Allen County has very a diverse terrain that allows wildlife to thrive. The woodlands and water habitats such as Barren River Lake result in a large number of hunters and fisherman in the area. According to the 2017 agriculture censes, 21% of the county is woodland habitat with 32% being pasture land and 44% in cropland. Local stakeholders expressed an interest in attending wildlife programs to gain knowledge of managing and improving our local resources. 

In response, the Wildlife Habitat Improvement Program (WHIP) was designed by the Allen County Extension Agent for Agriculture and Natural Resources to increase stakeholder’s knowledge of managing wildlife, improving habitat and basic land & wildlife management. This series has monthly meetings from August through February where speakers present on various topics. Some of the program topics included: aging and scoring whitetail deer, the importance of habitat improvement, hunting laws and regulations, trapping and food plots for wildlife. This program has received positive feedback and has grown to be a popular Extension program.

A total of 134 stakeholders attended the WHIP series. At the conclusion of the WHIP series written evaluations indicated that 100% of the participants gained knowledge and most plan to implement wildlife, habitat and land management strategies within the next year due to information received in this program series. One individual commented “You are doing a great job, I really appreciate this program and I hope you continue this series next year”. Other participants wish to continue this series as well and even showed interest in creating a wildlife program council to help with program topics, ideas and field days.