Bob Blosl's Heritage Large Fowl Thread

[fowlman01]

How common is it, to pick up parasites at a show? Don't the inspectors prevent that, before the show, at the health check? Or, if any got by them, wouldn't the judge notice bugs on a bird?

Congrats on your win, Walt!

If anyone notices bugs on a bird, they are out of there. A judge should not ever place a bird with parasites. Some are hard to see, so it is good housekeeping to be sure your birds are protected while at the show and after.

Thanks Kim.

w.

 

[armorfirelady]

Just lurking but las

How common is it, to pick up parasites at a show? Don't the inspectors prevent that, before the show, at the health check? Or, if any got by them, wouldn't the judge notice bugs on a bird?

Congrats on your win, Walt!

If anyone notices bugs on a bird, they are out of there. A judge should not ever place a bird with parasites. Some are hard to see, so it is good housekeeping to be sure your birds are protected while at the show and after.

Thanks Kim.

w.

t
Lst year I went to the state fair and checked out the fowl. Saw so many with goopy eyes, dirty vents...........I thought I would never bring my bird there to show (if I had show quality birds) They all seemed to belong to same person according to tags.

I had to get some info on birds I saw but the owner was not very friendly and brushed me off when I tried to ask some questions. Maybe its just because it was the stat fair and not a APA show?

 

[Apdeb]

Ny state fair??? Not good!! B

 

[3riverschick]

Quote: Why? What's wrong with showing at a State Fair? The CA State Fair is a huge production. So is the PA Farm Show ( tho not sure if it is a *true* "State Fair") .
Karen

 

[Wynette]

How common is it, to pick up parasites at a show? Don't the inspectors prevent that, before the show, at the health check? Or, if any got by them, wouldn't the judge notice bugs on a bird?

Congrats on your win, Walt!

I take a bottle of (liquid) mite spray for poultry; I mist my poultry a few times each day from the outside of the cage. That's worked well for me thus far.

 

[fowlman01]

Just lurking but las
t
Lst year I went to the state fair and checked out the fowl. Saw so many with goopy eyes, dirty vents...........I thought I would never bring my bird there to show (if I had show quality birds) They all seemed to belong to same person according to tags.

I had to get some info on birds I saw but the owner was not very friendly and brushed me off when I tried to ask some questions. Maybe its just because it was the stat fair and not a APA show?

The CA show is an APA/ABA show and there is a health check before you even get close to the poultry building.

Walt

 

[Matt1616]

How common is it, to pick up parasites at a show? Don't the inspectors prevent that, before the show, at the health check? Or, if any got by them, wouldn't the judge notice bugs on a bird?

Congrats on your win, Walt!

It is very common. Health check??? I have shown all over the Eastern part of the country and have not had my birds checked yet. There is usually a state NPIP rep at most shows to test birds for AI and T/P but that is only if you are not NPIP certified and if you take your birds to them to be checked. If you are NPIP you just go put your birds in the cage. But even those NPIP reps are not looking for bugs, they are just testing. Most judges do check for mites/lice and if they see them they will usually write "Mites" or "Bugs" on the coop card but I know they don't see them all.
I treat all my birds before I put them back in the cage when I get home from each show and I keep my show birds away from the rest of my flock throughout show season.

 

[Pathfinders]

what about before you wash your birds. Some folks ad something to the water while the birds are in the water while you are washing your white rocks. I use Frontline or Adams after the show.

Thanks for the posts. bob

I've been thinking about this while out and about today around the birds, and it occurs to me that treating for mites while washing for a show is too late - the time to do it is at least two weeks before (if not earlier), as mites, even if removed from the bird itself, often leave behind reddened skin that a judge will notice, and perhaps knock the bird for.

Better, IMO, to treat well ahead of time, so any reddened skin has time to heal well before the show itself.

And fwiw, this part of the thread prompted me to dig out my pyrethrin-based dairy spray and mist down pens this morning. I like that stuff a lot - it expands in a closed room and gets right into all the crevices. Kills all sorts of bugs, including flies and mites, and leaves a slight film to kill those that hatch later (although it's never a bad idea to hit them all again in two weeks, just in case.) That and Sevin dust used liberally around the outside and in nest boxes works really well for me.

 

[Yellow House Farm]

As Walt intimated, the CA fair is an apa/aba sponsored event. Not all fairs are. In New England states there are multiple large ag fairs per state, but each only has one that is sponsored by an APA/ABA club, which then uses the fair ground for an APA/ABA show. The difference in the quality of bird and knowledgeableness of owner is outstanding. If a given fair is not an APA/ABA sponsored event there is little reason for a serious breeder to attend. ON the one hand there are no points, on the other, his or her friends aren't there, and lastly going to any show stresses birds, so serious breeder is not going to waste a move on a non-APA/ABA event.

Then again, we're talking about mites and lice here. These are pests but not the end of the world. If I brought home mites or lice from a show, I'd be ******, but that's about it. It's not really a big deal aside from being a grand annoyance. Now, a disease, that's different story.

 

[Yellow House Farm]

Oops, sorry, I'd be vexed...I guess the p-word isn't OK.