showmanship with my Buff orpington

[seeingeyepuppy]

hello, i am going to do showmanship for the first time in august and i need some help... i was told i would need to know things about orpingtons and be able to tell the judge positive and negatives about the show quality of my hen... i have no idea what to look for so any help would be appreciated... here is a pic of the bird i will be using

 

[Blackberry18]

I recommend putting this in the "General Breed Discussions and FAC" forum, but great question! I recently did showmanship with New Hampshires. Just tell the judge facts about the breed; egg production, meat production, history, size, development, when accepted by APA (American Poultry Association), etc. Get a Standard of Perfection copy, online or physical. It will help a lot; Orpingtons are in the English class (good thing to know for judging). Check out BYC Orpington threads, my Pet Chicken, and other sites that give info on them. Know different varieties, and which ones are accepted by APA. If it's teh same as my show, the judge will also ask about parts of the bird, memorize feathers and where different parts are (pope's nose is where the tail feathers protrude out of the body, that's what stumped me this year, but still got Grand Champion in my category, and Reserve Champion overall). Basically, just learn different things about the breed, and chickens in general.

 

[Wyandottes7]

I've competed in showmanship before and here are some tips/info that may help:

• Know breed, age, and gender and state that when the judge asks what you brought in for showmanship. For example say "This is my 6 month old Silver Laced Wyandotte pullet". Never use slang like "roo"; use correct terminology like cockerel, pullet, cock, hen, etc.
• Know parts of the bird, external and internal. Don't just know "eye", "comb", or similar; instead, know specific parts like wing front, main tail feathers, tail coverts, lesser sickle feathers, saddle feathers, etc.
• Know the class that your bird would be entered in at an APA show. For an Orpington, that's the English class. Also know all the other classes recognized by the American Poultry Association AND the classes recognized by the American Bantam Association. Know breeds within each class (don't forget waterfowl, turkeys, or guinea fowl either).
• Remember, it is POULTRY showmanship, not CHICKEN showmanship. Some people make the mistake of bringing in a chicken and assuming that they'll only be asked about chickens and their specific bird. Don't make that mistake. Know classes, parts, details, facts, breeds, and varieties of ducks, geese, muscovy ducks (they're different than regular ducks), turkeys, and guinea fowl.
• Know incubation periods, incubation conditions, feed types (layer, grower, starter, etc.), the differences between feed types, feed ingredients, types of poultry parasites (not just external but also internal parasites), how you would treat diseases, how you would treat for mites, what you feed your bird (and why), how you raised your bird, and where you got your bird. Be able to list symptoms of several diseases, like Coccidiosis and Fowl Pox. Know the differences between a bird you may get from a hatchery that is not bred for show (hatchery-quality) and a show-quality, purebred show bird.
• Know what you would improve about your bird and what your bird's strong points are. If I was taking a look at your bird, I would say that she lacks size, depth, and width. She's hatchery quality for an Orpington (Orpingtons bred specifically for show have enourmous size, profuse feathering, very wide bodies/tails, and large heads). However, she does have decent color (though a darker, more golden color would be even nicer-- Buff Orpingtons are supposed to be the color of a new golden watch). Don't worry that your bird isn't perfect; in showmanship, you aren't judged on your bird's traits or shortcomings, but on your knowledge.
• Know the officers (President, Vice-President, Secretary) of the American Poultry Association (APA) and the American Bantam Association (ABA). Know what district of the APA and ABA that you're in.
• Know the history of the Orpington breed. The APA standard of perfection may be able to give you some info; otherwise, look it up. You usually want to give a brief history in your introduction. The Orpington was developed in England, but you'd want to know even more specifics than that.
• Be able to complete a full examination procedure of your bird. Nearly all showmanship competitions that I competed in had me go through an examination of the bird. Look up "Poultry Showmanship bird examination" and you should get some detailed, step-by-step videos/articles that should help.
• Here are some links:

http://ucanr.edu/sites/Stanislaus4-H/files/110536.pdf,
http://valencia4-hffapoultry.tripod.com/id8.html
https://extension.usu.edu/davis/files/uploads/4-H_Poultry_Showing_and_Judging.pdf

• When going through the examination, be sure to explain not only what you're looking for, but also what you're finding. Know what your breed/variety should look like and describe that as you go through the procedure.The more information you can put in, the better off you'll be.
• Know what defects and disqualifications your birds has, and know general defects/disqualifications.
• Study the APA Standard of Perfection! This will help you immensely. Memorize the terms discussed in the book, comb types, defects, disqualifications, etc. The more you know, the better.If you're in a higher category of showmanship, also know the differences between the ABA Bantam Standard and the APA Standard of Perfection. Know the founding dates for each organization (ABA and APA) as well.
• Be sure to wash your bird before showing. The judge looks for a clean, well-handled bird. Make sure that you're handling your showmanship bird several times a week, to prevent her from becoming flighty or squawky.

Good luck with showmanship! If you have any more specific questions, feel free to ask.