25. Feeding, hamsters, showing?

Thank you for the compliment.  As you get older you are going to find out/realize  that you are, and are going to be and have the potential to be much smarter then I.   I love you and this blog is just wonderful.

 Here is a weird question but how often do the chickens and goats need to be fed? They eat all day long actually, but we just give them food in the morning and the evening.

 

Ok, so I asked Lauren this morning if she has any question she wanted to ask you.  She asks, are snakes harmful to hamsters?  And would a hamster be safe in a running ball on your ranch?  Haha, love her!!! Haha! Yes, snakes are very harmful to hamsters. Garter snakes aren't but Bull snakes definitely are. A hamster would probably be safe in a running ball, as long as it didn't roll into a pond or something.

 

I want to know more about showing the chickens.  What does it really mean to win first for showing a chicken? Chickens: Winning first or champion would mean that it was the best representative of it's breed. So, say you were showing a silkie. To win first it would have to have the correct toe spacing, the right coloring/variety and pattern of feathers(so a blue would have to be very fluffy and plain blue without any other color spots or something), a good crest(the feathers on it's head), etc. Goats: For goats it's basically the same. However, at our fair all the breeds are judged together. So, the judge can't pick the best Nubian, the best Alpine, etc. They will pick the goat that looks as though it would be the best milker or breeding animal. This is determined by their health, condition, and body shape.

 Does that make your chickens and their products more valuable?  Chickens: Yes, in a way. The chicken would sell for more and one of the things they are judged on is their body shape and health. A healthy chicken will be a better layer than a sickly one. Goats: Yes, because when buying a goat you try to get a good milker most likely.

What exactly do you do to show a chicken?  i.e.  How do you show a chicken?  I have those questions about showing animals about the goats as well. Chickens: To show a chicken we first prepare it. That means bathing and cleaning it. Then we take it to fair and it stays in a crate while being judged. The judge walks by and examines the chicken and sometimes will take it out to look more closely. Showmanship is different. That is when one holds the chicken and shows it to the judge. It is based more on how you show it than what the chicken looks like. Goats: Showing a goat is way different than chickens. You have to walk it around a ring, stopping it when the judge says to do so and then positioning it(more on this in my video). Also, you do basically the same stuff during showmanship, but you're being judged, not the goat.

 

·         Happy that you like my fun facts. Henry IV said “I want there to be no peasant in my kingdom so poor that he cannot have a chicken in his pot every Sunday” 

·      In 1928 the republican party campaign slogan was "A chicken in every pot" Haha! Woah!

kk