Showing Bought Birds

by Clint Robertson

I have touched on this subject before but I have seen many instances lately that have made me want to express some thoughts on the subject. Firstly let me say I have absolutely no problem with a fancier showing a bought bird - any fancier. In fact I like to see good birds shown and we need all the participation we can get at the shows. What I do have a problem with is exhibitors not giving credit to the breeders of the birds they are showing. To me this is disrespectful. I have seen many instances when an exhibitor has shown a bird he has bought and done very well or even won with it and did not bother to mention the breeder was someone else. The exhibitor who leaves out this information is just as bad as the breeder who lies about it. It is simple to include breeder information in the show reports and on the coop cards. All you must do is to put the exhibitors name followed by the breeders name on your entry form as follows: Exhibitor/Breeder.  When the show is over make sure you tell the recording secretary who the breeder was to make sure that info is included in the show reports and when you put a picture of the bird in any publication, or on the internet, make sure you state who the breeder was if it was not bred by yourself.  This shows respect and appreciation to the breeder for what he has done and for the fact that he was willing to share the results of his efforts with you. You have paid for the opportunity to own, breed from and even exhibit the bird but you can never be the breeder. The time, care and skill that has gone into the creation of that bird must never been brushed aside lightly. In reality once any of us sell or give away a bird we no longer have any say in what happens and to think we do is foolish. Now look at it from the breeders side. When a fancier wants birds from you and sometimes wants them badly you want to help out. You - like many others will often dig deep to give a promising fancier quality stock that you have spent a great deal of time, effort and sometimes money to develop. When that fancier shows the birds from you and does well you are thrilled and proud, that is until you realize that fancier failed to tell anyone that you are the breeder. This is a slap in the face to the breeder. Breeders will often quit giving or selling birds to these fanciers or in some cases dramatically increase the prices of the birds. Ideally we all want to breed our own birds to show but this is not always possible. Showing bought birds is fine and I personally encourage it especially in novice fanciers. Just do not forget to give credit to the breeder. After all we are all in this together

Clint Robertson Email: clint@jacobins.ca