county fair advice for showing WANTED

[LYNLY]

My daughter is showing her white rock pullet, daisy doo, and a old e. banty roo at the county fair. we need advice on preping our pets and things we might need to know about showmanship. all advice will help thank you in advance. this site is amazing!!!1

 

[a2ms4chickens]

Welcome to the wonderful world of showing chickens.

My DS is 11 years and this was his first year for showing chickens, for 4-H. Luckily, one of our friends belongs to a poultry club, so my DS got to practice showing his chickens.

I found this website:
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ps037
that tells you how to prepare your poultry for show.

Or, if it is too cold to give your birds a bath, we use diaper wipes to wipe down the birds feathers, legs, beak, combs and wattles. We also use VetRx on their legs, wattles and combs (this will also help prevent them getting sick from other birds), as it brings out the color. We also use "pink" sheen spray to put on the birds plumage.

This link explains how to old the birds for showmanship. Your 4-H co-op should have directions, also. http://counties.cce.cornell.edu/Ulster/4-H/AniSci/Poultry%20Showmanship%20Steps.pdf

My DS really enjoyed himself this last year, so he is looking forward to showing again this next year.

 

[illinichick]

My DD16 just showed her chickens at our county fair, 4H this week. Our neighbors have "show" chickens and won all of the classes. The kids who had hatchery chickens didnt win. Most "farm families" dont purchase expensive ($100) birds and I dont think it's fair to judge them together. Oh well, live and learn.

 

[a2ms4chickens]

My DS got lucky when he got his show birds from a breeder. He got his birds for $10 each because he belonged to 4-H.
He also went to a poultry show and bought a couple of D'Uccles, told the lady that he was buying them for 4-H and she gave him a $10 discount. So, he bought the pair for $15.

You just need to know where to look, and ask the seller if he will give you a discount. You don't need to spend a lot of money to get purebred chickens. They may not meet all of the APA standards, and that is why the breeder is selling for a lower price, but they do well at the fair.

My son's chickens all got blue ribbons, 1 got best of breed and 1 got best variety. They did not make grand champion or anything, but the experience and fun that my son had was all that mattered to him.

Now this year, we hatched a few chicks from his showbirds, so I think he wants to take them to fair, and some other poultry shows, if they meet the standards.