Barastoc Poultry Junior Scholarship Profile:
Jack Murphy
Jack is a 24 year old poultry addict from Pittsworth, Queensland and works as a secondary school teacher, focusing on Agricultural Science and Manual Arts.
Tell us about where you live
I live in a small rural community named Pittsworth which is located 30 minutes west of Toowoomba and about 2 hours west of Brisbane, Qld. It is a very strong poultry community with a large amount of breeders, exhibitors, backyard enthusiasts as well as a very strong commercial poultry industry.
Tell us a bit about yourself and what got you started in poultry
My poultry addiction started when I was about 7 years old when my family took me to a poultry auction (to buy some backyard layers). I then developed an interest in weird and wonderful breeds. When I was in high school, my science teacher encouraged me to get more involved in showing poultry and allowed me to be one of the stewards for our local show. I took over as chief steward when I was in Year 10 and have been actively involved in my show ever since. I’ve had some amazing opportunities whilst breeding and exhibiting including judging, stewarding at local and royal shows, competing in the first National Young Judges Championships and recently becoming the Coordinator of the Queensland Poultry Young Judges Finals.
Through my job as an Agricultural Teacher, I enjoy using poultry to teach a wide range of lessons. Our school conducts trials on Broiler and egg laying pullets as well as a small purebred flock. I really enjoy working with children and promoting the poultry industry as I feel that it is one of the leading agricultural industries. From introducing poultry into the school, I have developed connections with the students and support a small show team that competes at our local shows. This has taught our students so many valuable lessons, from learning responsibility to talking to the public. One of my proudest moments have been working with one of the SWD (Student with a disability) boys and watching him find his passion with poultry, his confidence grow, and fostering him to become a poultry steward and member of our local show.
Tell us a bit about your backyard coop
My backyard coop started small, with a series of odd pens that I made with my father. When I decided that they were looking a bit old and beyond repair, I saved up and bought new breeding pens off a retiring fancier. These new pens house about a trio in each and are safe from predators and keep birds in much better show condition. These pens are about 2.4 m deep, 2m tall and about 1.5m wide. I try to put as much straw or hay in the bottom of the pens to allow the birds to scratch, stay fit and clean.
I also start my chickens off brooders made from 1000L IBCs. I find these very easy to clean and keep the birds dry, safe and contained. When fully feathered, I transfer my growers to a larger run, before allowing them to run free (to allow for the best bone growth and development).
What are your poultry plans for the future?
Poultry will always be a part of my life, I hope that one day I can show birds alongside my children and pass on some of the tips and tricks along the way. I’m currently working on developing rarer colours in Large Modern Games and would love to see the breed grow in numbers and quality.
I’m also excited to continue to help out like minded young people through the Poultry Young Judges Program, with the dream of seeing young judges ‘the norm’ at Agricultural Shows across Queensland.
How will the scholarship help you improve your poultry skills and knowledge?
The scholarship will greatly assist me to develop both my own poultry journey as well as the journey of other young people across Queensland. It is my goal in the coming years to travel across Queensland to work with shows to implement Poultry Young Judges competitions, with the intentions of seeing the competition state wide. I’d also love to travel to the Sydney Royal Show to see how the competition is run at an established show, as well as meet other young, enthusiastic juniors.
By Jack Murphy