Agriculture & Animal Science Projects
Agriculture & Animal Science Projects
The 4-H Beef project allows you to learn about breeds, selection, grooming, production, management, showmanship, marketing, and careers through a breeding or market animal.
- Beginner: Learn about breeds, feeding, leading, and more.
- Intermediate: Build your skills for handling, housing, and cooking beef.
- Advanced: Work on beef breeding, reproduction, and animal health.
Learning opportunities: Take part in statewide learning and judging events. Visit a livestock auction. Job shadow a local beef producer to learn about animal management and health.
More Info
- Wisconsin 4-H Beef Project Resources
- Fond du Lac County Fair Market Livestock Info
- Market Livestock Fond du Lac County Facebook page
- Wisconsin State Fair Blue Ribbon Sale of Champions Foundation Scholarship
- Area Animal Science Days
- Livestock Quiz Bowl & Skillathon Contest
- 4-H Meats Judging Contest
- State Livestock Judging Contest
Cats can be wonderful companions to individuals and families. The 4-H Cat project helps you explore what
kind of cat fits your family’s lifestyle. Then, you’ll learn about nutrition, health needs, and how to be a responsible owner.
- Beginner: Learn about proper cat care, grooming, feeding, and planning for their safety.
- Intermediate: Learn to train, exercise, and show your cat.
- Advanced: Explore cat diseases and treatments, budgeting, record keeping, and careers.
Learning opportunities: Make a poster or video about cats as service animals. Attend a cat show. Volunteer with the cats at a local animal shelter.
More Info
- Wisconsin 4-H Cat Project Resources
- County Contact Person – Jen Niemczyk
Cavies
Did you know that a cavy is what we commonly know as a guinea pig? In the 4-H Cavy project, you can learn about selecting and raising your animals.
- Beginner: Learn proper cavy care, breeds, equipment, feeding, and showmanship.
- Intermediate: Find out how to judge cavies and prepare them for show.
- Advanced: Learn about cavy breeding, management, and entrepreneurship
Learning opportunities: Design a caviary (where your cavies will live and breed). Train for cavy agility. Look into how to train and use your cavies as therapy animals.
More Info
- Wisconsin 4-H Cavies Project Resources
The 4-H Dairy project teaches you about breeds, selection, grooming, production, management, showmanship, marketing, and careers through a dairy animal.
- Beginner: Learn about breeds, feeding, and showing your dairy animal.
- Intermediate: Explore appropriate handling techniques and how a dairy cow’s body works.
- Advanced: Raise an animal from calf to cow, learning about balance rations, common diseases, and more.
Learning opportunities: Take part in statewide learning and judging events. Visit different types of dairy farms. Create a poster of some aspect of animal care that you’ve learned.
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The Dog project will help you explore what kind of dog fits into your family’s lifestyle and how to be an excellent trainer and caretaker of your dog. You will learn about dog breeds, dog ownership, and dog care and management, such as feeding, handling, record-keeping, grooming, and fitting.
- Beginner: Learn about proper dog breeds, care, grooming, feeding, and training basics.
- Intermediate: Plan a training and exercise program for your dog.
- Advanced: Explore dog diseases and treatments, budgeting, record keeping, and careers.
Learning opportunities: Make a poster or video about dogs as service animals. Attend the statewide dog agility or obedience shows. Volunteer with the dogs at a local
animal shelter.
More Info
- Wisconsin 4-H Dog Project Resources
- FDL County Contacts: Jenny Kutz (920) 960-8786 or Melanie Machmueller (920) 979-7188
- 2023-2024 Dog Project Information
- Youth-Constitution-Bylaws
- Adult-Constitution-Bylaws
- State 4-H Dog Show
- State 4-H Dog Agility Show
Exotic Animals
In the Exotic Animals project, you will explore what kinds of animals fit your family’s lifestyle. Some examples include ostriches, emus, zebras, or zedonks.
- Beginner: Learn about types of exotic animals, care, grooming, feeding, and safety.
- Intermediate: Plan a training and exercise program for your exotic animal.
- Advanced: Learn more about diseases and treatments, budgets, and careers with the animals you raise.
Learning opportunities: Become pen pals with someone who raises the same exotic animals as you do. Make a poster or video about your animals.
More Info
- Wisconsin 4-H Exotic Animals Project Resources
Do you want to be part of the country’s fastest-growing livestock and dairy industries? The 4-H Goat project can teach you about selection, management, health, marketing, and careers in the goat industry.
- Beginner: Learn about breeds, feeding, and showing your goat.
- Intermediate: Build skills in judging, kidding, treating diseases, and more.
- Advanced: Deepen your understanding of reproduction, animal welfare, and using records to make herd management decisions.
Learning opportunities: Tour a goat operation. Make your own dairy goat or goat fiber by-products. Take part in statewide learning and judging events.
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Love horses? Want to learn more? Whether you have a horse or not, in this project, you can take your love of horses to the next level—the 4-H level.
- Beginner: Build essential skills such as safe practices, grooming, and understanding a horse.
- Intermediate: Get familiar with equipment, groundwork, and proper riding skills for the arena or trails.
- Advanced: Practice horse care, showing, and riding skills while becoming a leader and mentor in the project.
Learning opportunities: Participate in local horse shows and 4-H horse clinics. Join or start a drill team. Get involved in the Wisconsin 4-H Horse Association. Attend Midwest Horse Fair, shows and clinics, gymkhana, or another statewide learning event. Take part in a Model Horse Show.
More Info
- Wisconsin 4-H Horse Project Resources
- Fond du Lac County 4-H Horse and Pony Project Handbook
- Emergency Contact Form
- Acknowledgement of Constitution and Bylaws
- Acknowledgement of Rules for Exhibit, Ground Rules, and Project Safety Rules
- Contractual Release of Liability Form
- Sportsmanship Award Nomination form
- Scholarship Application
- Horse and Pony Health Form
- Horse and Pony Identification Form
- Horse Bucks Form
- Class Sponsorship Form
- County Fair Stall Reservations Form
- Outside Clinic Attendance Form
- Outside Clinic Attendance Reimbursement
- FDL County Horse and Pony Project Donation Recognition Tiers
- 4-H Horse Association Handbook
- State 4-H Gymkhana
- State 4-H Horse Leadership Conference
- 4-H Hunt & Dressage Show
- State 4-H Horse Education Days, Horse Bowl, and Hippology Contest
Model Horse
Anyone who has an interest in horses can find a niche in the world of model horses. This project provides an opportunity for youth to learn horse conformation, anatomy, proper tack and attire, horse movement, breeds and colors.
Learning opportunities: Get involved in the Wisconsin 4-H Horse Association. Attend Midwest Horse Fair, shows and clinics, or another statewide learning event. Take part in a Model Horse Show.
More Info
Llamas/Alpacas
Llamas and alpacas can be excellent additions to a family farm and make great pets. This project helps you find the kind of llama or alpaca that fits your family’s lifestyle. It will help you learn to be an excellent trainer and caretaker of your animal.
- Beginner: Learn about llama and alpaca history, breeds, care, and fibers
- Intermediate: Explore llama and alpaca behavior, differences, nutrition, safety, and health
- Advanced: Learn about llama and alpaca social behaviors and temperament, body structure, and conditioning
Learning opportunities: Investigate and make llama and alpaca by-products. Go to a llama show.
More Info
The 4-H Pocket Pet project will help you explore what kind of pet fits into your family’s lifestyle and how you can be an excellent caretaker. Pocket pets may include cage birds, reptiles, tropical fish, hamsters, gerbils, chinchillas, and more (but don’t really put them in your pockets).
- Beginner: Gather information and choose the best pet for your family; then learn about proper care, grooming, and feeding.
- Intermediate: Plan a pet training and exercise program and get them ready to show.
- Advanced: Learn about diseases and treatments for your pet and explore pet-related careers.
Learning opportunities: Give a demonstration about your pet. Design a toy or home for your pet. Create a first aid kit with what your pet needs to stay safe and healthy.
More Info
Explore the poultry industry, including turkeys, chickens, ducks, geese, pheasants, guinea hens, pigeons, or quail. Learn about species and breeds, eggs, feather features, health, feeding, handling, washing, managing a flock, ethics, showing, and careers.
- Beginner: Learn about different types and breeds of birds and how they’re used.
- Intermediate: Explore concepts like imprinting, pecking order, carcass grading, and more.
- Advanced: Learn about the skeleton, genetics, flock management, careers, and more.
Learning opportunities: Tour a poultry farm or hatchery. Order eggs from a hatchery and hatch your own poultry. Build an incubator.
More Info
- Wisconsin 4-H Poultry Project Resources
- Auction (Mandatory to sell animal)
- Need 8 Educational points – due by July 1
- YQCA – sign up and attend online (required)
- Showmanship – sign up with fair entries (required)
- Barn Set Up – If a family can not attend, please contact Jaime Karls at fdlsmallanimal@gmail.com.
- Earning Other Points (Each worth 2 points)
- Volunteer for the Poultry/Rabbit Showmanship Clinic
- Do a demonstration or presentation at a 4-H meeting, countywide meeting, or with FFA
- Watch online videos not provided by the small animal project (only 2 points allowed for this)
- Attend meetings. You must only sign yourself in for meetings. If you are caught signing someone else in, you will lose your auction privilege for the year.
- For all questions on the small animal auction or points, please contact Jaime Karls at fdlsmallanimal@gmail.com.
- There is a plan to have some local food pantries available to take your auction animals, if the buyer would like to donate them.
- Antigen Testing
- Required for poultry
- Testers are: Jenny Vollmer, Audry Zimdars, and Kyle Zimdars
- Small Animal Project in County Activity Sign in Sheet
- Small Animal Project Out-of-County Activity Google Form
- Small Animal Auction Requirements Check Off Sheet
- Poultry Entry Form
- Small Animal Project Bylaws
- Small Animal Scholarship Application
- Dorothy Wilke-4-H-Small Animal Project Award Application
- 4-H Avian Quiz Bowl
Whether you see rabbits as soft and cuddly pets or as a business opportunity, the Rabbit project is flexible for your interest. Through hands-on activities, learn about selection, care, breeding, and more.
- Beginner: Learn about breed selection, equipment, feeding, health, breeding, and kindling.
- Intermediate: Learn to select, judge, show, tattoo, keep records, and detect diseases.
- Advanced: Explore breeding, genetics, culling, determining pregnancy, registering a rabbit, and marketing your product.
Learning opportunities: Design a rabbitry. Attend a rabbit conference or show. Make a poster or video about meat and non-meat uses for rabbits. Contact a local care facility to see if you can visit with your rabbit.
More Info
- Wisconsin 4-H Rabbit Project Resources
- Auction (Mandatory to sell animal)
- Need 8 Educational points – due by July 1
- YQCA – sign up and attend online (required)
- Showmanship – sign up with fair entries (required)
- Barn Set Up – If a family can not attend, please contact Jaime Karls at fdlsmallanimal@gmail.com.
- Earning Other Points (Each worth 2 points)
- Volunteer for the Poultry/Rabbit Showmanship Clinic
- Do a demonstration or presentation at a 4-H meeting, countywide meeting, or with FFA
- Watch online videos not provided by the small animal project (only 2 points allowed for this)
- Attend meetings. You must only sign yourself in for meetings. If you are caught signing someone else in, you will lose your auction privilege for the year.
- For all questions on the small animal auction or points, please contact Jaime Karls at fdlsmallanimal@gmail.com.
- There is a plan to have some local food pantries available to take your auction animals, if the buyer would like to donate them.
- Small Animal Project in County Activity Sign in Sheet
- Small Animal Project Out-of-County Activity Google Form
- Small Animal Auction Requirements Check Off Sheet
- Rabbit Entry Form
- Small Animal Project Bylaws
- Small Animal Scholarship Application
- Dorothy Wilke-4-H-Small Animal Project Award Application
- Bunny Hopping at the Wisconsin State Fair – View Video: Rabbits hop over hurdles in daily demonstrations in the Dairy Barn at the Wisconsin State Fair. Video by Alison Sherwood.
The Sheep project introduces you to various fun and challenging activities, including identifying the parts of a sheep, selecting a project lamb, preparing for lambing season, identifying lamb meat products, and feeding and showing sheep.
- Beginner: Learn about breeds, animal health and care, and how to show a sheep.
- Intermediate: Explore judging sheep while you learn about reproduction, nutrition, and more.
- Advanced: Learn about developing a breeding program, docking and castration, feed rations, and record-keeping.
Learning opportunities: Take part in statewide learning and judging events. Visit a sheep farm. Create a poster or video about issues in the sheep industry. Visit a woolen mill to learn how wool is processed.
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This project helps you learn about swine breeds, health care, production, management, showmanship, marketing, and careers in the swine industry. Learn principles of animal science and gain life skills, like responsibility, by owning, caring for, and keeping records.
- Beginner: Learn about breeds, body parts, safety and health, and animal care.
- Intermediate: Build your skills for swine management, problem solving, rations, and cooking pork cuts.
- Advanced: Learn about swine genetics, breeding, rations, and piglet management.
Learning opportunities: Take part in statewide learning and judging events. Visit a local feed mill to see how ingredients are mixed to make a complete ration. Learn to evaluate meat cuts.
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Learn about a veterinarian’s role in animal and public health. Project activities will help you learn about veterinary equipment, diseases and health problems, and career opportunities as a veterinarian or volunteer. You do not have to own an animal to be part of this project!
- Beginner: Learn about animals’ basic needs, life stages, and body systems.
- Intermediate: Find out how to recognize and reduce animal stress, how their immune systems work, and how disease and parasites spread.
- Advanced: Build skills in animal care, reproductive systems, and disease treatment.
Learning opportunities: Job shadow a professional animal trainer or veterinarian. Visit the University of Wisconsin Animal Science Department or Veterinary Lab.
More Info
