Moo-ve over Barry Alvarez . . . the Badger Dairy Camp is herding them in! Applications are streaming in for the University of Wisconsin-Madison”s 6th Annual Badger Dairy Camp, a youth dairy camp for ages 12-18 that runs from June 10 through June 12.

“This camp is about fun and energy,” says camp director and creator Ted Halbach. “We try to keep it at an affordable price ($89 tuition) compared with some summer sports camps on campus that can run as high as $300.”

The Badger Dairy Camp, in cooperation with the UW-Extension, Department of Dairy Science, and the Badger Dairy Club, is a program that supports life-lessons such as self-confidence, teamwork, and sportsmanship. Hands-on learning projects – fitting, showmanship fundamentals, dairy judging workshops, and dairy science-related workshops that focus on nutrition and reproduction – teach campers to explore some of the “science” in dairy science.

“Every year we try to make the workshops a little different,” says Halbach. In the past, campers have experienced a wide variety of activities: making ice cream at Babcock Dairy, dissecting reproductive organs of a dairy cow, and literally, hands-on exploration of the rumen of a dairy cow.

Aside from solidifying dairy fundamentals and getting a jump on the upcoming judging and showing season, campers get great exposure to a university setting while exploring future career opportunities.

Corey Geiger, associate editor at Hoard”s Dairyman magazine and contest superintendent for the National 4-H Dairy Cattle Judging Contest, and emeritus professor Dave Dickson are the camp”s other lead instructors.

Apply early; Halbach expects the camp to reach the enrollment capacity of 110 campers for the fifth straight year. Applicants are admitted on a first-come, first-served basis. For an on-line application or more information about Badger Dairy Camp, go to the Wisconsin Dairy Youth website at www.uwex.edu/ces/dairyyouth. Applications are also available through your county University of Wisconsin-Extension office.

You can also contact Halbach directly about the camp at (608) 263-3305 or tjhalbach@wisc.edu.