2023 Logan County Fair

Natalie Palmquist rules the day with her 4-H poultry, but the chicken on the run steals the show

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[August 02, 2023]   At the first official day of the Logan County Fair, 4-H held a poultry show at the livestock show barn. The show kicked off at 8 a.m. on August 1st, with Bill Bree judging the fowl on display. Bree proved extremely knowledgeable on the topic of birds, sharing several facts with the 4-H members who brought their birds for show.

Were you aware that the average chicken has about 10,000 feathers on it? Do you know why show birds are pulled out of their cages and put back in headfirst? It’s to keep the feathers slicked back and looking nice in case they rub up against the cage as they’re moved. These were just a few of the pieces of information Bree shared during the show.

Three young people brought their fowl for show, and while this is less than normal, all of them did a fabulous job.

A young man named Chester Sasse brought one bird for show, a large black chicken. While the chicken didn’t win any ribbons, it did steal the show before the show even began. As Sasse was removing the bird from its crate to move it to one of the show cages, the animal leapt from his arms and ran out of the show barn.



Without a second's hesitation, Sasse ran after the bird, followed by about a third of those in attendance. The bird dashed across the gravel path and into the area where the pigs were being kept. Sasse managed to get a hold of his bird with help from a few others. While this chicken doesn’t have a name yet, it certainly knew how to put on a show.



In the Junior show, Isabelle Hall brought several birds for the show. Bree spent a while inspecting all of them and teaching Hall about what to look for in a good show chicken. At one point, he taught Hall how to tell if a chicken will be a good egg layer. Hall was presented with several ribbons for her fowl.

On the 4-H side, Natalie Palmquist took home all of the large awards with the birds she presented. The awards for Champion Cockerel, Top Poultry Senior Showman, and Champion Chicken were all presented to Palmquist.

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Of the many birds she presented, Palmquist also presented the only duck of the show this year.







These awards were all presented by Dale Maxheimer, in memory of Maxine Maxheimer. Maxine presented the awards for many years before her passing in 2007. Now, her memory and tradition are survived by her son, Dale, and daughter, Teresa Strampp.

[Matt Boutcher]

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