Central Indiana Poultry Show

This is one of the best organized shows we have been to. They had 193 showmen and 1439 poultry and waterfowl an turkeys. For their first show this was a good one, i really liked the one day show in and out. The kids did really well;

Trey’s Partridge Cochin got a First and a Second roosters.

Denton’s Dark Cornish rooster got a First and his Royal Palm Turkeys tom received BB,BV,first and Reserve Grand Champion of show.

Coty’s Silver Dutch received BB,BV hen and RV,RB rooster

Areil’s Light Brahma rooster received a First.

We are very proud of the kids and there poultry and turkeys. Now for the old folks placings. We wil start with Gayla’s Dutch Cream Light Blue rooster wich received BB,BV. Her Light Brown hens received First and Second.

Now for mine, Lets just say old dad got a real razing. Three hens placed Second, Third and Fourth.

PUMPKIN TIME ON THE FARM

We have been in the pumpkin patch get pumpkins out for a fall festival. We will have some pictures up with the chickens and pumpkins.

ROYAL PALM TURKEYS

A remarkably attractive bird, the Royal Palm displays some of the nicest colors of all turkey varieties. These birds are quite small compared to other turkeys. Mature toms weigh 15-20 pounds and hens are considerably lighter at 10-12 pounds. They are striking in appearance. These beautiful birds have a white base color and most feathers are banded with a bright metallic black color. The contrast of this black/white combination is truly radiant. The Royal Palm is not a common variety.

POLISH HISTORY

History
Known in England as the Poland, this is the most popular of the crested breeds. It is also one of the oldest. The origin of this bird and its name is still not clear. Crested birds have been described all over Europe, not just in Poland. It has been known as a pure breed as early as the 16th century. They appeared and received classification at the first poultry show in London in 1845. Then available in four colours.
Behaviour
The Poland is an unusual and beautiful bird. They do look rather strange with their big hair do! They lay a good number of white eggs. Generally classed as a non-sitting bird, they can occasionally become broody. Breeders tend to tie the crest up to keep it clean and allow the bird to see well. The Poland has a thin skull and can suffer from hypothermia quite quickly in the cold. Mites need to be looked out for, as they cannot preen themselves very easily to remove them.
Varieties
Colours of the Poland are very varied. The best known being the white crested black with its black body and white crest. The other two similarly patterned colours are white crested blue and white-crested cuckoo. These three colours do not have a beard and have wattles; all the other colours have a beard with no wattles. They have white earlobes. The crest of the female should be very round with the males being spikier. The eyes are red in all colours and beaks and legs are dark blue in all except the white crested cuckoo, which has a paler beak and legs. The chamois, gold and silver are all laced.
Egg Colour: White

FAVEROLLES HISTORY

History
Faverolles originate from the village of Faverolles in Northern France and were created from a mix of several different breeds of hen, Dorking, Brahma, Crvecoeur, Houdan, Coucou de Rennes and possibly the Cochin! The first true description of the breed came in 1893 and the salmon variation appeared later in 1895. They were bred specifically for meat production but they also produce a good number of eggs so are true dual-purpose birds. They have a broad, square body with small wings, a single upright comb, short neck, a striking beard and muffling. The head is broad and round and the eyes are reddish bay. The pinkish legs are sparsely feathered with the feathering concentrated on the outer toe. They have five toes, the fifth one points upwards.
Behaviour
They are quiet, friendly, gentle birds that can actually become very affectionate towards their keepers and are an ideal breed for children. They are alert, active birds and the hens make very good broodies and mothers. The hens will actually lay prolifically over winter. Chicks grow quickly and develop fast on high quality food and will forage happily from an early age. They thrive in a run and are not good fliers so the fencing doesn’t have to be very high. They are able to cope with damp grass better than chickens with more heavily feathered legs and feet but do suffer badly from Scaly Leg mite which causes terrible irritation to the birds. They require high quality feed to maximise meat production. The cocks can weigh in at around 11lb which makes them very good table birds. The small comb and thick feathering make them ideal for cold conditions. Like many other large breeds of hen, they are prone to being bullied by other hens if kept together with other varieties. They live for around 5-7 years.
Varieties
The breed actually comes in three different types - the original French Faverolles, The German Faverolles and The British type with the following colours - Black, blue (laced), buff, cuckoo, ermine, salmon, white.
Egg Colour: Tinted pinkish brown

COCHIN HISTORY

History
Cochins originated from China in the early 1850s where it was known as the Shanghai or the Cochin-China. The original birds were received by Queen Victoria which led to great popularity for the breed. It was believed that the Chinese bred them with such profuse feathering for filling duvets. The Cochin has no sharp angles and is very rounded in appearance. They are the largest of the heavy breeds and cockerels can weigh in at 12lbs! They are broad birds too and this is enhanced by the enormous amount of feathers that they have. The plumage is soft with short broad feathers.
Behaviour
The Cochins rounded appearance unfortunately affects its health as the birds tend to suffer from metabolism and heart problems which is compounded by their rather lazy lifestyle. They like to be kept on short grass and will not venture onto longer vegetation as this damages the feathers on their feet. They take up remarkably little room and like to be contained with fencing but avoid putting them onto cold, wet grass as youngsters. The profuse leg and foot feathering means that it is best to confine Cochins on wet days when mud becomes a problem and can cause balls of mud to collect under their feet. They do not fly and a 2 foot fence is sufficient to keep them contained. They make excellent broodies because of their calm, maternal nature. They lay quite large eggs but don’t produce many over the year. The chicks are strong when they hatch but take 22 days rather than the usual 21 to emerge. Cochins are friendly, docile chickens and tend to be submissive when kept with more aggressive breeds. They require good quality feed and mature in two years. They make remarkably good pets and a pet Cochin should live between 8-10 years.
Varieties
Black, blue, buff, cuckoo, partridge, grouse and white. The legs are yellow and the ear lobes are red while the eyes are a reddish bay.
Egg Colour: Light brown

THE DUTCH ARE COMING

History
The Dutch bantam or De Hollandse Krielan has been in existence for a long time and first appeared in Britain in the late 1960s. They are upright little birds with short backs, and a high full breast. The wings are fairly large and long and are carried close to the body. The tail is full and well spread with well developed sickles. The comb is single with five serrations and the beak is short, strong and slightly curved. Ear lobes are small and oval shaped while the wattles are short and round. They have four toes and the legs are unfeathered.
Behaviour
Egg production is limited to the summer months and eggs take only 20 days to hatch instead of the usual 21 days for other breeds. They are good layers, good setters, and good broodies. Because of their small size, Dutch females are only capable of covering a small clutch of eggs. The chicks are very active indeed and need good quality chick crumbs to keep up with their appetites. They usually need these for longer than the usual 8 weeks and also require shallow drinkers to prevent them from drowning if they happen to fall in. Dutch bantams are jaunty little birds and need to be protected from the winter weather. They also need good fencing as they are good fliers.
Varieties
Gold partridge, silver partridge or duckwing, yellow partridge or duckwing, blue silver partridge or duckwing, blue yellow partridge or duckwing, blue partridge (blue-red), red shouldered white (pyle), cuckoo partridge (crele), cuckoo, black, white, blue and lavender (pearl grey)
Egg Colour: Tinted

OPEN RANGE VS CONFINED EGGS

Do you know the difference in open range eggs and confined eggs? Not many people do, it sounds good open range chickens running all over. Where do you think the chickens lay their eggs? How long do you think they lay out in the pasture before they are collected? I don’t much care for how they treat caged hens either, but most people have been buying caged eggs for years and they never complained about it. In confined layers they are not fertile eggs, in open range poultry they could be fertile. Open range eggs cost more because you have to hire twice the amount of people to collect the eggs. confined eggs roll down a line for a couple of people to collect.

All confined chicken are only confined to laying for one year. Open range poultry do have a better life to wonder and forage for bugs and grass but both confined and open range both get the same bagged feed. We confine our show poultry for one month prior to shows, they do lay inside. We do not like how confined poultry are treated but we do not think that open range eggs should be dollar or more than confined eggs.How do you now that they are truly open range poultry? We do not. We do know that either of the two are not as fresh as if you had your own egg layers. Their are too many people that want to make a profit from using words like open range or organic or lower cholesterol. Just something for you the people to think about. All we want is for you to think about things and ask yourself which is better for you and your family.

our next show

Connersville Indiana in october will be our next show before we go to the Ohio Nationals hope to see you their

Rest in Peace RJ

This is my son Trey with his bird RJ. RJ was such a great bird. He was our hope of a top prize at the State Fair.

Unfortunately RJ has gone to that little chicken farm in the sky. We believe he had a virus that’s common among poultry that many are born with that eventually claim their lives.

Trey was so devistated - it’s not often I see him cry, but this day I knew something was terribly wrong.

That’s the toughest part about being a farmer