When some students begin their involvement with the poultry judging team, birds are already a part of their lives. For others, it comes later, in unexpected ways.
Kayla Latimer, mother of seventh-grade Oglethorpe County 4-H team member Blane Latimer, recalled her son coming home from practice one afternoon carrying a mysterious box.
“Hey buddy, what’s in your box?” she asked, unsuspecting of its chirping contents.
Blane replied, “It’s my bird.”
“It lived in our garage overnight, and then the next day we went and bought a coop and had, like, 20 chickens,” Latimer said.
A steady supply of fresh eggs aside, Latimer said the real value has been in the lessons that working with animals teaches through 4-H.
“It definitely does wonders for the children as they grow and develop,” she said.
Local 4-H students put these lessons to the test on April 24 as the Oglethorpe County Extension office hosted the fourth of five Area Poultry Judging Contests.
The gravel lot outside was filled with 4-H club vans, each bearing the name of its respective county in signature 4-H emerald green. With so many participants this year from 14 counties, the contest was split into two shifts: one at 1:30 p.m. with 85 competitors, and another at 3:30 p.m. with 65.
Oglethorpe County’s team included Kayden Anderson, Xander Buska, Jameson Duke, Henley Garrett, Blane Latimer, Demarco Martinez and Jayden Svetanoff.
For some, it was their first competition, but there were hardly any first-time jitters.
“Yeah (this is my first poultry competition), but I’ve been to waaaaaay more competitions, like cheer competitions,” said Kayden Anderson, a fifth-grader at Oglethorpe County Elementary School.
Competitors rotated through different sections: evaluating live birds, ready-to-cook quality, broken-out eggs, exterior quality of eggs, candling and poultry parts identification.
Down the hall of the Extension Office, behind closed doors, was one of the more nerve-wracking parts: the “reasons” presentation, where students explained to judges how and why they ranked live hens based on past egg production.
To prepare, participants evaluated a set of four hens caged outside. They appear remarkably similar to the untrained eye, but experienced judges know what to look for.
They took turns handling each bird, checking for signs of past production and future potential.
“They need to pick them up so they can get more details to tell the judge about the bird,” said Marcus Eason, Oglethorpe County’s 4-H agent. “It’s about your presentation and your oral ability, the reasons help them with their public speaking.”
The birds, poultry products and materials judged were provided by the University of Georgia Poultry’s Science Department.
For the department, the contest is a valuable opportunity for participants to see where an interest in poultry could lead professionally.
“Hopefully, they understand just how dynamic and important the poultry industry is for the state of Georgia,” said Casey Ritz, associate department head for the department and extension coordinator. “I mean, yes, it’s a competition, but it also is an opportunity for them to learn more about the variety of job opportunities and everything else that's involved with the poultry industry.”
Eason said students don’t easily forget their time in poultry judging, whether or not it becomes a lifelong passion.
“Some get into the poultry industry, which is really big in this area, some people do nothing with chickens or wildlife as their main job, but they enjoy poultry judging — it always sticks in their head,” he said.
As the competition wrapped up, the Oglethorpe County team reunited in the bleachers over concession stand snacks.
The junior team placed seventh out of 10 teams. The state competition, which will also be held at the Oglethorpe County Extension office, is Friday.
Blane Latimer finished 16th in his category out of 78 competitors, proof that backyard practice pays off, whether it’s planned or not.