In most poultry shows your Barnevelder chickens will need to meet these APA Standards in order to compete. Judges in poultry shows look for these specific physical attributes of appearance. If you own a hatchery or are thinking of starting one, the APA standards should be what you look for when you purchase Barnevelder breeder birds.
APA Standard For Barnevelder Chickens

Accepted into the APA Standard as of May 2017
American Poultry Association Description for Barnevelders
Disqualifications: White in the earlobes
Standard Weights: Cock 7 lbs.
Hen 6 lbs.
Cockerel 6 lbs.
Pullet 5 lbs.
SHAPE-MALE:
COMB: Single, medium in size, straight and upright, evenly serrated, having 5 well defined points.
BEAK: Short stout and well curved.
FACE: Smooth, fine textured and as free from feathers as possible.
EYES: Very bright and prominent.
WATTLES: Medium in size. Well rounded and of fine texture
EAR-LOBES: Medium in size
HEAD: carried high with a neat skull
NECK: Fairly long, full and carried erect. Slightly arched. Hackle well developed flowing to the shoulder covering part of the back and part of the front of neck.
BACK: Well balanced and concave. Medium in length, broad and deep.
TAIL: Full with graceful, uniform sweep. Carried high, up to fifty degrees above the horizontal. Moderately spread and open. Medium in length. Coverts and sickles covering the main tail feathers well.
WINGS: Well developed, carried high and rather short. Front of bow partly covered by breast feathers and wing tips are partly covered by saddle feathers. Bottom of wings rests horizontally on the flanks.
BREAST: Deep, broad and full BODY AND FLUFF: Body medium in length, deep and broad LEGS AND TOES: Legs set well apart when viewed from the front. Toes – Four on each foot, well spread
PLUMAGE – Very tight and nice texture
SHAPE- FEMALE:
COMB: Single, similar to male only smaller BEAK: Medium and well curved
FACE: Smooth, fine texture and as free from feathers as possible
EYES: Very bright and prominent
WATTLES: Medium in size. Well rounded and of fine texture
EAR- LOBES – Medium in size
HEAD: Carried high with a neat skull
NECK: Fairly long, full and carried erect. Slightly arched. Hackle well developed flowing to the shoulder covering part of the back and part of the front of neck.
BACK: Well balanced and concave. Medium in length, broad and deep
TAIL: Full with graceful, uniform sweep. Carried high, up to fifty degrees above the horizontal. Moderately spread and open, medium in length. Coverts covering the main tail feathers well. WINGS: Well developed, carried high and rather short. Front of bow partly covered by breast feathers. Bottom of wing rest horizontally on the flanks.
BREAST: Deep, broad and full BODY AND FLUFF: Body medium in length, deep and broad LEGS AND TOES: Legs set well apart when viewed from front Toes – Four on each foot, well spread
PLUMAGE: Very tight and nice texture
American Poultry Association Description for Barnevelders
Disqualifications: White in the earlobes
Standard Weights: Cock 7 lbs.
Hen 6 lbs.
Cockerel 6 lbs.
Pullet 5 lbs.
SHAPE-MALE:
COMB: Single, medium in size, straight and upright, evenly serrated, having 5 well defined points.
BEAK: Short stout and well curved.
FACE: Smooth, fine textured and as free from feathers as possible.
EYES: Very bright and prominent.
WATTLES: Medium in size. Well rounded and of fine texture
EAR-LOBES: Medium in size
HEAD: carried high with a neat skull
NECK: Fairly long, full and carried erect. Slightly arched. Hackle well developed flowing to the shoulder covering part of the back and part of the front of neck.
BACK: Well balanced and concave. Medium in length, broad and deep.
TAIL: Full with graceful, uniform sweep. Carried high, up to fifty degrees above the horizontal. Moderately spread and open. Medium in length. Coverts and sickles covering the main tail feathers well.
WINGS: Well developed, carried high and rather short. Front of bow partly covered by breast feathers and wing tips are partly covered by saddle feathers. Bottom of wings rests horizontally on the flanks.
BREAST: Deep, broad and full BODY AND FLUFF: Body medium in length, deep and broad LEGS AND TOES: Legs set well apart when viewed from the front. Toes – Four on each foot, well spread
PLUMAGE – Very tight and nice texture
SHAPE- FEMALE:
COMB: Single, similar to male only smaller BEAK: Medium and well curved
FACE: Smooth, fine texture and as free from feathers as possible
EYES: Very bright and prominent
WATTLES: Medium in size. Well rounded and of fine texture
EAR- LOBES – Medium in size
HEAD: Carried high with a neat skull
NECK: Fairly long, full and carried erect. Slightly arched. Hackle well developed flowing to the shoulder covering part of the back and part of the front of neck.
BACK: Well balanced and concave. Medium in length, broad and deep
TAIL: Full with graceful, uniform sweep. Carried high, up to fifty degrees above the horizontal. Moderately spread and open, medium in length. Coverts covering the main tail feathers well. WINGS: Well developed, carried high and rather short. Front of bow partly covered by breast feathers. Bottom of wing rest horizontally on the flanks.
BREAST: Deep, broad and full BODY AND FLUFF: Body medium in length, deep and broad LEGS AND TOES: Legs set well apart when viewed from front Toes – Four on each foot, well spread
PLUMAGE: Very tight and nice texture
Male Color:
COMB, FACE, WATTLES AND EAR-LOBES: Bright red
BEAK: Dark horn shading to yellow at point
EYES: Reddish bay
HEAD: Each feather black with slight reddish brown edging and reddish brown shafts, tips of feathers black
NECK: Appears black with a red glow. Each feather black with slight reddish brown edging and reddish brown shafts, tips of feathers black
BACK: Each feather reddish brown with very wide lacing of lustrous, greenish black Saddle – Each feather black with slight reddish brown shafts, tips of feathers black
TAIL: Main tail – black Sickles and lesser sickles – lustrous greenish black Coverts – same as saddle
WINGS – Bows and
Coverts - Each feather reddish brown with a broad lacing of lustrous greenish black
Primaries – Upper web black, lower web black with lower edge of reddish brown
Secondaries – Upper web black, lower web reddish brown finely laced with black, showing when closed a reddish brown wing bay
BREAST: lustrous greenish black
BODY AND FLUFF:
Black LEGS AND TOES: Thighs – Black Shanks and toes – yellow
UNDERCOLOUR OF ALL SECTIONS: Dark Slate
Female Color:
COMB, FACE, WATTLES AND EAR-LOBES: Bright red
BEAK: Dark horn EYES: Reddish bay
HEAD: Plumage, lustrous greenish black
NECK: Appears all black. Upper feathers are laced black with reddish brown centers and transferring down the hackle into double lacing. Slight ground color showing at the lower part of the hackle is permitted. Front of neck: same as breast
BACK: Each feather reddish brown free of black peppering, with a well-defined outer lacing if lustrous greenish black and a well-defined inner lacing of lustrous greenish black. The outer lacing to be distinct yet not so heavy as to give black appearance to the bird in the show pen TAIL: Main tail feathers black with exception of the top feather on either side, these are irregularly marked with reddish brown.
Coverts- Same as back. Note that triple lacing can be apparent on good wide feathers and this is allowed for.
WINGS: Bows and coverts – each feather reddish brown with broad double lacing of lustrous greenish black
Primaries – upper web black, lower web black with a lower edge of brown
Secondaries – upper web black, lower web brown finely laced with black, showing when closed a brown wing bay BREAST: Each feather reddish brown, free of black peppering, with a well-defined outer lacing of lustrous greenish black and a well-defined inner lacing of lustrous greenish black. The outer lacing to be distinct yet not so heavy as to give a black appearance to the bird in the show pen
BODY AND FLUFF: black preferred
LEGS AND TOES: Thighs – same as breast Shanks and toes- yellow. Slight dark cast on legs of females is permitted, but not desired.
UNDERCOLOUR IN ALL SECTIONS: dark slate
Information retrieved from the American Poultry Association (APA).
COMB, FACE, WATTLES AND EAR-LOBES: Bright red
BEAK: Dark horn shading to yellow at point
EYES: Reddish bay
HEAD: Each feather black with slight reddish brown edging and reddish brown shafts, tips of feathers black
NECK: Appears black with a red glow. Each feather black with slight reddish brown edging and reddish brown shafts, tips of feathers black
BACK: Each feather reddish brown with very wide lacing of lustrous, greenish black Saddle – Each feather black with slight reddish brown shafts, tips of feathers black
TAIL: Main tail – black Sickles and lesser sickles – lustrous greenish black Coverts – same as saddle
WINGS – Bows and
Coverts - Each feather reddish brown with a broad lacing of lustrous greenish black
Primaries – Upper web black, lower web black with lower edge of reddish brown
Secondaries – Upper web black, lower web reddish brown finely laced with black, showing when closed a reddish brown wing bay
BREAST: lustrous greenish black
BODY AND FLUFF:
Black LEGS AND TOES: Thighs – Black Shanks and toes – yellow
UNDERCOLOUR OF ALL SECTIONS: Dark Slate
Female Color:
COMB, FACE, WATTLES AND EAR-LOBES: Bright red
BEAK: Dark horn EYES: Reddish bay
HEAD: Plumage, lustrous greenish black
NECK: Appears all black. Upper feathers are laced black with reddish brown centers and transferring down the hackle into double lacing. Slight ground color showing at the lower part of the hackle is permitted. Front of neck: same as breast
BACK: Each feather reddish brown free of black peppering, with a well-defined outer lacing if lustrous greenish black and a well-defined inner lacing of lustrous greenish black. The outer lacing to be distinct yet not so heavy as to give black appearance to the bird in the show pen TAIL: Main tail feathers black with exception of the top feather on either side, these are irregularly marked with reddish brown.
Coverts- Same as back. Note that triple lacing can be apparent on good wide feathers and this is allowed for.
WINGS: Bows and coverts – each feather reddish brown with broad double lacing of lustrous greenish black
Primaries – upper web black, lower web black with a lower edge of brown
Secondaries – upper web black, lower web brown finely laced with black, showing when closed a brown wing bay BREAST: Each feather reddish brown, free of black peppering, with a well-defined outer lacing of lustrous greenish black and a well-defined inner lacing of lustrous greenish black. The outer lacing to be distinct yet not so heavy as to give a black appearance to the bird in the show pen
BODY AND FLUFF: black preferred
LEGS AND TOES: Thighs – same as breast Shanks and toes- yellow. Slight dark cast on legs of females is permitted, but not desired.
UNDERCOLOUR IN ALL SECTIONS: dark slate
Information retrieved from the American Poultry Association (APA).
Reference:
1. American Poultry Association Description for Barnevelders. Retrieved on Aug. 19, 2017 from http://www.amerpoultryassn.com/Barnevelder.pdf
2. American Poultry Association website: http://www.amerpoultryassn.com/
1. American Poultry Association Description for Barnevelders. Retrieved on Aug. 19, 2017 from http://www.amerpoultryassn.com/Barnevelder.pdf
2. American Poultry Association website: http://www.amerpoultryassn.com/