As the snow falls from the cloudy sky, I go outside to feed my 42 chickens (30 hens and 12 roosters). Since I have been raising chickens for four years and have been doing 4-H for three years, I have learned a lot of new things. I thought I would share with you something I have learned about: showmanship. Showmanship shows the judge what you know about the bird and whether the bird trusts you.

Elijah Dixon with his choice chick, as they prepare for the showmanship portion of a poultry show. Frequent handling of your birds, as soon as you receive them, will help to build a bond with them, and keep them calmer during showmanship events. Spread the wings while handling the chick as you will need to do at the fair. If your bird gets nervous, set it down and pet it until it calms down, then repeat the process until your bird is calm while spreading wings. Work with your bird(s) daily, even after they are trained, right up until the fair. Study the different parts of your bird, and other poultry. Some judges only ask about your bird, but others will test you on other poultry as well.

Build A Bond With Your Birds

First of all, you will want to build a bond with your chicks. When you receive your chicks you should handle them frequently. The more you handle your chicks, the stronger the bond and the greater the trust becomes. I definitely recommend getting young chicks rather than getting older ones that have been raised by someone else. You can build a bond with chickens raised by someone else, it is just a lot harder to do. The younger the chick is, the easier it is to build a bond with it.

Practice Handling Your Bird

You will want to practice handling your bird as you would in a show. This prepares you and your bird for the fair. Start off by choosing a chick to use at fair. Make sure you have at least one backup chick just in case your first choice dies. On one occasion I chose a chick that I had a strong bond with, and two weeks before fair he was killed by a fox. So yes, it is wise to have a backup chick. Now that you have chosen a chick and at least one backup, you should start by picking up and petting the chick until it becomes calm when you're handling it. Then, spread its wings out as you would at the fair, being careful, as chicks are very fragile. If the chick peeps while doing this put it down and pet it until it becomes calm. Repeat this process until it becomes calm with you spreading out both wings. Continue working with your chick daily, until the fair.

Learn About Poultry & Your Bird Specifically

You should study the different parts of chickens, ducks, turkeys, guineas, etc., and be able to demonstrate those parts to the judge. Some judges will ask you only about your bird, others will ask you about other poultry as well. You should also learn things about your particular breed such as: what breed it is, whether it is a cockerel (male under a year), cock (male over a year), pullet (female under a year), or hen (female over a year), when the breed originated, what it is bred for, when it was first recognized by The American Poultry Association (APA), and different features specific to your particular breed. Two good books to help you learn more about poultry and your bird in particular are The American Standard of Perfection and Storey's Illustrated Guide to Poultry Breeds.

This is an example of what I would say at a showmanship competition: "Hi, my name is Elijah Dixon, I am 13 years old. What I have here is a Silver Duckwing cockerel. He was bred originally for cockfighting but that was outlawed, so now he is bred strictly for show. He was admitted to the APA in the 1900s." Now, I would show the different parts of the bird. This is where having a trained bird really comes in handy.

Relax & Enjoy Yourself