Any pointers for showmanship?

[paddock36]

My son is going to participate in the local youth fair (Southeastern Youth Fair) and has four Silkie chickens he is going to show. He has shown chickens before so we know how to prepare them for the show. However, there is Showmanship that he is also going to participate in and doesn't have clue what to expect. Has anyone participated in anything like this before? If so do you have any Do's and Don't pointers that you can offer him. I should also add that he is only in the 6th grade.

 

[stephanie1992]

i did poultry showmanship for 4 years in FFA. in showmanship hes ganna be asked questions such as breed of bird and class its in. he will ask other questions to but they very by judge. hes ganna have to hold the bird and follow steps. heres some videos that may help

 

[paddock36]

Thank you Stephanie1992. This is his first year in FFA. I was in FFA myself so many years ago but never participated in showmanship for chickens, just for hogs and steers. So I don't know how to help him with this.

 

[stephanie1992]

Quote:
i showed Hogs, Beef, Dairy, Plants, Mechanics, and Poultry lol.

He may need to know
* the breed of his bird
*Class its in
*what a spur is
*name of different feathers
*how many breeds of poultry have 5 toes

he could ask his ag adviser for the questions the judge may ask

and make sure the bird is clean before showmanship with nothing on it
dont let the bird flap around
get him a poultry show stick if hes required to walk it
he may wanna practice with it from now-show day to prepare him and the bird for the show

 

[Year of the Rooster]

Basically he'll have to know the basic anatomy of a chicken, the breed history and facts, and information about chickens in general (ex: what NPIP stands for [National Poultry Improvement Plan], the different comb types, etc). But as Stephanie said, it varies by judge. One year the judge asked how many primary feathers a bird has (I had no idea), but it was 10 primary feathers on each wing, and that applies to all fowl (turkeys, geese, ducks, etc.) Last year I was asked the name all comb types accepted by the APA and to tell the judge as much as I could about my chicken. I had a White Silkie for my showmanship bird. Name anything from the country and era it was first developed to the different color varieties and unique characteristics. Since he is pretty young I wouldn't expect the judge to ask him too difficult questions. I'm sure he'll do great and good luck to him

 

[paddock36]

Thank you both very much for the help. I will show him the videos tomorrow and I also found a list of Showmanship questions to help. I think I'm more nervous about this than he is. LOL!

 

[Sonoran Silkies]

If you go to http://www.apa-abayouthpoultryclub.org/educational_material.htm , there are a number of links to articles and information on showmanship.

Being enthusiastic and telling MORE than is asked is good (for example, if asked to show the wing, properly show it and tell the judge the parts of the wing, why one would look at the wing, any interesting trivia (such as some birds having a claw on the wing), and otherwise responding THOROUGHLY to the judges request, not just MEETING it.

Know the faults and good points of your specific bird--for example, tell the judge that you think it has awesome type, but the toes are not quite what you would perfer--and what you think it should be. Tell what you like about your specific bird and why. Showmanship is SALESMANSHIP. Talk directly to the judge, not any audience. Be honest and say that you don't know if you don't.

Work with your bird ahead of time so that it easily accepts handling. Try to know more than is asked for your level.

 

[paddock36]

Thank you all very much. All the information will help my DS greatly.

 

[chicken_boy_Kurt]

If you go to http://www.apa-abayouthpoultryclub.org/educational_material.htm , there are a number of links to articles and information on showmanship.

Being enthusiastic and telling MORE than is asked is good (for example, if asked to show the wing, properly show it and tell the judge the parts of the wing, why one would look at the wing, any interesting trivia (such as some birds having a claw on the wing), and otherwise responding THOROUGHLY to the judges request, not just MEETING it.

Know the faults and good points of your specific bird--for example, tell the judge that you think it has awesome type, but the toes are not quite what you would perfer--and what you think it should be. Tell what you like about your specific bird and why. Showmanship is SALESMANSHIP. Talk directly to the judge, not any audience. Be honest and say that you don't know if you don't.

Work with your bird ahead of time so that it easily accepts handling. Try to know more than is asked for your level.

I would say that it depends on the judge as far as whether to expound or not. I've done showmanship with judges who take points off for going above and beyond.

One other style of showmanship is for the judge to ask you to spew any and all information you can relating to the bird in your hand, and poultry knowledge in general. This one is a challenge, but I really like it.

But in the style that most judges use - asking questions - you should know basic breed history and info (weights, DQs, some color description), knowledge of classes of birds, parasite info, disease info, anatomy info.