august 23, 2026

Pig Pals Swine Spectacular

Four years ago, a brief encounter with an autistic child at the Dodge County Fair altered Kaitlin Neu’s life for good. Today, she’s working with a dedicated team to bring the Pig Pals Swine Spectacular, a pig show for youth with disabilities, to the Dodge County Fair swine and sheep barn on Sunday of the Fair at 10:30 a.m.

On the day that started it all, Kaitlin Neu, Ixonia, County Line 4-H, was sitting with her pig in the swine barn at the Dodge County Fair. She was allowing visitors to feed her pig marshmallow treats. “A Mom and her son walked up. I asked him if he’d like to feed my pig a marshmallow. His Mom said, ‘he’s autistic, nonverbal, and doesn’t show any emotion, so I’m not sure he’ll do it.’ I asked if I could try. The boy took the marshmallow, fed it to my pig, and proceeded to turn around and smile at his Mom. She immediately started crying and told me, ‘that was the first time he’s smiled in about two years.’ “

Fast forward two years, and now the Dodge County Fair will officially be hosting the Pig Pals Swine Spectacular. “Pig pals is meant to incorporate youth with disabilities in showing swine,” commented Neu. “It will give them an opportunity to work with an animal and see what we do as 4-H youth. We also hope this will establish a connection between special-needs youth and 4-H youth who are showing pigs.”

Due to space requirements, there are a limited number of spots available for youth with disabilities. “There is no cost to participate, and we still have openings,” said Neu. “Our main target is the youth in 7th to 12th grade with intellectual disabilities like autism, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, sensory processing disorder, etc.” Each participant will be given a t-shirt and an award ribbon.