What do judges look for in show chickens?
Poultry judges are chosen from successful exhibitors after many years of showing success.
Judging poultry is a combination of observation and hands on examination.
Below: Much of a poultry judges time is spent observing the chicken. notice the "tickling stick" for getting chickens to move around in the cage
Judges at registered poultry shows never normally work alone, they have a clerk to keep them informed about the number of birds in each class and to keep records and notes.
What do judges look for when showing chickens or poultry?
The poultry judge will first look for any disqualifications and defects in the bird.
Next, the type is assessed, this is judged mostly, but not exclusively by the silhouette or natural stance of the chicken.
Below: Judges look for a calm, well mannered and clean, well cared for and well bred bird that is a credit to it's class.
How it moves and behaves can be a factor here, for example the Serama should have a specific attitude in the show cage and birds with feathered legs and feet should have well formed clean plumage.
At this stage the judge may use his judging stick to move the bird around in the cage to assess it's movement.
Below: A judge removing the bird from the cage for judging.
The bird will then be taken out of the cage and the judge will check its weight, overall condition of its body and feathers and the general feel of each entry. This is the time they will be looking at the overall standard and condition of the bird.
Condition of a chicken is more than just cleanliness, it is a holistic assessment of the bird and how well it has been looked after and prepared for the show and includes an evaluation of the overall health and vigour of the fowl.
Some birds are not comfortable being handled and flighty or bad tempered birds do not show well as this can indicate a lack of preparation for the show on your part. The birds temperament can often mean the difference when it comes to final position.
How is a chicken or show bird judged?
A chicken, or any show bird, is judged against the standards of perfection for the breed. The worlds first book of poultry standards was published in the UK in 1865 followed by the standards of excellence in the US in 1867.
The criteria for judging poultry is the Scale of Points in the Standard of Perfection.
The scale of points can vary from breed to breed and some characteristics are prioritised over other. With the Serama bantam, for example, there are no points for colour. Recently there has been a movement to standardise the points scale among the breeds.
Although the scale of points varies from country to country and breed to breed, they all generally include:
- Type
- Size
- Condition
- Colour
- Head and wattles
The judge will start with the head and look at the size and shape and will also check the comb quality, eye colour and beak colour.
Below: Here, the judge has removing a bird from the cage, head first if possible, to avoid damage to the feathers. Once removed, the judge checks the eye colour and the head.
Judges will then check the feathers on the body, tail and each wing for colour or pattern defects, condition, and missing feathers as well as any attempt to deceive like plucked feathers.
A judge then checks the feet and legs and toenails for defects.
All along the way, judges may write small bits of information on the coop tag giving points or taking points away, depending on how the bird looks.
Below: Symmetry is important when judging chickens.
Here they are assessing the chicken for balance along it's centre line.