"Ol' Butch," perhaps the most famous rooster in Tennessee, will be featured at the Broadened Horizons Organic Farm Open House on October 17th. Read his story below.

Farmer Leaf was in the fertilized egg business. He had several hundred young layers (hens), called 'pullets', and ten roosters, whose job it was to fertilize the eggs.

Farmer Leaf kept records and any rooster that didn't perform went into the soup pot and was replaced. That took an awful lot of his time, so he bought a set of tiny bells and attached them to his roosters. Each bell had a different tone so Farmer Leaf could tell from a distance, which rooster was performing. Now he could sit on the porch and fill out an efficiency report simply by listening to the bells.

The farmer's favorite rooster was old Butch, a very fine specimen he was, too, but on this particular morning farmer Leaf noticed old Butch's bell hadn't rung at all! Farmer Leaf went to investigate. The other roosters were chasing pullets, bells-a-ringing. The pullets, hearing the roosters coming, would run for cover.

But to Farmer Leaf's amazement, old Butch had his bell in his beak, so it couldn't ring. He'd sneak up on a pullet, do his job and walk on to the next one. Farmer Leaf was so proud of old Butch, he entered him in the Knox County Fair and he became an overnight sensation among the judges.

The result...The judges not only awarded old Butch the No Bell Piece Prize, but they awarded him the Pullet-surprise as well.

Come meet old Butch in person next Saturday at the Broadened Horizons Organic Farm Open House 10 a.m. until 3:30 p.m. (Near camp Buck-Toms-follow farm signs)

Guided walking tours of Roane County's only Organic Teaching Farm.

Free demonstrations of -
Organic Gardening Techniques
Permaculture Practices
Solar Cooking
Pastured Poultry
Rainwater Harvesting & Storage
Gravity Feed Watering Systems
State of the Art Natural Chicken Housing
and Much, Much More

Honey & Seasonal Produce will be available

Public Invited - FREE EVENT