Show Career Highlights

Olivia and I have particularly eagle-eyes when it comes to the Poultry scene so deciding on my show career highlights has been difficult but here goes ..

I’m going to kick this off with a personal favourite.. and I would like to make a big shout-out to the man in this story. For a bit of context to get the ball rolling, at the end of each showing day everyone gathered around for the Prize Ceremony (never had the honour myself but you know, I’m over it ;) ) They gave out all the prizes, and last but not least, ‘Best in Show goes to…’ – now the man who stepped forward had styled his hair to the exact description of Sonic the Hedgehog, a craft in itself surely? Yet, in stark contrast to his spiked locks was a single piece of wood-shaving presumably, ‘accidently’ attaching itself to his head as he commuted from one end of the barn to the other. Photographs were also taken once a prize was awarded. I really hope that man framed that picture because if anything, the core strength of that little piece of sawdust to balance so perfectly, deserves that note of respect.

In a close 2nd was when I washed my young buff Orpington hen in Pantene Pro-V; only the best for a fabulous bird. I had entered her into the Junior’s category where they encouraged exhibitors to stick around and watch the judging to pick up useful tips.. The judges came round to my pullet’s cage, they lifted her out and for some reason (secretly I thought who could resist Pantene) he sniffed her. But to my surprise he pulled a face and said something along the lines of ‘bad quality bird’. I have to be honest here, this may be incorrect as I’d erased the comment from my memory, as you can imagine an 8 year old not taking a negative comment too well... but I clearly remember our homebound trip to the Sainsbury’s Garage and being very annoyed indeed. Maybe that judge preferred the aroma of damp chicken over the enriching scent of a well-known shampoo brand; each to their own I suppose.

Last but certainly not least came the people of the Poultry Showing Scene. You really can’t beat the quality of personalities and characters. I’m going to put them into little cliques which certainly do ‘stick to the status quo’ [High School Musical, can’t remember the year]. You’ve got the youth culture.. consisting of roughly two families that cleaned out the Junior & Juvenile category prizes (boo-hoo & single tear to Chicken Corner). Then came the supportive adults, generally parents who were both complacent and deeply enthused by the fact their child had chosen such an unusual past-time. The population division largely belonged to the respected-elders clique. Normally, elderly ladies and gentleman who had retired and were truly passionate about maintaining a clear breed standards journal. I can’t say there was a clear hierarchy, although the committee had prestige and lest us forget the man who sold paintings at the left-hand side, who in my humble opinion was a pretty big name.

Now, maybe it was because we were too busy people-watching to notice that in fact, we hadn’t done very well in competition (this is a lie, I knew I’d done badly) but it was worth every minute of my Seasonal Show Sunday afternoons.

Bye chicks x

Written: 15th November 2017

Chicken Corner Communication

Many of you may think that chickens all sound the same, and their communication with one another is a chorus of monotonous clucking, but I’m here to shed, just a bit of light, on the complex chatting of Chicken Corner and how to interpret the different noises. Lets go…

Cock-a-doodle-do

No two cockerel’s crows are the same, and the bigger the bird, the lower the pitch; as I’m sure you can imagine a bantam Pekin has a painfully high pitched screech.

Pottering About

When searching for food and foraging, chickens have general chit-chatter amongst themselves. This consists of frog-ribbets, higher toned purring and an odd clutch here or there. I guess it’s the equivalent of us singing or humming as we go about our daily business.

Discovery!

When a cockerel finds something of interest, he simply has to tell his girls! They make very short clucking noises whilst bobbing their heads up and down, scratching at the ground and picking up bits and dropping them .. and like a true gentleman; always lets his females eat first.

Surprise, Surprise!

When surprised but not threatened they make a long, high pitched whining noise from the back of their throat. This spreads like a domino effect among Chicken Corner and before I know, its like being in a frog’s pond!

Danger Danger, high voltage!

This is most popularly associated with chickens, when people do an impression of a chicken this is the call they make. Danger calls spread across the whole group and its very difficult to stop, which is most annoying because its incredibly loud.

Mating Ritual

For the cockerel, this is a mixture of alerting the hen’s attention by acting like there is something extremely interesting at her feet (usually a mini twig). He’ll then do a little dance around the female, swinging either clock or anti – clockwise around her with the outerwing stretched out, as if to cup her into a little circle. The majority of the time this courtship is unsuccessful and the female runs off.

Broody Hen

This is very distinctive and you know if you’ve disturbed a broody’s nest! They are inclined to puff out their feathers, this has the indirect effect of also deterring the male as he leaves her alone. In Essence, everything a broody hen does is amplified!

Mother Hen

Its actually very similar action to the cockerel Discovery call but at a higher pitch. This attracts the attention of her chicks which only they respond to as her individual call is engrained in them at a very early age .. within a couple of days actually!

Lost Soul Mates

Chickens are like us humans, as we like having familiar faces around and don’t like new environments. However, if they are separated for some reason, they pine after eachother. Its kind of a purring noise – low and monotone; to really get their emotions across..

Bye chicks x

Written: 3rd November 2017

A Showing Memoir

Something that made a huge impact on Chicken Corner and was the basic motivator for its existence was the Poultry Showing Scene. All of us Rainey girls at one point or another, had been members of the Norfolk Poultry Club and my 10 year anniversary back in 2014 was celebrated by quitting (whilst I was ahead), kind of like Usain Bolt.. However I never got the championship and true to form, finished the career on a solid, if less than satisfying, 3rd.

But don’t get me wrong, although the characters of Chicken Corner were never selected for championship row… they came very close, picking up prizes in the ‘Best Decorated Egg’ category… I knew my stuff when it came to that. No, really they did do well, with many rosettes (which were particularly good) snapped up in a range of breed classes.

But in general Chicken Corner’s showing reputation when a little bit like this …

Back in the day, Olivia (Vice-Manager and Vice-Director) showed her white call ducks. She had bred a particularly fantastic female named Anna Magdelaina; perfect proportions, small beak and a good nature. This duck was taken to countless seasonal shows and featured on the championship row a number of times… Having reached stardom, it might be said Olivia lost her passion for the whole endeavour but my plight continued.

My excitement would begin with the arrival of each new entry form through the post. This marked the formal ritual consisting of traipsing around Chicken Corner to see which birds would make the cut. The select few were transferred into the big shed, which they would inhabit for about 3 weeks. Everyday they were caught and held, making them tame(r) and hopefully keeping them clean. They would be washed, and the finishing touches would take from roughly 8 a.m. until 10p.m. It was a hectic lifestyle but Chicken Corner ran on adrenaline!

It was then up to the judges to decide their fate; this would be found out around 3pm the next day. More than I would care to admit, my efforts were not rewarded and that’s fine, it’s a cut-throat world. But the hardest element was when my attainments were compared to Olivia’s with her call duck. Olivia would catch her duck the day before, actually that’s incorrect, it was the night before. She placed her in a bowl and like a standard duck who loves water, would wash herself. Can’t be denied, Olivia did out-do herself when she brought out the toothbrush to clean Anna’s feet and beak… Olivia’s minimal efforts resulted in ‘Best Waterfowl in Show’.

Chicken Corner’s Showing years therefore, provided me with a vital life lesson from a young age. Effort doesn’t always equal success… at least that’s what I felt at the time. In hindsight, it was a character-building experience and I believe it would have won the nation’s hearts without a doubt.

Bye chicks x

Written: 26th October 2017