Pima County Fair, April 16-26th, 2015

Pima County Fair! 

It is once again time for the Pima County Fair to kick off in Tucson, Arizona. Over the years, the Pima County Fair has moved its premium book, where you can find access to open exhibition entry forms, to an online format. 

If you are interested in entering the fair this year, please follow this link:
Pima County Fair 2015 Premium Book

From this link, you will be able to locate open entry forms if you do not already have a copy. Please spread the word that Open Poultry and Open Pigeon really need to keep numbers up. In fact, there are three very important reasons that we need to see our feathered friends at the Pima County Fair:

1.  The public. The public absolutely LOVES to see the different types of poultry, pigeons, waterfowl, turkeys, ornamental fowl, etc. out at the Fairgrounds. For many "city folks" this is the closest they will get to our hobby. I've been in the barn right before check in and cannot tell you how many people come up and ask "Where are all of the animals?" A lot of people buy a ticket to the Fair in part to see our exhibits -- so bring a few interesting feathered creatures out for people to see! 
2. Competition. Sure, we all like receiving blue ribbons, cash prizes, etc., but it is so much more fun when you are able to compete against others. The more exhibitors, the better. A lot of local breeders are really trying to work on their craft, so if you have something that can compete, we all encourage you to bring it. Ruth Ewer always sanctions the poultry show with the ABA and the APA -- thank you so much Ruth!
3. Future Shows. It often seems like the Fair will always be there, and that there will always be animal exhibits. However, there are fairs all across Arizona (and throughout the country!) that have slowly begun doing away with their animal exhibits. Why? It is costly to them, because they pay exhibitors that place well. In order to assure the Fair keeps the animal exhibits open, there have to be animals at the Fair. If you skip a year, don't enter, and the overall entry number of birds is low -- perhaps there won't be a next year. So bring some birds! 

If you have any questions about how to enter, please contact Michelle Boyer at  mnboyer@email.arizona.edu and I'd be happy to help  you through the process. The forms sometimes seem a bit confusing, but I assure you, they're easy once you get the hang of it.