PoultryTalk.com

Showing for the most part is great fun, and i recommend you try it at least once! Listed below are a few tips to help newcomers, tips we have discovered, and a few rules and regs that should be followed, the worst thing is turning up with the best bird you have for the first time and finding you've done something wrong which you either get penalised for or disqualified after all your efforts! Make sure you have filled any entry forms out correctly, and your birds are entered in the right classes, the correct money has been included,Entries are sent in on time, and some ask for a SAE. If in doubt, ASK! ring the organiser and ask, or a friend who has shown before! Birds are NOT permitted to wear any legrings, apart from the poultry club closed legrings, so your own will have to be removed.
Once you have bathed your bird a few days before the show, carry on with cage training, giving little titbits by hand, going in the cage and stroking/touching the bird to get it used to being handled, there's nothing worse than a beautiful bird who sits at the back of the show cage shivering and shaking clearly traumatised by the whole event! You want your bird to look it's best, and show it's self off. Cage training can take as long as a few days, hours, or weeks depending on the methods used, and the bird. Alot of judges use a stick to point the bird or move it round inside the cage, so introduce one at home, use either a thin twig/stick or a car ariel to move under the backend and under the chin.
Poo pick your birds two or three times a day whilst they're in, to help keep them clean, trust me, if there's a poop in there, they'll lay in it! Don't change your feed, keep to what you normally feed or it can cause the bird to have the squits! The night before the show, remove all feed, you want your birds crop to be empty, a full crop is frowned upon as it changes the shape of the bird. Leave water in. Remember to pack some feed and i take my own water too as a change of water can also give the birds the squits! Remember to pack cage cups for feeding and watering after judging.
The morning of the show, make sure all bottoms are clean, and feet, this is the last chance to give an extra wash and blowdry you'll proberbly get, although some of the bigger shows do have points to plug in hairdryers, most of the smaller ones don't. We use plastic boxes with lots of air holes to transport our birds because we show on a regular basis, but cardboard boxes are fine, they need to be the right size for the bird, not too low incase of caught combs, not too big so the bird rattles around, and plenty of air holes! Shavings in the bottom help mop-up any poop.
When you arrive at the show, park in the right areas, the last thing you need is some guy asking you to move your car when you're in the middle of caging the birds! Go in the venue first and have a look around, some shows send you your cage numbers, but most you have to pick up on arrival, it will be a slip of paper with all the birds you have entered and what number cage they are to be put in, don't loose it!! We have found it's easier to write out sticky labels and put them on the travel box, it contains the class number, and what bird is inside, ie. class 104, Jubilee female. etc. This saves you rooting through your boxes looking for a particular bird. Once you have found the right cages, you can start putting the birds in them, check your slip to ensure correct bird, in correct cage! Once all the birds are in, it's grooming time. You'll need to titivate after a long journey, babywipes are excellant for cleaning poop off feet, a touch of baby oil or a poultry head dressing for making combs and wattles, legs and feet shine. A childs nit comb is great for combing out dried poo from the vent area in an emergency! When you have titivated all your birds, there is a choice which i will leave up to you, the general rules state that birds should not be fed and watered until after judging, but if it's a hot day, or you have had a long journey, i always water my birds, being careful not to use a cage cup with your name on it! and i always just throw a small handful of feed onto the cage floor, it gives the birds something to do whilst waiting for the judging to begin, and keeps them from getting bored and flapping about, but that's just me, a small handful of feed isn't going to distort your birds crop! But alot of breeders/exhibitors don't do this, the choice is yours. The next thing i recommend is a large strong coffee and bacon butty!(for you, not the birds!) Some shows will allow you in the tent/building while judging gets underway, some won't. After judging, be sure to feed and water all your birds, keeping hold of your entry/cage slip will ensure you do them all and don't miss one! It's a general rule that you never touch, handle, photograph or feed anyone elses birds without the owners permission.If you see a bird without water, and suffering, (and it does happen!) then report it to an official. Good luck, i hope you find this helpful.
JubesX

Fantastic info Jubes......im feeling an urge to give it a go!!!!This has been a great help. im now going to read up the bathing tips.

Henpeck x

You're most welcome. Good luck and we'll see you at the shows!!

JubesX