Friday, September 5, 2008

Funky Chickens

Labor Day weekend in Washington County, Ohio means the Washington County Fair, which provides the best opportunity all year to view obscure breeds of domestic chickens. These birds are raised by local farmers and 4-H kids and brought to the fair to compete for prizes. They live for the five days of the fair in small cages suspended at about waist height. Below the cages, piles of poop-absorbing sawdust are scattered (and blessedly changed regularly).

Every year we spend an hour or more looking at the chickens. Sometimes the notion of keeping some chickens on our farm rises in our brains. Then the reality of our coon-and-possum-and-weasel-filled woods settles in and we decided it's better just to enjoy these lovely beasts vicariously.

Here are some of this year's best-looking cluckers.

The poultry barn houses chickens, ducks, geese, turkeys, and rabbits, too.

Dig the feet on this rooster!

All puffed up and ready to crow.


I think this Escher-print chicken is a barred rock, but I could be wrong.


This guy reminds me of Foghorn Leghorn.



Some of the color combinations are very pleasing. But how do they taste? Just like chicken!


I think I know where Tina Turner got the inspiration for her hairstyle.


This looks more like fur than feathers.


Moptop.


Let's see your eyes. Yeah, baby!


This bird reminds me of the tropical guans and tinamous.
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10 comments:

  1. Michelle TechSeptember 5, 2008 at 1:39 PM

    I had a flock once for their beauty and for the great-tasting colored eggs (not that the color of the shell changes the taste!). In fact, I had a pair of those Tina Turners and their names were...Ike and Tina! You're right though, when you live in or near the woods, it's less heartbreaking to just view them at the fair. I lost all of mine to wild critters and mostly people's loose dogs.

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  2. KyleSeptember 5, 2008 at 4:45 PM

    I would swear one of those chickens was actually a llama!

    Before I even saw your caption, I thought, "That, I say, that looks like Foghorn Leghorn!" I have to disagree with you on the Tina Turner hen, tho. Looks more like Phyllis Diller to me...

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  3. NCmountainwomanSeptember 5, 2008 at 10:35 PM

    How I love county fairs. I always visit the chickens and rabbits first.

    Love the funky chickens. After your adventures giving us pictures of difficult birds to shoot, it must be relaxing to shoot them in cages. And you captured the correct end every time.

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  4. Desert SurvivorSeptember 6, 2008 at 6:17 PM

    Great captions! Some of those chickens have amazing hairdos--oops, I mean featherdos.

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  5. Julie ZickefooseSeptember 7, 2008 at 11:48 AM

    M.C. Escher hen: Silver Sebright. Foghorn is a Barred Rock.

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  6. MarySeptember 10, 2008 at 10:10 PM

    Funky and trendy, Yes! LOL! They got their groove on.

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  7. ConnieSeptember 13, 2008 at 9:08 PM

    The one you thought was a Barred Rock is actually a Silver-Laced Wyandotte, and the "Foghorn" bird is a Barred Rock! Nice Birds!

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  8. Shina WillsonFebruary 18, 2011 at 6:53 AM

    wow! sweet pictures!

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  9. AnonymousMarch 1, 2012 at 10:46 AM

    the one that looks like a barred rock is actually a Silver Laced Wyandotte. Barred rocks have the stripes while Silver Laced Wyandotte's have white feathers with black edges that makes them look sort of like scales.

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  10. AnonymousJuly 12, 2012 at 9:48 AM

    I think that the "Barred Rock" chicken you have showing is actually a silver spangled Hamburg. Beautiful birds!

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