Market Chickens

My daughter raised 3 broiler chickens to take to the 4H/FFA market auction at the fair. When starting this project, the plan was to sell the chickens at auction. First of all, she had to raise more than three. Since we were raising some anyway to sell, the chickens all lived together. Then the day before fair, she chose out the best 8 to wash and clean up. The next afternoon we chose the 3 roosters that were closest in weight and took them to the fair.

There isn't a lot that goes into showing a group of chickens in a market class. There is no pressure on the person showing to perform (unlike the showmanship classes) so all they have to do is stand at the table and make sure the chickens don't get loose.



The judge goes down the table, looking at the chickens, picking them up, looking at the weight papers, and feeling their undersides. Gross. She needed gloves. There were 5 other groups of chickens on the table, 3 of which were ENORMOUS. The top weight limit is 6 pounds (my daughter's were 4.5, 4.5, and 4.75 pounds) and these guys were definitely at the top limit. The others were smaller.

As I mentioned before, the plan was to sell the chickens at auction. Market chickens don't get as much money as a pig or steer, but for the money and time investment they are worth it. The plan, however, did NOT include winning Reserve Champion Market Poultry.



But I am not complaining. It came as such a shock to me I could hardly snap the picture. She looks a little pleased, don't you think? The judge said that my daughter's chickens weren't as fatty as the other FAT chickens and she liked their straight toes. YES!! We must be doing something right.

Along with the lavender rosette ribbon and banner, my daughter won a fancy belt buckle.



Somehow, a belt buckle that looks like it belongs at a horse show doesn't quite look right with chickens on it...


The auction started Saturday afternoon. The champion and reserve champion winners decorate the cages for auction to make their entries stand out:





I had several people ask if my daughter would have trouble selling her chickens--would it upset her too much. Uh...no. It isn't like they are cute fuzzy bunnies, or a beef that she has nurtured for almost a year. It is dinner. Yum.




Maybe next year winning won't be a complete accident.