How best to get stock birds in the best condition for breeding

[Diamond Dave]

Yes please, can I ask how do you bring your stock birds into condition for breeding.
A genuine question since I've had my new loft. The race birds are going out everyday and are in amazing nic but the stock birds all seem healthy but no where near the condition of the race birds.
Ps, I plan to put them together around the middle of Feb so still got time.

[Diamond Dave]

Not wormed any of them yet Neil. Not the racers either.
I want to underlay the racers with eggs from the stock birds and I want to take a few off the racers as well just so that they
have an affinity to their new nest boxes.

[Diamond Dave]

Dave, you answered your own question.
Pigeons that are captive are always stressed and will never produce the same quality of young birds as those that have freedom every day.
If you have any doubts about that, ask me how I know.

Interesting Murray, ok - how dya know?
But if that is the case, why does everyone breed sub-standard young birds from their stock?

[Spieker-Loft]

Yes please, can I ask how do you bring your stock birds into condition for breeding.
A genuine question since I've had my new loft. The race birds are going out everyday and are in amazing nic but the stock birds all seem healthy but no where near the condition of the race birds.
Ps, I plan to put them together around the middle of Feb so still got time.

What i have been taught by many fanciers over here in germany and been doing myself for the past 2 years now is

First we vaccinate the breeding hen's with Rotavirus about 4 weeks before Coupling because then the antibodies it gives into the egg is increased (about 30% of the antibodies of the hen goes into the egg)
Then we turn on the light inside the loft until about 9-10pm to stimulate the brain and get the pigeon out of its "Winter mode"
Lastly 1-2 weeks before coupling we give both the Breeding hen's and cock's Vitamin E-50 from Rohnfried which is also very good for breeding and breeding preperation.
And ofcourse grit everyday.

This is our preperation in the winter since we already start coupling around the 10th of december. Preferably i would like to also add a heating pad into my breeding loft for them to get into form even faster for breeding but thats something for the future.

Not sure if most people would agree with our method because alot of people seem pretty careful about giving products to the pigeon or playing around with Light and Dark. But this works for us and we never had any issues coupling our birds or breeding even in the winter time when it gets down to -10c ~

[Diamond Dave]

[quote="Diamond Dave" post_id=35112 l

Sometimes I think worms can put the pigeons in poor condition but it may not be in your case of course
I would worm them 12-14 days apart with moxidectin anyway
When you say not the same as the racers do you mean in poor feather or dry feather or a bit hunched
Do they get any sun light when we get any that is

Think the sunlight thing is always gonna be a bit of a problem Neil as the loft faces North and is under trees. They do have a bia bit of a flight tho. 6ft x 6ft which is open on 2 sides and has a polycarb roof which they use as they want.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying they are in poor condition, just not as good as the racers who are just "shining" at the moment.
Maybe I'm just not used to seeing in this condition at this time of year.

[Diamond Dave]

Dave

Pigeon that exercise reguarly will naturally be "fitter" than prisoner stock. That's obvious

However, Stock birds can and should still be in excellent condition.

My Stock birds would glide through your hands like silk. So silky you could drop them

As they don't exercise it's important to keep an eye on the diet, and a total must is the constant use of avaries.

I'd have mine on barley/depurative once they were through the moult until 10-12 days before mating. Then they'd hit a more meatier mix

If I had no aviary then I wouldn't keep prisoners, my Stock would fly out.

There's no temperature too cold for the birds to be out in the aviary. Even if it were -10 I'd still bang em out.

Fresh air never hurt man nor beast

Do you leave them in the aviary overnight Mike? Should I force them to spend the daytime in the aviary? At the mo, I leave it up to the birds to go in and out as they please.

[Diamond Dave]

Thank you everyone - I love this site and really appreciate all this extensive knowledge that everyone gives so freely.
Hope everyone has a very happy and healthy new year.

[Diamond Dave]

Thanks Trev and good luck to you with yours too mate.