CHAPTER XXVII. 

 EXHIBITING AND JUDGING 



THE MANY advantages which a poultryman or farmer derives 

 from exhibiting his poultry and products will be discussed in the 

 following paragraphs. 



Exhibiting for Pleasure. There are some poultry men who 

 keep a few well-bred birds because of the pleasure they derive 

 from mating and breeding them to a certain standard, for the 

 sake of the competition and the possibility of beating the other 

 fellow. They are usually small breeders, and at the small poultry 

 shows they form the majority of the exhibitors. But whether 

 exhibiting for profit or otherwise, and in order to appreciate the 

 work and to get all he can out of it, the breeder must have some 

 of the enthusiasm in competition which characterizes the true 

 exhibitor for pleasure. 



Profit from Prizes. The profit from prizes, whether cash, 

 cups, or other articles, is an advantage to be considered. The 

 cost of preparing and exhibiting live birds is, as a rule, much 

 greater than the actual value of prizes, yet the satisfaction of 

 having won enhances the value of the prize in a way that cannot 

 be expressed in dollars and cents. In some of the larger shows 

 sweepstake prizes of considerable value are offered and are well 

 worth winning from a monetary point of view. 



Profit from Advertising. Undoubtedly the greatest benefit 

 which can come to an exhibitor is the notoriety which his birds 

 achieve when he is successful in winning some of the leading 

 prizes hi that particular class. It brings his name prominently 

 before prospective purchasers of high-priced birds, which creates 

 a demand, and permits him to place a higher value on each of his 

 individual birds. It makes good advertising matter, material 

 which speaks for itself, and is no mere statement without suf- 

 ficient backing. 



Profit from the Sale of Birds. Another beneficial result of 

 exhibiting is the possibility which it offers of disposing of birds at 

 a price in advance of that obtained without exhibition. The 

 prospective purchaser comes to the show looking for stock for 

 breeding purposes, and the exhibitor goes to the show to exhibit 



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