In fact, the secondary school teacher likes nothing better than coming home from work and feeding her feathered friends.
"I listen to them clucking, collect their eggs and feel very chilled out. It's lovely," she said.
Her interest in birds began when she was a child and when she and her husband, Jimmy McGeown, bought a 1.6ha property on the outskirts of Oamaru, she decided to get back into them.
She joined the Oamaru Poultry, Pigeon and Canary Society, which is holding its 126th show at the Drill Hall in Itchen St today and tomorrow. Nearly 1000 poultry, bantams, pigeons, ducks and aviary birds will be on display.
Ms Walshe has been involved in organising an expo at the show tomorrow morning aimed at providing advice and information for people interested in keeping poultry.
Between 10am and noon, owners of a variety of different purebred poultry will be available to talk about their breeds.
Often people went to poultry shows, looked at all the birds, "loved them all" but did not know who to talk to about them, she said.
Information had also been prepared about the breeds and how to look after them. Egg judge John Davies will also be on hand to give information about eggs.
There was a real resurgence in keeping poultry as people became increasingly keen on knowing where their food came from, Ms Walshe said.
