A young man in an Akubra hat waits patiently among the exhibitors in the poultry hall at Brisbane's RNA Showgrounds.
Amid the echoey din of crowing and clucking, the voice of the chief steward rings out over the audio system — "Supreme champion fowl of show … Lachie Arnett".
A broad smile breaks out on the young man's face as long-time friends and rivals, some old enough to be his grandfather, extend heartfelt congratulations.
A judge in a white coat shakes Lachie's hand with both of his.
"Good on ya mate — that was terrific," he enthuses.
"Reckon Dad and Pop would be proud."
Lachie responds with his trademark grin.
The work of five generations of family has led to this moment.
Two of his fowl made the top 12 at this year's Ekka.
But it was the Leghorn Bantam, nicknamed Elvis, that stole the show.
"He just had a presence in the pen that the judges couldn't ignore," Lachie said.
With his glossy black plumage, shiny red comb and self-assured strut, it can't be denied — Elvis is one good looking rooster.
"He's got a lot of personality and that's what you really need in a good quality fowl … you want them to be proud … strutting their stuff and showing themselves off."
The highlight of the family's showing career
Lachie's father Peter Arnett, grandfather John Arnett, great grandfather Bob Habgood and great, great, great uncle Joshua Hosier passed down a passion for chickens.
Together, they've won a swag of awards.
In fact, the ribbons and pennants won between the 1930s and 60s have been sewn into a giant patchwork quilt, that's now a family heirloom.
But, there have been no Supreme Grand Champions — until now.
"Pop and Dad were both absolutely thrilled to win that award," Lachie said.
"That's the highlight of our showing career so far.
"Pop bred the Leghorns for 60 years but he never won Grand Champion at the Ekka.
"So for us to be able to do that this year, out of his line of Leghorns, was very special."
At 21 years of age, Lachie is already a veteran chicken breeder and exhibitor.
His mother Amanda Arnett remembers how Lachie, as a toddler, would lovingly carry chooks around the garden.
"We'd call them Lachie's girls," Amanda said.
"Other little boys were playing with trucks in the sandpit and here was Lachlan carrying around his little hens in the backyard.
"I think for him there was a natural resonance and engagement with the chickens."
Lachie participated in his first show with his father Peter when he was four.
"I remember very clearly one day we were preparing the birds for the Ekka and Lachie said to me, 'Dad, you know these are my chooks. Yours are still out at the farm'," Peter said.
"So, we started to show in joint names from then," he said.
Promise from an early age
By the time he was 12, Lachie had developed a keen interest in the breeding program, and could pick which hatchlings might grow into something special.
"Parents and kids often look for some shared interest that they can enjoy, so the poultry's been very special for us in that regard," Peter said.
"The generational aspect of poultry breeding, raising and showing is very much a thing that brings families together."
Lachie's mother has a pet chook she calls Jane Austin.
His sister Eleanor is also involved.
"As a little sister seeing your big brother do something, I had to jump on the bandwagon as well.
"I actually got my own breed of chickens.
"I think I've always been interested ... but definitely not as obsessed as he was," Eleanor said.
The Grand Champion trophy and ribbon (as well as many others they collected at this year's Ekka) will now go on display in Lachie's 84-year-old grandfather's home.
"They can stay down at Pop's place for a few months. We'd like for him to enjoy them as much as we have because it's essentially his win as much as ours because he bred the Leghorns for so long," Lachie said.
More than 80 chickens, of various breeds and colours, live at the family's semi-rural Barellan Point property, in Ipswich.
"We've got blacks, whites and blues in the Leghorns. We've got Old English Game. Dad started with the English Game when he was five years' old," Lachie said.
"Every chicken that we hatch out is important."
The family's pet Maremma, Rudy, is the chief protector of the chooks.
He keeps foxes and other predators at bay and enjoys belly rubs in between perimeter patrols.
As Lachie works full-time as an apprentice carpenter and starts his days early, Peter is in charge of the day-to-day feeding and watering of the chickens.
But at night and on weekends, Lachie spends a lot of time doing administration for his role as secretary of three poultry clubs.
That includes the Ipswich Poultry Club, which was brought back to life in 2019 after a seven-year recess, thanks to a handful of young chicken enthusiasts.
"We got the club up and running and had our first show in 2021," Lachie said.
"From where we started in 2019 with just a couple of members to where we are now is just phenomenal. Exhibitors are coming from a 500-kilometre radius."
Day spas for the best in show
In the lead-up to show season, it's all hands on deck.
"It actually starts a few months before the show, where you make sure they're in a good pen where they're not going to be bullied by other birds," Lachie said.
"When we get to the week before the show, we wash them — particularly the white birds — because they get dirty very easily."
Then, the day before the show, the birds get the full "day-spa" treatment.
"We wash their legs. We wash their comb. We'll wipe their feathers down with a damp cloth and get them nice and shiny," Lachie said.
"We use a bit of olive oil and put it on their legs, their comb … and they're ready to go."
While he sometimes cops a bit of schtick from his work mates for his interest in chickens, they are always the first to ask how his birds fared at a show.
"It's a very unusual hobby," he said with a laugh.
"You meet someone new and you tell them, 'I breed and show exhibition poultry''… they go, 'Huh?'… Chickens mate!"
Lachie's warmth and enthusiasm for what he does is infectious.
The motto he has written on his social media account is telling.
"Money does not buy happiness — but it can buy you chickens and that's pretty much the same thing," the motto states.
His father believes Lachie's charisma will take him far.
"He's a great people person … so the future is very bright for him, not only in terms of his love for the poultry but his genuine care for people and his ability to inspire and encourage people to get onboard and be a part of whatever is happening," he said.
Lachie is looking forward to plenty more years of raising chooks and travelling the show circuit.
"I'm fairly confident I'll be doing it for the rest of my life. It's hard to get rid of the poultry bug once you've got it," he said.
As for Supreme Grand Champion 'Elvis', there are more shows ahead of him too — as well as a bit of socialising.
"He'll get plenty of girlfriends and hatch out a lot of chickens," Lachie laughs.
