Katie claims her sixth eggsellent victory at the Easter Show

“Every year I’ve either won a first place or a champion in the categories I have entered,” proud mother hen Katie said.

“This year I got a first, second and third place in each of the two categories I entered, bantam brown eggs and standard brown eggs.”

Standing among her ribbons and certificates, Katie attributes her regular success to her feathered friends.

“Hy-line browns are lovely and quiet, they make beautiful winning eggs and are great pets,” she said.

“There are so many benefits to having chickens. They are a lovely pet for young kids, they can spend lots of time with them and they are quiet and friendly. They also give you fresh eggs every day, which are full of protein with 11 vitamins and minerals, they are also very delicious.”

At only 11 years old, Katie often faces tough competition, with most challengers significantly older that her, but her extensive career in the industry has taught her a thing or two about the perfect egg, as well as how to give her pets the best chance of creating it. 

“To get a champion egg you have to get the right sort of food,” Katie explained.

“The food we use is a mix of our local supplier’s stock feed and some of the Showbred MP Feeder. We mix them together, I find that works very well with our eggs. We also feed them some grass every day, so they have a nice healthy and balanced diet.”

Katie's uncle Barry Tisdell is a renowned breeder and shower, while another uncle, Garnett Wamsley, has been breeding for more than 45 years. Her father Peter and late grandfather Clem are also noted breeders. Along with the family tradition, expertise in picking out the perfect egg has also been passed along to Katie.

“It needs to have a nice shape and colour with a smooth shell,” she said.

“Some eggs fade from dark to light or light to dark, and that means it’s a bad egg. It can’t have any spots or blemishes either, and can’t be scratched or cracked in any way.”