Spanish fowls should be kept in confinement for some days before the show, with just enough light to enable them to feed and perch, and the place should be littered with clean straw. This greatly improves their condition; why we know not, but it is an established fact. Game fowls should be kept in for a few days, and fed on meal, barley, and bread, with a few peas, which tend to make the plumage hard, but will make them too fat if given freely. Dark and golden birds should be allowed to run about till they have to be sent off. Remove all scurf or dead skin from the comb, dry dirt from the beak, and stains from the plumage, and wash their legs clean. White and light fowls that have a good grass run and plenty of clean straw in their houses and yards to scratch in, will seldom require washing, but town birds, and country ones if not perfectly clean, should be washed the day before the show with tepid water and mild white soap rubbed on flannel, care being taken to wash the feathers downwards, so as not to break or ruffle them; afterwards wiped with a piece of flannel that has been thoroughly soaked in clean water, and gently dried with soft towels before the fire; or the bird may be entirely dipped into a pan of warm water, then rinsed thoroughly in cold water, wiped with a flannel, and placed in a basket with soft straw before a fire to dry. They should then be shut up in their houses with plenty of clean straw. They should have their feet washed if dirty, and be well fed with soft nourishing food just before being put into the travelling-basket, for hard food is apt to cause fever and heat while travelling, and, having to be digested without gravel or exercise, causes indigestion, which ruffles the plumage, dulls its colour, darkens the comb, and altogether spoils the appearance of the bird. Sopped or steeped bread is excellent.
The hampers should always be round or oval in form, as fowls invariably creep into corners and destroy their plumage. They should be high enough for the cocks to stand upright in, without touching the top with their combs. Some exhibitors prefer canvas tops to wicker lids, considering that the former preserve the fowls' combs from injury if they should strike against the top, while others prefer the latter as being more secure, and allowing one hamper to be placed upon another if necessary, and also preserving the fowls from injury if a heavy hamper or package should otherwise be placed over it. A good plan is to have a double canvas top, the space between being filled with hay. A thick layer of hay or straw should be placed at the bottom of the basket. Wheaten straw is the best in summer and early autumn, and oat or barley straw later in the year and during winter. A good lining also is essential; coarse calico stitched round the inside of the basket is the best. Ducks and geese do not require their hampers to be lined, except in very cold weather; and the best lining for them is made by stitching layers of pulled straw round the inside of the basket. Turkeys should have their hampers lined, for although they are very hardy, cold and wet damage their appearance more than other poultry. Take care that the geese cannot get at the label, for they will eat it, and also devour the hempen fastenings if within their reach.
Be very careful in entering your birds for exhibition; describe their ages, breed, &c., exactly and accurately, and see yourself to the packing and labelling of their hampers.
Mr. F. Wragg, the superintendent of the poultry-yard of R. W. Boyle, Esq., whose fowls have a sea voyage from Ireland besides the railway journey, and yet always appear in splendid condition and "bloom," ties on one side of the hamper, "near the top, a fresh-pulled cabbage, and on the other side a good piece of the bottom side of a loaf, of which they will eat away all the soft part. Before starting, I give each bird half a tablespoonful of port wine, which makes them sleep a good part of the journey. Of course, if I go with my birds, as I generally do, I see that they, as well as myself, have 'refreshment' on the road."[2] The cabbage will always be a treat, and the loaf and wine may be added for long journeys.
Birds are frequently over-fed at the show, particularly with barley, which cannot be properly digested for want of gravel and exercise; and therefore, if upon their return their crops are hard and combs look dark, give a tablespoonful of castor oil; but if they look well do not interfere with them. They should not have any grain, but be fed sparingly on stale bread soaked in warm ale, with two or three mouthfuls of tepid water, for liquid is most hurtful if given in quantity. They should not be put into the yard with the other fowls which may treat them, after their absence, as intruders, but be joined with them at night when the others have gone to roost. On the next day give them a moderate allowance of soft food with a moderate supply of water, or stale bread sopped in water, and a sod of grass or half a cabbage leaf each, but no other green food; and on the following day they may have their usual food.
When the fowls are brought back, take out the linings, wash them, and put them by to be ready for the next show; and after the exhibition season, on a fine dry day, wash the hampers, dry them thoroughly, and put them in a dry place. Never use them as quiet berths for sick birds, which are sure to infect them and cause the illness of the next occupants; or as nesting-places for sitting hens, which may leave insects in the crevices that will be difficult to eradicate.
In our descriptions of the various Breeds, we have given sufficient general information upon the Exhibition Points from the best authorities; but considerable differences of opinion have been expressed of late years, and eminent breeders dissent in some cases even from the generally recognised authority of the popular "Standard of Excellence." We, therefore, advise intending exhibitors to ascertain the standards to be followed at the show and the predilections of the judges, and to breed accordingly, or, if they object to the views held, not to compete at that exhibition.
TECHNICAL TERMS.
Coverts.—The upper and lower wing coverts are those ranges of feathers which cover the primary quills; and the tail coverts are those feathers growing on each side of the tail, and are longer than the body feathers, but shorter than those of the tail.