Twelve senior dairy judging teams and nine individuals from across the state will travel to the Wisconsin State Fair Aug. 6 to compete for the State 4-H Dairy Judging Champion title and the opportunity to move on to national-level competition. The teams and individuals are selected from four statewide district judging contests as part of the 4-H Area Animal Science Days program. Youth judge eight classes of dairy cows and heifers at each contest; in addition, seniors give reasons and juniors answer conformation-related questions.

A total of 435 4-Hers competed in the junior and senior divisions at the district contests; 172 seniors from 40 teams and 263 juniors from 42 teams represented their counties at the contests. Teams are comprised of three to eight members. Two, three, or four top senior teams from each district, as well as the top one to three individuals not from those high teams, were chosen to move on to the state contest.

“Our participation level remains strong,” said Ted Halbach, UW-Madison Extension Dairy Youth Specialist. “The junior division had a nice increase in numbers this year which bodes well for the future of Wisconsin dairy judging.”

According to Halbach, “It takes a tremendous volunteer effort to make Wisconsin”s 4-H dairy judging program successful. In addition to contest volunteers, coaches and practice herds give their time and effort freely to provide these youth with a positive dairy experience. All this hard work helps to encourage future involvement in the industry. We really appreciate all of these contributions from volunteers.”

Halbach also emphasized that dairy judging promotes improved communication and decision-making skills among the participating youth.

Southwest Area Animal Science Day – Lodi, Columbia County
Three senior teams earned spots at the state contest from the Southwest district on June 23. Grant finished the contest in first, followed by La Crosse County. Columbia County, competing with only three team members, finished just 9 points behind La Crosse County to place third, earning them a bid to the state contest.

Winning the overall senior competition in the Southwest was Becky Martin of Grant County. Daniel Walker was only seven points behind in second. 5th place Chrissy Wendorf and 10th place Derek Petersheim both of Vernon County were the two individuals chosen for the state contest.
The La Crosse County juniors placed first overall in the junior team division by nine points over Iowa County. Mason Amundson of Grant County was named the top junior individual, followed in second by Cassie Muenzenberger of La Crosse County.

Northwest Area Animal Science Day – Clark County
Clark County hosted the Northwest Area Animal Science Day in Neillsville on June 24, 2003. Barron County edged out Pierce County seniors by only 3 points, gaining both teams automatic births in the state contest. The 3rd place team from Polk County will also represent the Northwest district at the State Fair.

In the individual senior contest, Mark Riebe of Barron County won 1st place overall honors, followed by Brandon Owens of Polk County. 8th high individual Stephanie Merritt of Dunn County and 10th place Craig Slattery from Wood County were selected as individuals to compete at the state level.
Polk County won first among the junior teams. Following in second place were the St. Croix County juniors. Mary Johnson from Polk County won the Northwest junior contest over St. Croix County team member Jake Kruschke.

Northeast Area Animal Science Day Dairy Contest – Shawano County
On June 25, the Northeast district contest was held in Shawano. Calumet County”s seniors won the senior contest by 51 points over their nearest competitor, Kewaunee County. Both teams will advance to the state competition.

The high senior individual overall at the Northeast contest was Shay Ott from Calumet County and second place went to Eliza Ulness from Manitowoc County. 3rd place Cynthia Voelz of Shawano County along with 4th place Cody Schultz from Outagamie County will join Ulness as individuals at the state contest.

In the junior team competition, Kewaunee County won first place with Manitowoc County coming in second. Jacob Brey of Door County earned high individual honors by 7 points, followed in 2nd by Danae Bauer of Waupaca County.

Southeast Area Animal Science Day Dairy Contest – Jefferson County
The Southeast district dairy judging contest was held in Jefferson on July 1. Dodge County”s teams topped both the junior and senior divisions. Coming in second in the senior division was Dane County. Based on a higher team reasons score, Walworth County”s team placed third after finishing in a tie with Green County. Both counties were selected to advance to the state competition.

Winning the overall senior competition was Shelly Bohn of Dodge County. Linda Behling of Dodge County followed in second place. 7th place Brett Barlass and 11th place Alane Uhe, both of Rock County, will compete as individuals at the state contest.

In the junior contest of the Southeast District, the Dodge County team took the trophy over Fond du Lac County. Kyle Natzke of Fond du Lac County was the high individual junior judge, followed in second by Shawn Nehls of Dodge County.