Birds to flock to Hobart with judging for Royal Hobart Show beginning this weekend
A school project turned into a passion for Tracey Cordwell, who will spend 12 hours washing and blow-drying her chooks ahead of this weekend’s show. Why it will be “tougher” than usual.
Tasmania
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Tracey Cordwell was given two chickens when she moved to a property from the suburbs.
Since then she has been showing for more than 20 years and now keeps up to 250 Pekin Bantams at a time.
“We were given two as a school project and it all started from there,” she said.
The local government worker tends to her chickens every day before and after work and her day off on Friday is known as “chook day”.
Mrs Cordwell spent 12 hours washing and blow drying her chickens in preparation for the first event in the 2024 Royal Hobart Show with judging in poultry pigeons and canaries to begin on Saturday.
She said the competition this year was likely to be tougher than usual with the threat of bird flu causing more Tasmanians to stay home from mainland events.
“There are normally a couple of big national shows on the mainland at this time, but they’re being cancelled,” Mrs Cordwell said.
“The competition probably will be a bit stronger because there’ll be all the local showers here.”
Ms Cordwell took home Grand Champion Bird of Show at last year’s breed specific national competition in NSW, out of 300 birds.
“All my breeding has gone towards that achievement,” she said.
She said it was like a jigsaw puzzle to fit 30 of her birds into the car and drive 3000km.
Royal Hobart Show judging starts in the Bob Scott Pavilion at the Brighton Showground this weekend.
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