Forward: The Fantail is primarily a bird of type and action. "Type" meaning to represent in terms of typical characteristics. "Action" meaning, behavior or method of performing. General requirements are the same for all Fantails and total 100 points. The first 75 points describe type; the remaining 25 points describe a Fantail in action (Carriage and Motion).

Fantails are to be judged by comparison. To assist judges in assigning proportionate values to the various desirable qualities, point values are listed. An advantage of 5 points may be allowed for excellence in plumage color of self and barred classes. There is no allowance for color in whites and NCC’s (Non-classified colors). An advantage of 5 points may also be allowed for excellence in marking and 5 points for color when patterns are involved, as in saddles, tailmarks, and bodymarks.

General Requirements (Total 100 pts)

Head and Neck:

head: Small, fine, and neat; free from peak or shell.
Beak: Thin and medium in length, the upper mandible slightly curved at the tip.
Beak Wattle: Small and dine in texture.
Eyes: Clear, bright, alert. Eye cere as fine as possible.
Neck: Thin, nicely curved and tapering well off as it approaches the head.
Lenght of Neck: Corresponding with length of back, so as to enable the head to rest closely, in the center of, and at the base of the cushion.

Body (20 pts.):

Shape: Small and round like a ball when viewed from any angle, showing a graceful curve from chest to feet. (A balanced, medium sized bird, however, is preferred to a small bird deficient in other important qualities).
Chest: Shape, round like a ball, carrying out rounded contour of the body.

Back: Appearance of being slightly hollowed in center. Length of back shall be
in proportion to length of neck, enabling the head to rest closely, in the center of and at the base of the cushion.
Rump: Of sufficient size to balance the tail evenly.

Cushions and Tail (20 pts)

Cushions: Front, full, and massive, extending well up the tail feathers; Back, strong, wide, flaring, centered on tail.
Tail: Slightly concave, circular, closely filled with broad, evenly set feathers, well overlapping each other.

Legs and Feet (15 pts.)

Legs: Moderately short to medium in length, not stilty, set well apart and forward so as to conform with the curve of the body line but without the appearance of buckling. Free from feathers below the hocks.
Feet: Small, fine, neat. Color of feet, bright red.

Plumage (10pts.): Clean, neat, hard, and tight fitting.

Carriage and Motion (25 pts.)

Carriage and Motion: The bird should walk in a jaunty manner on its tip-toes with its head thrown back in a graceful manner and resting with ease, closely, constantly, in the center of and at the base of the cushion.
Chest: Full and round like a ball, carrying out the rounded contour of the body. Apparent upheaving of the chest when bird is in motion.
Wings: Neat, closely fitting to the body, showing body frontal, underbody and part of thigh when viewed in profile. The wing butts shall be hidden so as to preserve an over-all appearance of roundness of the bird, with flights tight, just clearing the lowest tail feathers, almost meeting at the tips and not breaking away from the general line of the wings.
Tail: Carried well up, not being allowed to drop or incline forward, with as much top-tail as possible showing above the chest when viewed from the front and at eye level.

Plumage Descriptions, Eye, Eye Cere, Beak and Toenail Colorations

White: Pure white. Dark hazel or bull eyes with flesh colored ceres. Flesh colored beak and toenails.
Black: Jet black throughout. Free from rustiness or checkery appearance and covered with a rich beetle-green luster. Pearl or orange (pearl preferred) eyes, with dark ceres. Black beak and toenails.
Blue: Clear, sound, gray-blue free from sootiness or bronzing, with no inclination to run light on rump or breast. The feathers on the neck and throat shall be covered with an iridescent metallic sheen. Wing and tail bars shall be black and well defined. Tail feathers shall be edged all around with the same shade as the shield area. Pearl or orange (pearl preferred) eyes, with dark ceres. Black beak and toenails.
Powered Blue: Clear, sound, light, milky blue on body, wing and tail. Free from sootiness with no tendency toward cream, yellow, or purple coloring. Having the appearance of being lightly flecked but not checked with powder. The feathers on the neck and throat shall be slightly darker than the body and covered with an iridescent metallic sheen comparable to burnished silver. The neck and throat, like the body, wings and tail, shall be free of cream, yellow, or purple coloring. The wing and tail bars shall be flat black, as near black as possible and shall be distinct. The feathers of the tail shall be edged beyond the terminal bar with the same color as the shield area. Pearl, red, or orange eyes (pearl preferred), with fine, dark ceres. Horn colored beak and toenails.
Silver: Soft shade of light silver with no tendency toward a creamy color. The feathers on the neck and throat shall be covered with an iridescent metallic sheen. The wing and tail bars shall be dun and well defined. The tail feathers shall be edged all around with the same shade as the shield area. Pearl or orange eyes (pearl preferred) with drab colored ceres. Horn colored beak and toenails.
Powdered Silver: Fawn colored on the body, wings, and tail. Having the appearance of being sprinkled with a powdery glow. The feathers on the neck and throat shall be slightly darker than the body and covered with an iridescent metallic sheen. The wing and tail bars shall be distinct and dun colored. The tail feathers shall be edged beyond the terminal bar with the same color as the shield area. Pearl or orange eyes (pearl preferred) with drab colored ceres. Horn colored beak and toenails.
Andalusian: Body and tail are to be an even shade of midnight blue, shading to black on the head and neck. Wings are lighter with dark blue edging on each feather. There shall be no tendency toward reddish or bronzy tones. Pearl or orange eyes (pearl preferred) with dark cere. Black beak and toenails.
Red: Even shade throughout of clear, rich, bright, chestnut free from sootiness or any tendency toward bluish or plum tints. The feathers on the neck and throat shall be covered with an iridescent metallic sheen. Pearl or orange eyes (pearl preferred) with flesh colored ceres. Flesh colored beak and toenails.
Yellow: Even shade throughout of rich, bright, golden-buff with no tendency to run light on the rump. The feathers on the neck and throat shall be covered with an iridescent metallic sheen. Pearl or orange eyes (pearl preferred) with flesh colored cere. Flesh colored beak and toenails.
Almond: Even shade throughout of rich, bright, golden-buff, that of the interior of an almond nut shell from which the name is derived. Rich black flecking shall be dispersed throughout the plumage. Flights (primaries and secondaries) and tail feathers are to be splotched irregularly with distinct patches of ground color, white, and black. The white splotches in the tail feathers are to be positioned in such a way that the appearance of white terminal bar is produced. Pearl or orange eyes (pearl preferred) with flesh colored ceres. Flesh colored beak (horn permitted) and flesh colored toenails.
Dun: Soft even shade of dull brown with no tendency toward a purple or tint. The feathers of the neck and throat shall be covered with an iridescent metallic sheen. Pearl or orange eyes (pearl preferred) with drab colored ceres. Horn colored beak and toenails.
Brown: Even shade of rich, chocolate brown throughout. The color is quite similar to dun but brown is an intense coloration whereas dun is a dilute. Brown tends to fade more readily in the sun. Pearl or orange eyes (pearl preferred) with drab colored ceres. Horn colored beak and toenails.
Cream: Body and wing color is a very soft cream-gray blend, shading to a rich golden cream on head and hackle. The wing bars shall be a rich golden cream. Tail, a very pale cream-gray shading to ash-white with as little flecking as possible with no flecking at all preferred. Pearl or orange eyes (pearl preferred) with drab colored ceres. Horn colored beak and toenails.
Checker: Checker is a pattern but is shown as a "color class" with consideration given to balance in pattern and richness in color. The pattern varies with the amount of light colored pigment base. The checker pattern is made up of light and dark colored shades of the same color. The light color appears as a "T" on the wing covert feathers. Checker class includes checkers in all basic colors (ash red, blue, and brown) as well as their dilutes. It also can include checkers that have had their pigment modified by reduced, milky, pale, and the like, that leaves the checker appearance. Checkers are various patterns that range from light to dark to velvet T-pattern checks. Eye, cere, beak, and toenail color varies according to the feather color.
Grizzle: Peppery combination of color and white. The grizzling effect is most noticeable on the body, shoulder, neck, and head while nearly absent on the wing and tail bars. Grizzle can be bred in all colors, patterns, and markings as well as in conjunction with many other pigment affecting factors (dilute, milky, etc.). The classical "Dragoon Grizzle" is the expression on a blue bar. Tortoiseshell effects are produced when grizzle is in conjunction with checker. Pure grizzle produces storkmarks. Grizzle in combination with spread or recessive red can produce an evenly grizzled bird but most often produces black or red splashed appearing birds. Eye, cere, beak, and toenail color varies according to feather color.
Saddle: Wings shall be marked evenly, the ten outside feathers (primaries) being white, the rest, including the covert (shield) and scapular (thumb) feathering to be colored. The body, except for the back, shall be white. In barred varieties the wing barring shall follow the rules for color under appropriate color description for the basic color and pattern involved. Dark hazel or bull eyes with flesh colored ceres. Flesh colored beak and toenails.
Tailmark: The tailmark is basically a bird with a white body and a colored tail. It is bred in all the standard colors. The color intensity of the tail may vary from an intense solid to a delicate lace. A white back cushion is preferred. Uniformity of marking is desired. Dark hazel or bull eyes with flesh colored ceres. Flesh colored beak and toenails.
Bodymark: Basically a colored bird with a white tail. Bodymarks can be bred in all the basic colors. The body plumage shall follow the rules for that of its basic color. The front cushion shall be colored. The back cushion shall be white. Eyes, cere, beak, and toenails correspond to basic color.
Splash: A colored bird with between 25% and 75% of its plumage randomly dispersed with white. Eyes, cere, beak, and toenails vary.
Mismarked: A colored bird with less than 25% of its plumage white. A white bird with less than 25% of its plumage colored. A tailmark with less than 75% of its tail feathers carrying color. A bodymark with less than 75% of its tail feathers white. A saddle with less than 75% color in the shield area. Eyes, cere, beak, and toenails correspond to basic color.
AOC (Any Other Color): This classification is to be used for recognized colors where classes are too small to be competitive. As all birds in this class will be of recognized colors, color and/or marking points will be awarded. This class is not to be used as a catch-all for mismarked birds. Rules pertaining to individual plumage descriptions, eye, eye cere, and toenail colorations shall apply.
NCC (Non Classified Colors): This classification is to be used for those colors that have not as yet been recognized. It is also to be used for marked birds of a color that has not as yet been recognized as well as for any new marking that has not as yet been recognized. There will be no allowance for color and/or marking points for birds competing in this classification.