Travels of Bourbon Red

Sharon Tepsick of Wildheart Farm in Ezel, Kentucky created this fanciful turkey display to attract visitors to the SPPA table she sets up at poultry shows. She calls him Bourbon Red, the name of an actual turkey color variation.

The Bourbon Red color pattern is a variant of the Standard type, a deeper buff color with white flight feathers. The variation originated in Pennsylvania and traveled with settlers moving west and south. The rich color pattern was finished by breeders in Kentucky and southern Ohio. The name Bourbon Red is now accepted, but they are also called Kentucky Reds and Bourbon Butternuts.

Mrs. Tepsick dresses Bourbon Red in his SPPA t-shirt and stands him up next to her table. A tri-fold tabletop board with photos, articles and other information about rare and historic breeds offers the SPPA's brochure. The brochure includes the updated Critical List of rare chicken breeds and a membership form.

Her sense of humor and good nature support her knowledge and expertise as a poultry breeder. She is one of the stars that make SPPA so special. Thanks, Sharon!

Shipping eggs

Hatching eggs are live embryos. Their natural cycle would be to be laid in a nest and tended by a hen and gently turned daily during 21 days of incubation. In that perfect world, most fertile eggs would hatch.

Eggs aren’t intended to cross the country before they get back under the hen, but shipping eggs is a good way to send stock. It avoids the issues live birds raise, and they don’t cheep or cluck in the post office.

The Welsummer eggs shown here have arrived at their destination and incubation has begun.

The embryo in a fertilized egg that has been promptly collected and, if necessary, cleaned, hasn’t started to develop yet, but the fertilized ovum is very delicate. It can’t stand much jiggling, so securing it in its packaging is important. Eggs should be packed with plenty of soft padding, wide end down. Bubble wrap around each egg works, or plenty of absorbent shavings. The eggs can be secured in an egg carton or some other box that can be protected in another sturdy box.

The sturdy box with the wrapped eggs inside should then be wrapped in bubble wrap, foam or other packing material. This layer cushions the eggs and protects them from excess movement as well as insulating them against extremes of heat and cold.

The wrapped box is then packed into a heavy cardboard shipping box, protected with plenty of bubble wrap, air packs or other protective packing material. Make sure that it is packed firmly enough that the box is not subject to any movement. The less jiggling, the better their chances of hatching are.

Tape the box securely and label it as Live Embryos – Handle With Care – Avoid Shaking and Extreme Temperature Variations. This helps the postal employees know that special handling is required. I’m convinced that they do their best, but they handle hundreds of packages every day and need something to alert them when to special consideration.

An excellent Web site on the subject is Rocking T Ranch and Poultry Farm, http://www.poultryhelp.com/eggpacking.html.

When the eggs arrive, unpack them carefully and inspect them for cracks. Discard the cracked ones. Note which eggs arrived in good condition. They should be marked to identify them as to breed or breeding line. Allow them to rest overnight in a dark place before setting them under a hen or in an incubator.

The number of eggs that hatch divided by the total set is the hatch rate. The breeder who sent you the eggs will appreciate your report of the condition in which the eggs arrived and a follow-up of how well they hatched.

Shipping eggs requires care, but can be the best way to get new stock that isn’t available in your area. It can be successful and is worth the effort.

Florida

I was out of the office for a week, visiting my daughter in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. We had a terrific time, visiting the Everglades and other unique places in this exceptional location.

In this picture, she is feeding a macaw at Jungle Island, http://www.jungleisland.com/, an attraction featuring tropical birds and animals. In addition to exotic and rare critters, Jungle Island has a barnyard petting zoo, with goats, zebu cattle and chickens and turkeys.

They have some White Crested Black Polish and Bronze and Narragansett turkeys. I stopped by to share my book with the management and invite the institution to become a member of SPPA. Many zoos and living history museums are members.

SPPA members are always available to help create interpretive materials to help the public enjoy the variety and beauty of poultry.

Prizewinning City Chickens video

This delightful video, Chickens in the City, http://www.christieherring.com/chickens/index.html, was one of the ten winners of the Independent Lens Online Shorts Festival.

Thanks to filmmaker Christie Herring for focusing her camera on this subject and doing such a delightful job!

Dutch Connection

Andrea Heesters, who lives in The Netherlands, has kept me and the SPPA informed of poultry news in Europe as the Avian Influenza problems have unfolded. She shared her story of vaccinating her geese and chickens last year. The birds were vaccinated again this past week, as cases of H5N1 are identified in Europe.

The vet comes to her property and vaccinates the birds with Gallimune flu H5N9 from Merial. In the picture aboved, he is vaccinating one of their Black Orpington bantams, held by Andrea's daughter.

In the U.S., the USDA forbids small flock owners from protecting their birds with vaccine. The agency's justification is that it needs to stockpile the vaccine so that it will be available in the event of an outbreak.

Since the vaccine requires two immunizations two weeks apart, by the time an outbreak is identified, it would be too late for many flocks.

Andrea is tireless in her support of poultry, geese in particular. Look for another article about her experiences managing Geese in the City in the August/September issue of Backyard Poultry magazine.

She has added this site to her poultry links pages, both in English, http://www.buffganzen.nl/html_uk/links.html, and in Dutch, http://www.buffganzen.nl/html_nl/links.html.

Thanks, Andrea!

SPPA Brochure

This is the season for county and state fairs. They are great places to see exciting and beautiful poultry and make contact with breeders. I love attending shows and fairs, such as the Greater California Society of Poultry Fanciers Show in Fresno. The SPPA banner hangs above my information table in the center of the picture above.

Many of the exhibitors are SPPA members, and several have contacted me for brochures to offer to interested visitors and fellow breeders who are not already members. Ask around.

If you don't find one in person, email me and I will be happy to send you one.

The new brochure has a partial list of Old and Rare breeds. Some breeds are old, dating back prior to the 20th century, some are rare, having few breeding flocks, and some are both old and rare. Some old breeds continue to have enough advocates that populations are doing well.

The brochure has contact information for the officers and a membership application. You can also join through this site.

Helpful Chicken DVD

Phil Bartz, long-time SPPA member and poultry judge, was featured on WSEC-TV’s Illinois Stories in January. The popular Public Broadcasting System weekly local show is hosted by Mark McDonald.

Mr. McDonald interviewed Mr. Bartz about the basics of chickens and poultry breeding. Mr. Bartz explained about the difference between four- and five-toed chickens, using his Dorkings and Spanish as examples. He showed the difference between large fowl and bantams. He held incubated eggs up to a light to demonstrate candling and show the difference between a developing embryo and a dud.

In the picture above, judge Butch Gunderson demonstrates how a judge examines a chicken's head on a Buff Cochin pullet.

Phil did me the honor of inviting me to be interviewed along with him. I discussed the SPPA and the suitability of historic breeds for small flock owners.

We were blessed with mild weather following a severe storm that knocked out power to most of Central Illinois for the taping. A DVD of the program is available through the web site, http://www.networkknowledge.tv/resources/transcripts.htm.

Phil did such a great job of explaining what judges are looking for as well as general information about poultry that this DVD makes a great educational video. It's a valuable addition to our resources.