Bridgeton pioneer., 1913-11-13
SHOW. BIRDS
IN TRAINING
Interesting Subject in Con-
nection With Show.
NOT GENERALLY KNOWN
Long Preparation and Great Care
NecessaryIto Win Poultry
Prizes These Times.

In two weeks thousands of dollars
worth of prize poultry will be in the
show room and hundreds of poultry
fanciers and admirers of prize stock
will be crowding the 10th annual show
of the South Jersey Poultry Associa-
ton. 1t is in the show room that the
crowning glory and the fruits of the
fancier's labors are demonstrated, and
those who just keep chickens" and
wno gather their eggs" if there are
any, stand lost in admiration of the
beauty of the show bird and often
wonder why these prize winners are
so much more attractive than the poul-
try in the average chicken yard.
THE fancier must be familiar with
the requirements in the American
standard of perfection" said a member
OF the show committee, $50 that he
can select those specimens that will
have the best chance of winning 1t is
advisable to select more than the ex-
act number you intend to exhibit, and
the males and females should be sep
arated. If the cockerels have been
running together all along, they can
be placed in the same pen. The show
specimens should have separate run
and part of the house to themselves,
hoI eha,,1J hr foI
more carefully than the rest of the
flock.
"The cockerel or pullets not fully
feathered should be placed in exhibi-
ton coops at night, and given Feed
of bread soaked in milk They will
soon learn to eat by lamplight. The
days are short and the lapse between
the evening and the morning meal is
too long for quick development 1t is
surprising how fast they develop in a
few weeks under this treatment. 1t is
essential to keep the feathers as clean
as possible, and to prevent the fowls
from breaking them. A few broken
feathers in wing or tail will cut the
bird several points.
"Coops similar to the exhibition
coop should be constructed in the
poultry house, and the fowl should be
trained and made familiar with the
confinement of the coop, and encour-
aged to appear to the best advantage
in it. The feeding and the training for
one month before they are sent to the
exhibition is an important matter. The
fowls should be fed with a view to de-
veloping their new feathers as fast as
possible, and also to increase their
weight. They should have a variety
Of food. If fed upon the same kind of
food they soon lose their appetites.
Soft food occasionally results in
length and abundance Of feathering
Exhibition birds should be fed a
great amount of soft food, although it
should not form an exclusive diet.
Corn and wheat, either raw or boiled,
are nourishing foods and should be fed
daily. Animal food, such as beef
scraps and ground green bone, should
also be given. Besides being excep-
tionally good in Fastening the growth
of feathers, it imparts an increased
life and vigor to the fowls. Linseed
meal, added sparingly TO the soft food,
will give the feathers an increased
gloss, and will regulate the system
Frequently the amateur sends his
birds to the show room that have new
er seen an exhibition coop. Such birds
are wild and in nervous condition,
and the Judge is unable to see the nat
ural and typical carriage of the fowl.
Specimens for the show should be
placed in the home coops frequently
(not continually and they should be
handled like the judge handles them.
They should be taught to stand, move
about in the coop in the proper atti-
tude, and to appear well. The best
and most convenient time to do this
training is at night. One by one the
fowls are lifted from the perch and
placed in the training coop. They are
not as wild at night as they are in the
day time, because the house is dark
and the light of the lantern does not
confuse them. Birds are more docile