Animals count, too.

Farmers are as busy as beavers filling out the 2007 Census of Agriculture, which is due Feb. 4.

This is the first year the census can be done online. More than three million people were mailed the census by the U.S. Department of Agriculture the last week of December.

Everyone who got the survey is required to complete it, even if they no longer farm. A total of 1,631 farmers in the county were mailed the census this year.

"We don't count cats and dogs. We count everything else," said Jack Doney, a statistician for the USDA's office in Harrisburg.

Doney said the survey counts animals many people might not think of as agriculture, such as insects or fish grown for stream release.

"The places that produce lab rats — that's agriculture," he said.

The survey includes questions about such items as acres of pasture and crop land, maple syrup and colonies of bees.

But, the 25-page survey shouldn't be a nightmare, he said.

"The system is designed to make it easy for both the common and uncommon," he said.

The results of the census, which is taken every five years, are published for use by local, state and federal governments for planning purposes as well as by lawmakers and fellow farmers. The results of this census should be available in February 2009.

Mark O'Neill, spokesman for the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau, said the census will reflect more than just the number of animals in an area. For example, he said, the information will show the revenue from milk haulers as an indirect effect of agriculture.

The information can have an impact on grant and loan opportunities for farmers.

The numbers might be something that businesses could look at before they move to an area as well, O'Neill said.