It’s almost fair time! Please use the resources below, including the schedule of events, rules, and other important information, to prepare and register your 4-H county fair projects.
The Cass County 4-H Showcases will take place June 25-30, 2024, at the Cass County Fairgrounds in Pine River, MN. This is a great opportunity for 4-H members to show what they have learned in their projects this past year. All projects must have been completed since last year’s showcase. To preview the schedule of events for the 2024 4‑H Showcases at the Cass County Fair, please check out our 2024 Schedule of Events.
If you have questions about fair registration or anything related to 4-H at the fair, please contact Brooke Remer, Extension Educator, at piepe056@umn.edu or 218-587-8280.
FairEntry Registration
Starting May 1, 2024, registration for the 2024 4-H Showcases at the Cass County Fair will be open! Similar to previous years, registration for all 4-H showcases can be completed online on FairEntry. Remember that enrolling in 4-H and identifying your animals in 4-H Online is NOT the same as registering to exhibit at the fair. For more information on how to register your 4-H exhibits for the fair on FairEntry, check out this quickstart guide or the detailed guide.
For club exhibits, please use the Club Exhibit SignUp Genius to let Extension and 4-H staff know what exhibits your club plans to bring to the 4-H Showcase.
If you do not have online access, you can request a printed paper registration form from the Cass County Extension Office. However, please make every effort to use the FairEntry online system, as it will save valuable staff and volunteer time during the busy fair preparation time. The deadline to return these paper forms to the Cass County Extension Office is 3:30 PM on May 31, 2024.
The registration deadline to show exhibits at the fair is May 31, 2024, at 11:59 PM if completing registration online through FairEntry, or 3:30 PM if using paper forms submitted to the Cass County Extension Office. Do not wait until the deadline to register. You may begin your registration, log out, and return to log into FairEntry to make edits until the registration deadline. If you miss this deadline, please refer to the 2024 Cass County Competitive Events: Deadlines, Consequences, and Exemptions document as to how your youth can still participate in the county showcases with limitations.
4-H Premium Book
Prior to registering your exhibits for the county fair, be sure to review updated exhibit suggestions and rules in the 2024 Cass County Premium Book. Our 4-H premium book also contains many FAQs such as what a premium is, what parent/family expectations are during fair season, and so much more.
All of our 4-H families are asked to utilize the electronic version of the Premium Book as there are a few key documents linked in the book. If your family requires a printed copy, please contact our office.
When registering exhibits for the fair, please keep in mind that the quality of the projects exhibited is more important than the quantity of exhibits brought to the showcase for judging. To be respectful of our judges’ time, and our staffs’ time and resources, we ask that you only register for exhibits you know you will be able to complete by the time of the fair and limit yourself to five (5) exhibits in each project area. If your family has any questions or concerns regarding this, please contact Brooke Remer at the Extension Office.
4-H Online Animal Identification (Animal ID)
Keep in mind that before your family is able to enter any livestock, horse, or dog project as a part of a fair exhibit registration, you must first have a completed Animal ID for that animal in 4-H Online. Directions to complete Animal ID can be found here.
All animals, including breeding beef, cow/calf pairs, prospect calves, dairy, goats, dogs, horses, llamas and alpacas, rabbits, poultry (pigeons/doves), sheep, and swine, must have a complete Animal ID in 4-H Online by May 15, 2024, at 11:59 PM, or by 3:30 PM if using paper Animal ID forms submitted to the Cass County Extension Office. The deadline to ID market beef – including beef steers, market heifers, and dairy steers – has already passed.
Remember, Cloverbuds do not need to identify animals in 4-H Online at this time, but they will be asked during FairEntry registration if they will be bringing their own animal(s) or “borrowing” an animal that is already at the fair.
As you work to complete your Animal IDs, be sure to pick up any needed animal ear tags from the Cass County Extension Office (330 Barclay Ave W, Pine River), get your horse’s Coggins test completed, and/or have your dog’s vaccination records on hand prior to starting the identification process, as these pieces are all required when completing the Animal ID process for certain species in 4-H Online.
Volunteers Needed for the 4-H Showcases
The Cass County 4-H Showcase relies heavily on volunteers in order to have a successful show experience for our 4‑H youth. There are many volunteer roles that need to be filled in 2024. Remember, it is not necessary to be a 4‑H screened volunteer to fill any of these roles. Most of these volunteer positions can also be filled by youth volunteers. This year, all 4-H families with youth participating in the 4-H Showcase will be REQUIRED to volunteer for at least TWO (2) showcase volunteer shifts during the week of the fair. The person(s) volunteering for your family could be a youth, parent/guardian, grandparent, other family member, or even a family friend! Of course, if your family is willing to volunteer for more than two shifts, you are more than welcome to sign up! To sign up for volunteer shifts, please use this SignUp Genius to select TWO (2) shift times and roles that fit your schedule and abilities. Training on roles and responsibilities will be provided to volunteers prior to the show. If you have questions about what volunteer roles require, please contact Educator Brooke at piepe056@umn.edu. A confirmation of your volunteer shifts will be sent to you prior to the week of the fair. Thank you to all of our 4-H families and supporters for making our 2024 Cass County 4-H Showcase at the Cass County Fair in Pine River a success!
Cheers to a successful showcase season for all of our Cass County 4-H youth and their families!
Again, if your family has any questions or concerns as you complete the FairEntry (or Animal ID) process, please do not hesitate to reach out to Extension and 4-H staff at piepe056@umn.edu or 218-587-8280.
Important Dates Related to the 2024 4-H Showcases at the Cass County Fair:
- May 1, 2024 - FairEntry Registration Opens (FairEntry.com)
- May 15, 2024 - Animal ID Deadline (note, the deadline for market beef animals was February 15, 2024) (4-H Online)
- May 31, 2024 - FairEntry Registration Closes (FairEntry.com)
- June 3, 2024, at 5:00 PM - Pollorum and Banding Day (Cass County Fairgrounds)
- June 17, 2024, at 5:00 PM - Youth Registration Last Chance Entry Review (Cass County Land Department in Backus)
- June 17, 2024, at 5:30 PM - MANDATORY Herdsmanship Informational Meeting (REQUIRED for all youth showcasing animals at the fair) (Cass County Land Department in Backus)
- June 24, 2024, at 5:00 PM - 4-H Fairgrounds Cleanup (all families showcasing are expected to attend) (Cass County Fairgrounds)
- June 25-30, 2024 - 4-H Showcases at the Cass County Fair (Cass County Fairgrounds)
- June 30, 2024 - Post-Fair Cleanup and Project Release (all families are expected to attend to clean & pick up their projects after the fair) (Cass County Fairgrounds)