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First Turkey competition narrows down to top 10

turkey November 24, 1996
Web posted at: 7:20 p.m. EST

From CNN affiliate WTLW

FORT RECOVERY, Ohio -- Ten finalists have been selected in the competition for the Official First Turkey of the United States. The judges' criteria are strict:

  • A good voice (nothing to gobble about).
  • A good runway walk is, of course, necessary for a high score.
  • And even though beauty may be only feather-deep, the way they look is still important.
  • There is no gender discrimination in the contest. Males may even have an advantage, since they can polish their mustaches.
turkey profile

But the glamour, and feed, doesn't come without a price. The contestants still have to answer those tough questions, such as, "If you were stuck on a desert island and could only take two people, who would you take?" Just kidding. We can't interpret turkey gobbles.

The training is also very rigorous. "Expert dietitians" have raised the birds since their birth last April.

"They get up every morning even before school when school started here, and clean the birds and clean the fountain, make sure the litter is nice," Carl Link, the manager of Cooper Hatchery, said of the youths who raised the gaggle.

gobbler

Why is appearance key in a turkey competition? These birds, like any beauty pageant winners, are for show, not the butchers' knife. The winner and the first runner-up will fly to Washington, D.C., next week -- in a plane, not by themselves. The president of Cooper Hatchery will present the winner to President Clinton.

The young turkey proprietors know that their turkeys' fate is unusual, but they don't mind. "I'm kind of glad that they're going to a petting zoo, and not getting butchered," said Joe Osterholt.

The turkeys will spend the next year making appearances around the farm in Virginia. Meanwhile, the turkey tradition will continue here at Cooper Hatchery, keeping the country's turkeys from going to the birds.

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