4-H’ers test skills raising chicks

By CHARLES W. JOHNSON / News Editor for the Southern Standard

Local 4-H’er Kane Fuqua is pictured with one of the Grand Champion chickens he nurtured from a chick. Kane returned six of the animals to be judged which were later auctioned off to pay for chicks next year. (Charles W. Johnson photo)

Local 4-H’ers got to hear the patter of little chicken feet this year as a number of young members of the organization took part in the Chick Chain, a yearly project where they are given baby chicks, raise them for several months, and then are judged for their progress at a special auction.

Extension agent and 4-H leader Michael Barry says the program has been around for quite awhile.

“We’ve done it forever here,” Barry said. “We do it every year. The way it works is they get baby chickens, they come in the mail here the first week of April and they’re a day old. They get 25 apiece and they’re in charge of everything. They provide the feed, shelter and water, and a little love and attention for them for about five months. They grow from little babies all the way up to egg-laying size in that amount of time.”

Once the chickens have reached a certain level of maturity, the participants bring them for a friendly competition.

“They bring six of them,” Barry said. “They take six of their best ones, and bring them to the sale.”

The auction helps support the program.

“When they get them from me they’re free,” Barry said. “I give them to the kids, and it doesn’t cost them anything, and their obligation is to bring six of them back. I take the money from the auction and use that to buy chickens for the next year, and they get to keep the rest of them for themselves.”

The program thus provides a little introduction into agri-business for the kids.

“They’ll let them lay eggs, or a lot of them will sell them,” Barry said. “Some of them get a little egg-selling operation going, a little entrepreneurship.”

This year’s Grand Champion ribbon went to Kane Fuqua, while Reserve Champion was awarded to Gauge Rambo.

Barry says the program is a good way to teach children about responsibility.

“Research has shown kids working with animals teaches life skills,” Barry said.