Festival organizer Terry Slotty and the stars of the cow chip throwing contest.

Throughout the United States, drought conditions are causing lots of problems for farmers.  The land is dry, the crops aren’t growing like they should, and you’re either irrigating and pumping in water or you’re suffering the consequences.  An unusual event in Wisconsin is facing an even more unusual shortage of supplies.  A cow chip shortage is causing difficulties at the Wisconsin State Cow Chip Throw and Festival in Prairie du Sac, Wisconsin.  The Festival is one of the more popular of its kind in the United States, attracting some 40,000 visitors to the Wisconsin town every year.

The festival relies on local herds of grass-fed cattle for its supply of cow chips, which are dense poop piles about the size of ping-pong paddles.  However, thanks to the need for added feed and the heat, the cows stayed near their barns and, thus, there wasn’t the usual supply of poop.  Rather than making one trip out into the fields with shovels, organizers have had to go out multiple times to collect the 200 to 300 cow chips needed for the competition, making for a lot of hard, slightly gross work for the people behind the event.

“This is my 24th throw, and it’s never been this difficult to find chips,” said Marietta Reuter, the festival’s organizer.  “If it looks like it has air bubbles on the top, it’s bad chip.  It won’t be worth it because it will be light and airy. But if it’s thick and solid and grassy, it’s a good chip.”

The top finishers of the Wisconsin State Cow Chip Throw gets $200 towards a trip to the World Championship Cow Chip Throw in Beaver, Oklahoma, should they wish to continue their poop-throwing career.  The record tosses are 248 feet for men (1991) and 157.5 feet for women (2005).

Tags: drought causes shortage of cow chips, cow chips, poop, cow chip throwing festival, Wisconsin State Cow Chip Throw and Festival, Prairie du Sac, Wisconsin, unusual events, cow poop throwing contest, drought causes shortage of cow poop, cow poop shortage, cow chip shortage, Marietta Reuter, Terry Slotty

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