NORTHERN NEW YORK POULTRY FANCIER
AUGUST 2006
2ND
QUARTER NEWSLETTER
ANNOUNCEMENTS
SHOW: Our show this year will be Sunday, September 17th at Waddington Arena. If you did not receive a Showbook and would like one, please contact Tonya by email [email protected] or call at 315-379-9498 and one will be mailed to you.
Friday, September 15th we will be setting up for our show. Please come at
FOR
Indian Runner Ducks and Pigeons, call Patrick Bums 315-324-5891
NOTE FROM OUR PRESIDENT:
Betty and I and a couple of the grandkids, went down to Watertown Fair on judging day. Paul Kroll was the judge and he had a discouraging number of birds put before him. I know there must be a lot of chickens living in that area, why aren't more people showing? The price of gas? I really don't think so - that's just an excuse for not gettin - a - goin - you have gas money to go to Wal-Mart in Evans Mills, you got money for gas to go to Jefferson County Fair. Hey - do both in one day!
Fairs are one of the best places to promote our hobby. Jefferson County Fair offers one of the best, cleanest, and air-e-est show room around. St. Lawrence County residents can show there. You do not have to be there judging day, but 1 always wanted to be. 1 was always able to sell any bird that I didn't want to bring back with me. If more people don't pick up the slack and show next year, I'm afraid poultry classes will no longer be made available by the fair. This will be a shame, because at one time it was one of the most prestigious shows around.
Maybe some of our members could combine resources and take a truck load down in 2007. Hey, I've even got a couple of nice little boys 1 might enter (if the coons don't get them). I'm not asking you to bring your top bird, just nice ones. Show the public what's out there in feathers.
My favorite of the Show was a Silver Duckwing Old English Cock shown by Joshua Thomas. He wasn't dubbed. I don't think his owner knew that he should have been, until Paul told him. Many of the birds were really too young to be shown. Some were still peeping. Now these exhibitors are beginners, they need to know how things should be or they will become discouraged. '
The waterfowl exhibit was kind of nice, especially the Pilgrim Geese shown
by Ginger Middleton from Evans Mills. However the best waterfowl was a Ruen
Drake (which 1 think was either a cross or a commercial type). Paul had left by
then, so 1 didn't ask him about his choice. Best Bantam was a very nice Black
Tailed White Japanese Cock shown by Joshua Thomas. 1 didn't get to talk to
Joshua, but
As "good old chicken people" I hope we can come up with a few birds to take down next year. Superintendent Jerry Barrett would sure like to see some of the good "up North" birds come South.
Melvina Reid
NOTE FROM OUR VICE PRESIDENT
Our little Show is fast approaching and now is the time to let Gary or
myself know if you can help any for setup or tear down or both. We really need
the help. Setup will be on Friday evening the 15th at
Floyd Rood
JUNIOR SHOWMANSHIP
This is a part of our Show that only started a few years back maybe three years to be exact. A young girl by the name of Hannah Watkins asked, "Do you have Junior Showmanship"? The answer was we do now and have had ever since. The part that makes this a good thing is that it encourages young people to learn about the fancy. Melvina Reid will be judging the Junior Showmanship again this year. Juniors need to know all about their bird, from bone structure and feathers, to how to pick a good bird to Show. Mostly this teaches our young Juniors self confidence. You young people keep up the good work and be ready for Melvina's questions.
Floyd Rood Vice President
Melvina sends along this list of things she looks for in Showmanship Classes:
1. A clean, well cared for, well groomed bird.
2. Exhibitors poise and confidence.
3. The Junior's knowledge of the bird they are showing.
4. The way the bird is handled by the Junior.
5. The way Juniors respond if I ask a question not related to the bird in front of me.
The Show.....(from http://the-coop.org/pshow/pshow.html)
How a Poultry Show works in
How It's All Laid Out
Poultry shows are generally open to three types of fowl recognized by the
American Poultry Association.
It may appear at first glance that there are wall-to-wall chickens in no particular order. However, someone has worked hard to organize the birds. The pattern may not be apparent. But once you know what you are looking at, it will start to make sense.
Large Fowl or Bantam?
The first thing you may notice is that there are very large birds and very small birds. You might even notice that some look almost identical except for the size. The large birds are known as large fowl or standard size. The small birds are bantams, sometimes called "banties". A few types of birds come only in large fowl or bantam, but most can be either. The relationship is similar to "toy" or miniature dogs and their "normal" size counterparts. The goal is to have virtually the same bird, except for size. Typically large fowl will weigh in at 9 to 12 pounds while a bantam will weigh 2 to 3 pounds. Large fowl are the standard size for a chicken, but bantams are popular because they are smaller, easier to handle, take up less space, eat less food and still provide many of the benefits of owning chickens. In the show, large fowl and bantams will be shown separately.
Class
The next thing you may notice is that birds are broken down into classes. For large fowl, the classes are named after the area of origin. You will notice an American Class, Asiatic Class, English Class, Mediterranean Class, Continental Class and an All Other Standard Breed Class. For bantams, classes are named after physical characteristics. These include Game Bantams, Single Comb Clean Legged (S.C.CL.), Rose Comb Clean Legged (R.C-C.L.), All Other Comb Clean Legged (AO.C.C.L.), and Feather Legged Classes. Every breed will be listed in one and only one class.
Within each class will be several breeds. Each breed will have specific characteristic(s) that differentiate it from all other breeds. One example of a breed is the Plymouth Rock. Breeds will differ in shape, feather characteristics, comb and other attributes. Some breeds originated for meat production, some for egg production, others originated from Asian or European fighting cock stocks, while a few breeds were developed for ornamental qualities. The Standard of Perfection will provide information on breeds, their characteristics and history.
Variety
If you look at a breed you will find that there are often many color
patterns represented. Both large and bantam Plymouth Rocks are recognized in
the Standard in Barred, White, Buff, Silver Penciled, Partridge, Columbian, and
Blue varieties. The black variety was recently admitted, but for
Gender & Age
Within each variety, birds will be divided based on sex and age. A cock (C) is a male bird over one year old while a cockerel (K) is a male bird under one year old. A hen (H) is a female over one year old while a pullet (P) is a female under one year old. Birds might also be placed in a trio, which will be either an old trio (2 hens and a cock) or a young trio (2 pullets and a cockerel).
Scoring: Birds
Judges score birds using a detailed point system that compares various physical points on each bird. Certain characteristics are disqualifications and preclude a bird from being considered for placing. The closer a bird approaches the standard of perfection, the more points they will score and the better their chances of placing. For more information on the point scale, see the Standard of Perfection published by the AP A. A copy should be available at the information desk at a show.
Placing:
Judges will review the birds and place the best specimens. The first step is to
look at all of the pullets of one variety and rank. from first through third or
fifth place. The same will be done with each age/gender group and the coop
cards will be marked with a 1, 2 etc. After all of the birds in a variety have
been judged, the official will select the best and second best representative
of the variety and mark them Best of Variety (BV) or Reserve' of Variety (RV).
After all of the varieties of a breed have been judged for Best and Reserve
the official will pick from those birds the two that best represent the breed
and will mark them Best of Breed (BB) and Reserve of Breed (RB).
After all of the breeds in a class have been judged, the official will place a
Best and Reserve in class from the Best and Reserve and of Breeds. Typically a
show will have a Champion Row where the best bird in each class is displayed.
From Champion Row, the judges will select a Champion Large Fowl, and Champion
Bantam. Finally a Grand Champion, or Best Bird of Show, may be selected from
among the best of the waterfowl, turkeys and chickens.
Judges
The judges of a show are licensed either by the American Poultry Association or the American Bantam Association (or both). The licensing process requires years of practice, an apprenticeship, and passage of a strenuous written and practical test. Judges are poultry fanciers who have taken the hobby to its full extent and are a wealth of knowledge. It is considered good etiquette not to talk with or interfere with a judge while they are judging.
What if a bird is not in the Standard?
There are many breeds, varieties or hybrids that are not recognized in the
APA or
judged. To be admitted into the APA standard, a breed must have several
supporters that have been working with it for at least 5 years and are able to
have a minimum of 50 birds exhibited at a show. If all of these conditions are
met, a breed or variedly may be admitted to the standard and written up in the
Standard of Perfection. It will be eligible to compete in shows from that point
forward.
© Copyright Loren Hadley, 1997, 1998