Showing posts with label show. Show all posts
Showing posts with label show. Show all posts

Friday, January 20, 2012

Shows- Part 4!!!

Just when you thought I had forgotten about them...more show pics as promised!!
The show in Indiana was huge and I have 
posted quite a few chicken pics in the last posts but now is the time for waterfowl and turkeys. So our lesson today is on Ducks, Geese and Turkeys.

Male ducks usually have a curl in their tail feathers whereas the females don't. Also most male ducks can't quack, they make a hoarse hissing sound. So when you hear ducks making a lot of noise you know it is a group of ladies!



 The Cayuga ducks are really neat. They are a medium sized duck and are black but have a green sheen to them. They are really beautiful because they seem to shimmer.


 This is a cute little Call duck. they are very small and very sweet BUT they are noisy. QUACK QUACK all the time.


 This is a beautiful Male Mandarin Duck. They are also quite small.
 Most ducks squat on the ground but not these guys. They like to perch. 
They lay their eggs in a cavity of a tree and after hatching the hen calls to the ducklings to get them to jump out and head to the water.

 This is one of the few breeds of duck where the male helps raise the young.  After the ducklings have hatched he meets up with them in the water and scouts about to keep them safe. 
Obviously due to the colouring of these birds they don't have the greatest survival rate in the wild.

 They are beautiful ducks.


This is a Pomeranian goose pair.


 This one wants to sleep.


 A Chinese goose hissing at me to go away


  A big low to the ground Toulouse goose


 These geese have long wavy feathers and look very messy! 
They are called Sebastopol geese.


 This guy with the big floppy dewlap on his neck is called an African goose.


 A small portion of the geese in this building. With all the waterfowl in this building it was very hard to hear as they quack non stop.


My nephews favourite duck breed is the Muscovy. This duck was the most beautiful dove grey colour with a little mohawk of feathers on the top of it's head. They are a crested breed that also like to perch.


This is a  huge male Muscovy. These guys get really big and the males grow the red bumps all over their face


 These ducks are amazing at pest control and eat hundreds of bugs. They are great on a farm to keep down the fly and mosquito populations. 
They lay alot of eggs, fly well and their meat is almost fat free. Not greasy like other ducks. They also make great pets.


 This is a Muscovy with a Runner duck standing behind it. I use to breed Runner ducks. They look like bowling pins.



 A big turkey..gobble gobble





The things on their noses inflate as they breathe, I found it quite fascinating..yes I need to get a life! I had to look up what all the the red fleshy stuff on was called and here is what I found.

The male turkey has a red fleshy gobble hanging from its neck. It also has a red-pink growth on its head called a carbuncle and a long fleshy growth called a snood at the base of its bill.

So that it for now..next time we start into the rabbits!!!!!

Friday, December 16, 2011

Shows- Part 3

Today we will have a lesson in different chicken breeds, there are a few I don't know so if you recognize them speak up.. Most of the pictures are of roosters because as with most birds the roos are more impressive.These are the last of the chicken pictures. I'm sure you are giving a sigh of relief, but I still have TONS of waterfowl and rabbits and even a few cats!

Standard Black Cochin Rooster
This is a BIG bird. They are very placid by nature and very popular. There are 2 sizes. Standard (large) and Bantam (small). Cochins come in both sizes and many colours. I like them and use to own a big fellow like this guy.


Mille Fleur d'Uccle Bantam Rooster
 These little guys are really cute with their beards and red colours.


Porcelain d'Uccle Booted Bearded bantam Rooster
These little guys are well known for their beautiful colours and long feathered feet.


Standard Leghorn Rooster
The leghorn is the egg layer used in factory farming. Pretty boy.


 
 There are also different combs on chickens. This black fellow has a single comb. The comb is the red thingy on their head.


Sicilian Buttercup comb
If you look carefully you will see that this guy's comb is like a flower. It has 2 sides and opens up.


Black Bantam Rose comb
The rose comb looks like a little robin hood hat!

Sweet Bantam Rose Comb Hen
I think this hen is as pretty as the rooster.


Bantam Silver Laced Sebright

Bantam Silver Laced Sebright Hen

The Sebright comes in different colours but I like these the best. They have a rose comb and are different from all other chickens in that the males and females exactly the same feathering.


These two are also bantams and have the rose comb but I can't remember what breed they are. They are pretty though.

Bantam Rooster
Not sure what breed this little guy is but he is really showy!

Sumatra Rooster-Standard
The Sumatra breed is rare. Their tails grow quite long and they carry themselves quite proudly. They closely resemble their ancestors the jungle fowl. They have a pea comb..it looks like a wad of red gum stuck to their heads. They also have multiple spurs (extra spikes) on their legs. Like the silkie they have black skin and black bones.

Yokohama Rooster
This is another rare bird. The Yokohama. They have a walnut comb and have very long plumage. I wish I had taken more pics of the sumatras and this guy. They are so elegant.

Game Breed
These chickens are really interesting. They have llloooonnnggg legs and some of the roosters have their combs dubbed for showing. Dubbed is a nice way of saying they cut the comb off. Ouch. Fighting birds always have their combs removed so the other rooster can't grab hold of it. These birds are not used for fighting but it is similar to docking a dogs tail.

I think they look like they are standing on stilts. They were very interested in everything going on around them and were always sticking their heads in the camera lens.lol



The people behind us dyed their birds with food colouring and they sold more silkies for more money than most. It does not bother the birds. The pink one looks like cotton candy!

Finally my fave of the show. This hen was so curious about me and the camera. I have a ton of great pics of her but leave you with 2 of the funnier ones. This is a Cornish game hen. The little guys you see in the supermarket. They have the thickest legs I've seen on a bird.

Cornish Game Hen

Who is watching who????
I hope you enjoyed my little lesson. Next time we have Ducks and Geese..

Wednesday, December 7, 2011

Shows!!! Part 2

So to continue on with my rabbit, chicken and cat show series I found that all the traveling, moving around and excitement really tires these animals out.

As everybody in the world knows since I never shut up about it..I have no camera ...so Mr B let me use his little point and shoot. This turned out to be a good thing. The little lens fit right through the bars of the cage and I tuned off the flash and beeps. I was able to get a few good pics.

So when you are at a show you have to come up with many different ways to get a few minutes of sleep.

Baby New Zealand Rabbits
 These young New Zealands find taking turns napping in a group setting works for them. This is the only place in the show where you find rabbits together. They are babies in the Meat Pen class.

French Lop
This French Lop uses his ear to rest on..very clever I say. There are different types of Lops. A lop is a rabbit with hanging ears. There are Mini Lops, French Lops, Holland Lops, Velveteen Lops , Giant Lops and others I can't think of right now. I have trouble telling most of them apart. So we will just call them Lops :)


Flemish Giant
Some like this Flemish Giant just flop right out, keeping his toy close by.

He is really out for the count!!

Lop
This little  Lop was trying to stay awake but finally gave up.

Nankin
This little Nankin hen sleeps with one eye open.


Nankin

ChickChick PeepPeep conked out after his big best of breed win


Silkie

George the Silkie rooster caught a few winks here and there.

Belgian Hare
This Belgian Hare was stretching after sleeping in this pic. Looks like he woke up on the wrong side of the bed! The Belgian Hare is an endangered Breed and this was the first time I have ever seen one. There will be way more about this breed in another post soon!!


This black hen looks dead but is actually stretched out sound asleep!

French Lop
To bright with all the lights??? Then cover your eyes with your ears. Works great for this French Lop.


Sometimes you have to sleep standing up.


Lop
This little lop slept in a corner


Puff up and make yourself big then maybe people will let you sleep!


Netherland Dwarf

This little Netherland Dwarf is so tired. These guys are little rabbits with huge eyes and short ears. Adorable!

Flemish Giant

Mr Flemish giant just flops out. These are huge rabbits weighing up to 20 lbs. I use to own one named Rupert and they are very sweet and docile.

Lop

This little lop seems to be saying Should I sleep or not??

Lop
What a face!!

Lop
This guy looks super tired.

Mini Rex
Another wiped out bunny. This is a Mini Rex and they have a velvet like fur that is super soft to the touch. A great breed.

Hairless Sphinx
Hey..this is not a rabbit or a chicken..oh yeah..the cat show. I think i woke him up.

Persian
Open your eyes, come on you can do it. This guys head kept bobbing up and down!

Mini Rex
Another velvet bunny taking a nap.

Mille Fleur

Mille Fleur
This Mille Fleur Hen certainly is beautiful.




Too much going on?? Just stick your head in the cup and all will go away. Part Ostrich maybe??

New Zealand
Finally the best of all..who needs a pillow????