BREEDS
American Poultry Association Judge John Monaco examines a Black Old English female.
Photos by Christine Heinrichs
Navigating the Showroom Layout
Basic Understanding of Poultry Shows
By Norma Padgett, APA President
When you first walk into a poultry show, understanding the showroom layout can be overwhelming. If you are showing birds, knowing where to start looking for cages can take your stress to new heights. Understanding poultry shows comes with time but knowing the showroom layout before you even enter the building can help you feel a little more prepared to enter your first poultry show.
How It’ s All Laid Out
Poultry shows, big and small, are generally open to three types of fowl recognized by the American Poultry Association and the American Bantam Association. Turkeys and waterfowl are shown, but chickens are by far the most common type of fowl at most shows.
It may appear at first glance that there are wall-towall chickens in no particular order. However, someone has worked hard to organize the birds. The pattern may not be apparent, but once you start understanding poultry shows, it will begin to make sense.
Large Fowl( Big), Bantam( Small), Waterfowl, Turkey, Guinea
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 small birds are known as bantam, and the larger birds are referred to as large fowls. Waterfowl come in both sizes as you will see in the classes below. A few types of birds come only in large fowl or just in bantam, but many can be either. 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
10 Fall 2024 www. chickenwhisperermagazine. com