R&t's Breeding Journal

[GenericBlue 0]

ren the rec pied cock 08 boy i got and his split brother grey green Manno line were both split cinnamon cocks

i just recently passed the rec pied on

hes been filling eggs all over vic but i never ever had heart to give him up i loved him so much he always came home however since i dont breed rec pied as i never could get a good enough hen hes finally got a loving home in a rec pied breeders stud and hes very very pleased about him he tosses out some stomping huge hens that boy

 

all mostly cinnamon mind you

[renee 0]

ren the rec pied cock 08 boy i got and his split brother grey green Manno line were both split cinnamon cocks

i just recently passed the rec pied on

hes been filling eggs all over vic but i never ever had heart to give him up i loved him so much he always came home however since i dont breed rec pied as i never could get a good enough hen hes finally got a loving home in a rec pied breeders stud and hes very very pleased about him he tosses out some stomping huge hens that boy

 

all mostly cinnamon mind you

 

Oh I am sooooo glad he is a good breeder You know that is what you hope for when you sell a bird - that he/she goes on to make his new owner happy!

[renee 0]

Sad news today, little chick number 6 to the Sky DP and Green hen passed away late last night. I don't think he was sick with anything, I just don't think he was fed enough in the first 3 days of its life so it became very weak and was rejected.

 

Chick number 7 on the other hand is doing really well and this morning I fostered it into the DF Albino nest. Their eggs are due to start hatching from today onwards, in fact one egg looked like it was due any minute. The hen is experienced so I am not anticipating any feeding issue but this way chick 7 will be closer in size to the new nest than the one it's been in so far.

 

There is only one egg left in the Sky DP nest, I haven't candled it, it doesn't look fertile. But 6 chicks out of 8 eggs is a very good result!

 

It really is too early to say whether the hands off approach I am adopting is bearing fruit, I guess I will know in about a month's time.

[fordmob 0]

You've inspired me to start weighing my chicks. I weighed a grey that is 19 days old and that came in at 58 grams. It comes from big stuff and looks like it is wide across the back etc. I will be interested to see if the chicks that weigh more comparitively end up being the biggest. I am pretty sure that will be the case.

 

I have a 16 day albino at 49gms, another 19 day old at 56 and another 20 day old at 58. Thenest of fallows, which are from small parents are miles off these weights having a 21 day old at 42gms. They are well bred and I was hoping they would throw me something alas it doesn't look like it at this stage.

 

I will be interested to see how that dom pied finishes up when he feathers up and gets on a perch.

[**KAZ** 0]

I had a 3 inch baby budgie in a nest that looked petshop quality at best once. Threw it into the aviary once it fledged and forgot about it. One day a budgie found its way into the triple door area and I had to catch it to put in back in the aviary.....it was that same mini budgie but 8 months later was the biggest budgie I had seen in a long time and feather to die for............I no longer look at these mini budgies in the same way. Weight ? If I had to go on that I would have never dreamed it would turn out like it did, and the fact I had forgotten about it and not sold it on means I got to keep a bloody good bird who I would easily have gotten rid of if I based it on size specs.

My best grey spangle I ever bred came out of a petshop looking op green mother and a pretty ordinary medium quality grey green spangle father. If we cull on visuals we dont get to experience these surprises. Many a breeder has onsold what they consider their **** birds and months later see that same bird in someones aviary and wish they hadnt parted with it. Genetics is key eh

I cringe when I hear someone has come into another breeders aviary and culled for them based solely on what they see and not based on family lines.........cull to visual isnt always the answer...........my thoughts only.

Edited October 8, 2011 by **KAZ**

[renee 0]

You've inspired me to start weighing my chicks.

 

 

To be honest fordmob I started weighing 'cause A. I wanted to compare fosters with non-fosters' weights, B. I had never done it before and I was curious, and C. I should have been swamped with chicks and I ain't so I have the time to do it!

 

Genetics is key eh

I cringe when I hear someone has come into another breeders aviary and culled for them based solely on what they see and not based on family lines.........cull to visual isnt always the answer...........my thoughts only.

 

Very true Kaz

 

Gone are the days when I cul my birds at 6 months .... I'm holding on to them right up until I do my breeding selection

 

But I'm liking having the extra data so I can look back and learn

[renee 0]

I'm late again with today's update - it's weighing day and I spent simply hours trying to figure out who is who, details later.

 

But first of all today's news.

 

I checked on the DF Albino pair this morning, expecting a chick but instead I found a DIS. I don't know whether popping in a foster from the Cobalt DP & Green nest (the youngest chick) confused the Albino hen but from what I could see she had separated the egg from the rest a couple of days early. The egg was quite cold and the little chick inside still had a sizeable yolk sac still attached.

 

So on to the next nest I was expecting chicks from, the Grey split RP & RP nest and wadyaknow a little chick, obviously at least 3 days old. Also a dead chick, sadly. Then this afternoon another chick hatched and I was able to do a nest change. I had only expected 2 chicks from this nest. I think the little one may have died due to infection as the hen has the nasty habit of taking a dump in the nest box.

 

I moved the little Cobalt DP chick from the DF Albino nest to the Grey/RP nest as it is closer in size to the existing chick.

 

 

It is Sunday, and I should be doing the End of Week 8 Chick Report .... but I was half way through doing it and I realised I have 2 more chicks than I counted this afternoon I don't know how this has happened again but I will just have to go through it all nest by nest and update tomorrow.

 

But here is a chickie update for little ones who turned 1 month today -

 

LightGreen Spangle split Opaline & GreyGreen Spangle

I've hit the jackpot with this nest, 2 out of the 4 chicks are simply huge - both Normal Green hens

SWBC 021 Normal Green Hen- today she is 1 month old and weighs 68g

I have named her Irene

Violet split Opaline & Normal Sky hen

SWBC 033 Normal Violet Hen- today she is 1 month and weighs 64g

I don't think this one is anything special but she may inherit her mother's body ...

[**KAZ** 0]

Real nice looking chicks Renee

 

 

although ceres look too pink to be hens

[renee 0]

Real nice looking chicks Renee

 

 

although ceres look too pink to be hens

 

Oh really? cool! You know I don't really know how to sex the little ones - I thought it was big ceres hens, narrow ceres cocks

[**KAZ** 0]

Real nice looking chicks Renee

 

 

although ceres look too pink to be hens

 

Oh really? cool! You know I don't really know how to sex the little ones - I thought it was big ceres hens, narrow ceres cocks

Have a look at the six chicks to the lone mother in my topic........see how 5 of the ceres are quite white. Those are hen chicks and the purplish one is likely to be a cock. Your " hen" chicks have purple ceres.. Purple is male, white is female.

[renee 0]

Well now it appears that I don't have quite as many hens as I initially thought! More cock birds to show though

 

Today's update is really quick. No chicks to the DF Albino nest and I have serious doubts that there will be. However, a very loud peeping in the Cobalt Dommie Pied and Sky hen's nest alerted me to the hatching of a little one today and another is hatching as I write. I am pleasantly surprised by this occurrence; this is the hen which attacked her newly hatched chick and then went on to attack a foster from the LightGreen Spangle nest. Whatever her issues were before she seems to have got over them.

 

 

But now, 24hrs late, it is time for the End of Week 8 Chick Update

Thisweek I am doing it all slightly different .... By NEST

 

 

Greensplit Cinnamon & Lute split Blue? hen

 

SWBC030 Normal Green Dommie Pied split Lute possibly split Cinnamon

 

R&T609 Normal Greygreen Dommie Pied split Lute possibly split Cinnamon (I maybe mistaken about this one)

 

 

 

LightGreenSpangle split Opaline & GreyGreen Spangle

 

SWBC021 Normal Green

 

SWBC022 Opaline LightGreen

 

SWBC023 Normal Green

 

R&T 607 DF Yellow Spangle

 

 

 

Violetsplit Opaline & Normal Sky hen

 

SWBC 025 Normal Sky

 

R&T606 Opaline Sky

 

R&T610 Opaline Violet

 

 

 

Greensplit RP (Medusa's son) & Recessive Pied Cinnamon hen

 

SWBC031 Green RP Cinnamon

 

SWBC031 Green RP Cinnamon

 

 

 

Cobalt& Cobalt carrying Violet (yes I thought she was Sky)

 

SWBC 033 Normal Violet

 

SWBC 040 Normal Cobalt

 

 

 

Recessive Pied & Cinnamon Recessive Pied (Medusa)

 

R&T 608 Cinnamon Recessive Pied

 

 

 

Grey Dommie Pied & Cobalt hen

 

R&T 602 Normal Cobalt

 

R&T 605 Normal Cobalt

 

R&T 612 Normal Cobalt

 

R&T 613 Cobalt Dommie Pied

 

 

 

Grey Spangle & Cinnamon Grey Spangle hen

 

R&T 601 Normal Grey

 

R&T 603 Cobalt Spangle

 

R&T 604 Grey Spangle

 

R&T 611 Normal Grey

 

R&T 614 Normal Cobalt

 

 

 

DF Yellow Spangle & GreyGreen Spangle hen

 

R&T 615 DF Yellow Spangle

 

Funny toes DF Yellow Spangle

 

R&T 616 DF Yellow Spangle

 

R&T 620 DF Yellow Spangle

 

 

 

Lute split Blue & Lute split Blue

 

R&T 617 Lutino split Blue

 

R&T 618 Albino

 

 

 

Cobalt & Normal Green hen

 

SWBC 037 Normal Green split Blue

 

 

 

Recessive Pied & Recessive Pied

 

R&T 619 Recessive Pied - this one is a beauty!

 

 

 

Cobalt Dommie Pied & Green hen

 

R&T 21

 

R&T 22

 

R&T 23

 

R&T 24

 

R&T 25

 

Thurs 6/10

 

 

 

Normal Grey split Recessive Pied & Recessive Pied hen

 

Wed 5/10

 

Sun 9/10

 

 

 

PHOTOS will follow

Edited October 10, 2011 by renee

[renee 0]

Time for today's update.

 

This morning I discovered another 2 chicks in a DF Albino nest, not the one I have been talking about lately but another made up of 2 maidens. You may recall I had a fertile egg from this nest and popped in with the Super Albino nest but it became addled. Well this nest looks very promising so it looks like I will get some Albinos after all. The first chick is simply huge so I presume he is at least 8 days old and the little sibling is about 4 days old. Also a dead chick, no yellow belly, but indications are it died soon after hatching.

 

This is the second time my estimations of when chicks should hatch has been out by a few days so I double-checked all nests and witnessed the hatching of the 1st to My Violet maiden boy and the JK Cobalt carrying Violet hen.

 

Unfortunately the second chick to the Cobalt Dommie Pied nest didn't make it. Actually it was my fault. I had seen signs that the chick was about to hatch insofar the egg had chipping almost all the way around but it was the hen that was doing that and not the chick and when I opened it up the little one was 3 days off hatching, so in effect I killed it.

 

 

I also did everyone's weigh ins this afternoon but I have to confess I am getting a bit blasé about it all.

 

Last week I was concerned too many were under-weight so I began feeding morning and night and sure enough they all gained weight. And then funnily enough they all started screaming to be fed and their respective parents obliged. So then this week I reduced it back to night-time top ups. No doubt about it they have mostly dropped a couple of grams but I think that is more to do with them approaching fledging (quite a number are out of the nest box now) and me not feeding them in the morning.

 

Any way, in summary I am no longer concerned any more. But I will continue to do the weigh ins for statistical analysis.

 

 

Moving on, here are a couple more from the LightGreen Spangle nest which by the way are all out of the nest

 

Chickie number 2 Light Green Opaline - I should name her Gonzalez as she is such a sprinter

 

 

I think she is okay, nothing too special. At 31 days she weighs in at 61grams

 

 

But have a look at he body feather. Can you see those yellow patches?

 

 

But chickie number 3 is humongous!

 

 

Not a good photo I'm afraid. At 29 days she weighs in at 65 grams

 

 

Now I refer to the as hens .... but they both have pigmentation on the ceres so your guess is as good as mine - unless you're an expert like Kaz!

[splat 0]

Chicks look good Renee

[**KAZ** 0]

Where did you get your weighing scales Renee

[renee 0]

Where did you get your weighing scales Renee

 

$28 from Big W. Why, do you think they're out?

[**KAZ** 0]

Where did you get your weighing scales Renee

 

$28 from Big W. Why, do you think they're out?

Nope......I just thought maybe I should buy some

[renee 0]

Where did you get your weighing scales Renee

 

$28 from Big W. Why, do you think they're out?

Nope......I just thought maybe I should buy some

 

 

Chicks look good Renee

 

Yes, they're all right.

 

I have yet to see something that really excites me. Maybe I'm too fussy. I want a big bird with lots of feather, and I want to see it now!

 

There's a few coming through that I have my eye on .... we will see.

 

 

[renee 0]

Another 2 chickies arrived today

 

A second to the Cobalt Dommie Pied & Sky hen and a third to the DF Albino Maiden's nest.

 

 

I had a good look into the Violet boy's nest and I'll be surprised if I get any more than just one more chick from these two. C'est la vie. Neither are much to look at but I was hoping that genetically they would click.

 

 

What I will say is I have observed that the little ones under the age of a few days that are bright pink (like with the LG Spangle nest) went on to become very big chicks. But the paler pink ones (like the one in the Violet boy's nest this morning) did not. Happily the latest chick to the DF Albino Maiden's nest is bright pink, so we will see.

 

 

I will be doing just one more Egg Check this week and then pulling all non-fertile nests on the week end, leaving just a couple as back-up fosters. Out of the 37 pairs, 14 have failed (give or take). Not good statistics I'm afraid and the major disappointment has been the Albinos and Green lines. I will be doing a comprehensive analysis once I have compiled all the data.

[renee 0]

Time for a Miscellaneous Update.

 

Lately I seem to be spending a lot of time popping chicks back into the nest box which has prompted me to reassess my Chickie Kindie Cage set up. I have one nest that are all out and a few more that will be by the week end. In the past I have used this Holding Cage, it is 3 tiered and I add swings to make it more chickie friendly.

 

 

The only problem with this is that if you look you will see it has quite a deep lip, at least 5cm, and because I know I am late this year with my breeding and will have to deal with some hot weather I am reconsidering whether I should use it again. The problem I have with it is that in the hot weather the lip prevents air flow reaching those chicks that are not up on the perches.

 

 

Here is the alternative:

 

 

It is a new bank of Breeding Cabinets I bought in early August. As you see no lip and the cabinets, which themselves are very roomy, can be opened up with the removal of the perspex dividers. Now for some reason I have had scant success with this new bank, so bad in fact that out of the 9 cabinets, only 2 have provided chicks. I have my theories about this and next year I will be making alterations. But in the meantime it means I can open up a few cabinets to convert into a Chickie Kindie.

 

Wadyathink?!

[Dave_McMinn 0]

I hate being given lip - - so no lip would be better -

[renee 0]

I hate being given lip - - so no lip would be better -

 

I bet your student give you plenty of lip!

[Dave_McMinn 0]

Honestly they don't. My personality is the same in and out of the classroom. Hopefully, and I think they know this is true, I am there to help them do their best.

[renee 0]

Honestly they don't. My personality is the same in and out of the classroom. Hopefully, and I think they know this is true, I am there to help them do their best.

 

And that's why you are so appreciated

[renee 0]

Well it's been a busy day!

 

This morning another little chickie arrived to the DF Maiden Albino pair, that's the fourth.

 

 

But most of today I spent clearing Breeding Cabinets and recording details - if you hadn't figured it out already I did not record ring numbers when I put the birds in and the reason for this being that I only remembered half way through and then I figured I would be making changes any way ... yes, yes, say no more.

 

 

I have created a Chickie Kindie cage in the top 3 Cabinets of the bank of 9 and moved the following chicks plus Dad's into it: LGreen Spangle nest, Violet split Opaline and Cobalt Normal. In all 11 chicks.

 

 

Tomorrow I'll clear all non-fertile nests give or take and start releasing birds into the outside aviary.

 

 

But here are some photos of some more little ones, mainly out of focus, apologies for that.

 

 

Normal Cobalt from the Cobalt & Sky nest (the other 2 look just like this one)

 

Cinnamon Recessive Pied from Mudusa's son & Cinnamon Recessive Pied nest (featured earlier)

 

Cinnamon Recessive Pied from Mudusa's son & Cinnamon Recessive Pied nest (featured earlier)

 

Normal Grey from Grey Spangle and Cinnamon Grey Spangle nest (I think they're both split Blue)

 

Cobalt Spangle from Grey Spangle and Cinnamon Grey Spangle nest

 

Grey Spangle from Grey Spangle and Cinnamon Grey Spangle nest

 

 

I'm very happy with the chicks to come out of the Grey Spangle nest, they look much better than their parents and that is encouraging.

[**KAZ** 0]

Some really nice chickies there Renee....width across the cere and some nice deep masks on your recessives too. Bet you are pleased with them