Management in the Breeding Season of Budgerigars

By W. Watmough

This antiquarian book contains a comprehensive guide to breeding budgerigars, being a detailed treatise on management during the breeding season. Written in plain, clear language and full of concise instructions and handy tips, this volume is recommended for anyone with an interest in breeding budgerigars, and it would make for a great addition to collections of related literature. The chapters of this volume include: “Management in the Breeding Season”, “Breeding Ages”, “Youth and Age”, “Fighting Females”, “The Best Safeguard”, “The First Egg”, “Sequence of Hatching”, “Distributing the Chicks”, “Records Essential”, “How to Fit Rings”, “Ditty Next Boxes”, etcetera. Many antiquarian books such as this are increasingly hard to come by and expensive, and it is with this in mind that we are republishing this book now in an affordable, modern, high quality edition. It comes complete with a specially commissioned new introduction on aviculture.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Read Books Ltd.
• Release date: Jan 31, 2013
• ISBN: 9781447483878

Book preview

MANAGEMENT IN THE BREEDING SEASON

I AM one of those who does not believe in commencing the breeding season very early. The last week in February or the first week in March is soon enough for me. Some breeders begin operations as soon as the New Year arrives, and in isolated cases we hear of chicks in the nest boxes at Christmas! I suppose that one reason for making such an unseasonable commencement is the alluring prospect of having very advanced youngsters for the Breeders’ Classes at the earlier shows. But, frankly, I do not think the game is worth the candle. I have seen some disastrous results in establishments where breeding has commenced in January.

I think the majority of fanciers make a beginning in March, which provides sufficient time for the second round youngsters to complete their baby moult before the nights are long and the sunshine and warmth of summer are no more.

If the last clutches are not hatched until late August or early September the chicks miss in the earliest days of their lives—when their future health can be made or marred—those advantages which are enjoyed by the older youngsters, the sunshine, the longer hours of daylight and their genial warmth, the wild greens and the seeding grasses.

Chicks which have their first moult in late autumn or in the winter usually change their feathers slowly, and a slow moult is never as satisfactory as a normal one.

Youngsters born in the fall of the year are often slow in their development and it is not advisable to breed from them in the following season.

All this provides an argument against those who are opposed to making a commencement before April, and those who even advocate deferring putting the nest boxes up until May is in.

But of much greater importance than the date when the fancier commences the season is the condition of the birds when they are mated. It is of vital importance that they should be ripe for breeding before they are provided with nest boxes. If this rule is strictly observed, the possibilities of egg binding, infertility, and eggs being cast out of the boxes by the hen, are reduced to a minimum.

Budgerigars are only in the desired state to go to nest when they are in perfect health, alert and full of life and activity, free from any sign of moult, with their feathers tight fitting and carrying that bloom which denotes physical fitness, with their wattles bright in colour, and when they are displaying obvious signs of desire to breed.

If you follow my advice you will have prepared all your matings on paper some