these awards.

Ted Halbach, UW-Madison extension dairy youth specialist, Corey Geiger, Hoard”s Dairyman associate editor, and Laurie Winkelman, UW-Madison alumnus and current graduate student at the Ohio State University, were the primary instructors for this year”s program. Sixteen other volunteers assisted as instructors or camp counselors throughout the weekend.

Badger Dairy Camp received generous support from 13 Gold sponsors who contributed $500 or more toward the camp and 17 Silver sponsors who donated $100 to $499. Because of this support, organizers were able to charge a very reasonable $100 fee for the camp. This fee represented each camper”s food and dorm expense. Sponsor money covered additional costs including shirts, campus activities, staff rooming cost, animal fees, awards and educational materials.

At camp, young people ages 12 to 18 jump-start their summer dairy project activities, learning about dairy fitting, showmanship, and judging while developing life skills in self-confidence, teamwork and sportsmanship. For more information about Badger Dairy Camp, go to the Wisconsin Dairy Youth website, or contact Ted Halbach at (608) 263-3305, tjhalbach@wisc.edu