My children would like to get involved in showing their hens. However I have no idea how to get started with that. It all looks intimidating and confusing. Do you have any advice to offer or online resources to suggest for a total newbie to learn what she needs to get involved with showing?
Are they wanting to become active/show through programs such as 4-H or are they wanting to show in organized poultry specific shows?
4 H and local fairs is a good place to start. In my area there is not a lot of focus on breed standards but there are still poultry shows at the fairs. National shows are a different ball game. Same deal with conditioning birds to cages and being handled but the quality of birds is to breed standards. So local fairs is a great place to start, learn to condition birds and see if they like showing where it's only a short drive away. If there is interest then locating good stock and breeding would be the next step. Longer drives to national shows and much larger events with high focus on breeding. There is a lot to learn with breeding birds. It's more than collecting eggs from the flock and hatching them. Decisions of what birds to use are made, evaluations of birds is a learned ability. Breeding pen(s) are used so only those birds selected for mating are used, single mating or trio is really focusing on traits and some choose best cock bird and best 4 or 6 hens to put together. It's all on how focused you are in breeding or what traits your trying to correct, etc. This is the largest part to it. Learning to breed to standard and evaluating birds. Choices made for matings.
