are mcmurrays buff orpingtons good for showing in county fairs

[bufforpingtonfan]

will be getting some layers from there wondering if those would work for showing

 

[draye]

The ones that we had had yellow legs. They didn't lay too well either, always wanting to set.

Murray McMurray does have some good chickens though. I just didn't care for the Orpingtons.
Thought about trying the White Orpingtons though, wonder if they are as bas about wanting to set?

 

[Oregon Blues]

The competition at the county fair in my area is pretty intense. Judge was writing comments like "Poor quality" or "Wrong color" on the cage tickets of hatchery quality birds, but there weren't very many of them.

Areas are going to differ in how tough the competition is at the county fair. If your area has a lot of sanctioned shows, the breeders might not be out showing at the county fair and the competition won't be there. In that case, you'd be fine with your hatchery birds.

The 4-H kids in my area own some serious show birds. There is nothing easy about showing in 4-H around here. But I've heard that the 4-H birds in a few other areas are not so nice.

I suggest that you go to your county fair and take a look at what is being shown so you can judge how tough the competition is. Without seeing what is shown at your show, I have no way to tell you whether or not your hatchery birds would get you laughed out of the building or not.

Or, you could just enter anyway. Get the free passes, enjoy the fair, meet lots of nice poultry people, and not worry about winning. It's fun. If you discover you like it, then you can invest in a couple of show birds. Show birds really aren't expensive.

 

[Ariel301]

It really depends on your county fair. Some have high numbers of entries from knowledgeable bird owners who are breeding for perfection and spending a lot of money on what they do and the judges are APA judges who know the standards and don't let things slide. You might or might not do well with a hatchery bird, it just depends on the bird. I've gotten some show quality birds from hatcheries. I've gotten some awful birds. Mostly I've gotten average birds. I have no experience with McMurray because I find them too pricey compared to the competition.

And then other fairs...well, the last one I went to, about half of the birds were not purebreds or even approaching something looking like any particular breed. A lot of them I couldn't even guess at what went into them. The entry forms asked for breed and the birds were grouped according to class (American, Continental, Game, Mediterranean, etc) but I'm not sure how they really figured all that out with the mutt birds...Lots of birds there were in very poor condition, bald spots, molting, broken feathers, scaly leg mites, feather mites, rooster damage on hens' backs. A lot of birds that should have been disqualified won ribbons just because nothing better was there. The judge did at least make note of them being in poor condition, and a couple of the very worst were disqualified--but nothing is going to change, because the people bringing in those birds either don't know better or just don't care. There were a few other people with really nice birds, and fortunately they were well-rewarded by the judge for their efforts. It was kind of the same in all the livestock there; the grand champion "dairy" goat kid was a meat goat cross with absolutely no dairy type and obvious stunted growth and parasite issues, it was maybe about 20 pounds when at its age it should have been 50 or more...(though that's a different story because that judge placed this particular animal over some very high quality animals.)

 

[bufforpingtonfan]

mine doesnt it has about 3 to 4 entries for buff orpingtons.

 

[rachel1]

I get my buff orps from mcmurray and have never had problems with leg color and laying. I have been saisfied with the quality of them , but we also do not show them. I have heard of many people who did show them and were have with the results.

 

[Gomes Bantams]

I'm in 4-H and my group has some serious birds and anyone with hatchery birds are pretty much shunned.

 

[jerryb]

Quote:
That's a shame.

maybe you should read up a little about what 4-H is and what it strives to do for kids.

4-H is about education, personal growth and community spirit. I have not noticed "shunning" being promoted in any of the 4-H literature.

I won't be ordering any bantams from you any time soon,

Jerry

 

[The Breaker]

I have some buff orpingtons from there I dont now about show but the are very nice birds

 

[eenie114]

Quote:
That's a shame.

maybe you should read up a little about what 4-H is and what it strives to do for kids.

4-H is about education, personal growth and community spirit. I have not noticed "shunning" being promoted in any of the 4-H literature.

I won't be ordering any bantams from you any time soon,

Jerry

I think Gnomes Bantams was expressing a sadness at being shunned because they have hatchery quality. Don't be so quick to assume to worst about people.

To the OP, you might get lucky, but if you're wanting to show, ordering from a hatchery is always a gamble. If I were you I'd get some that you KNOW are SQ from a breeder.
Good luck!