**KAZ**

No.

It pine, bought from the hardware store.

Please tell me what is a TRUE rainbow ?

Even ebay sells some vet type products

Babies practice wingflapping IN the nestbox. At the time when they should fledge the nest, at age 4,5 or 6 weeks they will be flying. At the very least they should glide to the floor of the cage if they havent figured out flying yet.

How sweet

I have heard back today from some very good show breeders...they have told me they are doing the interviews but due to other committments it will take time to complete. Meanwhile we wait and see whose interview comes in next

From age two weeks on the nest will get poopy. Its more important its cleaned more around that time or add more nesting materials or both. Yes the oldest feed the youngest.....it all helps. If you had read my article on care of baby budgies in the nestbox,,,,,,you will know it says to clean their feet and about cleaning the nestbox..... read it again if you have forgotten. Write yourself a checklist for nestbox checking and duties.

INTERVIEW BY KAREN MORGAN aka Kaz ( pushed into this interview by others ) Q1. At which point in time did you first develop an interest in budgerigars ? I began an interest in budgies after my husband now ( was my boyfriend then ) 6 years ago had an aviary with a pair of breeding rosellas and babies in it. He sold the babies and then the parents. When he couldnt sell the aviary immediately and he asked what kind of birds i liked........I said budgies. He then said..."Go on, fill it full of budgies !" so i did. Initially pet type budgies of all colours. I found the bbc forum around that time and was encouraged by great advice from all members. At first didnt understand or think i liked show budgies, but posts of Daz's enthralled me and soon i was seeking out the show budgie topics and then looking to get my first show type budgies. I joined my first club metropolitan budgerigar club and then south west budgerigar club to fill some gaps i felt were lacking. At one point i stopped trying to keep both pet types and show budgies and devoted my aviaries totally to show budgies. I now show as a novice but may be soon going into intermediate. Q2. What was your first aviary/breeding room like ? My first aviary was a metal aviary 2 metres wide by 1.2 m deep by 1800 high. We then moved to a new house with huge ready built large aviaries.... i ended up using the aviaries wrapped around the left corner of our block, an L-shaped setup with an aviary each side and breeding room in the middle. It had some pitfalls.Weather got in, as did rodents, and budgie illness after a wettish winter made me decide to build something better. Here is my breeding room, aviary topic http://forums.Budgiebreeders.Asn.Au/index....Showtopic=14142 q3. Where did your first birds come from and over what period of time did you continue with these lines ? I did what you shouldnt do and bought all kinds of budgies i thought were show birds in the beginning. I then went to Gary Armstrong and brought a few significant birds. Bought some at auction...Cec gearing, Bob Levy, Jan MacMahon, Fran McLaughlan and others. I still carry birds with strong Gary Armstrong, Jan MacMahon and Cec Gearing lines. It was a combination of Armstrong and MacMahon birds that first made the difference in my birds. Q4. Are your present birds from these same bloodlines, if not what bloodlines have impacted most within your stud? Most of my birds now carry Armstrong, Gearing, MacMahon and McLaughlan bloodlines. These are whats now working for me. Q5. How do you prepare your birds for the breeding season? A few months free flight in the large aviaries with access to a great varied diet of all kinds of seeds made available to them. softfoods, fresh natural tree branches and leaves ( peppermint tree, eucalyptus, hibiscus ). Doxy treatment for the whole flock as well as S76 for mites, Ronivet for canker if any is going through. Q6. Do you set your breeding season by the calender or by signs of the birds being ready ? Primarily by the birds being ready, although with the extremes of heat we have had lately I wont put any down to breed through the hottest weather. Q7. When pairing up do you go by pedigree or visual appearances or both? Visual and bloodlines are equally as important to me. Q8. How closely do you mate your birds and what related matings have been the most successful? I have yet to breed anything closer than cousins, grandparent to grandchild, and half brother and sister Q9. What variety mixes do you use for improvement if any or is it best to best? Best to best, but with knowledge you can use your dominant varieties as normals......spangles can be put into most anything if they are good enough. Q10. How many chicks and rounds do you allow your birds to have? Generally just two rounds but with a break a pair may do this twice a year making four rounds for them. I have a hen that just wants to breed and breed and she will go an extra round or two based on my assessment of her health as I have found to stop her sends her into a massive spiral downwards ( depression ) and once she nearly died when I tried to stop her breeding past her second round. Q11. What features are the hardest to put on a bird and how does one go about establishing that feature and retaining it, the directional feather, straight backline, shoulder & length? I find the hardest for me is backskull and length. I am working on that. Q12. What is your feeding programme during the breeding season and does this differ during the non breeding season? Breeding season finds the breeders in their breeding cages get spoilt with more choices re soft food and vegies more often than the birds in the flights. Q13a. Please describe your current aviary design, size, flights, breeding cage design and number of cages etc? Current aviary http://forums.budgiebreeders.asn.au/index....showtopic=14142 consists of metal constructed birdroom over 5 metres by over 4 metres, insulated and lined, with sink, water supply and storage. Breeding cabinets around about 40 or more that consist of wire cages set on vertical banks of ( 4 ) made of melamine shelving carcasses which can be wheeled around to clean or change position. . Avairies ........two main flights going from the breeding room...........each flight 9 ft tall by 2 metres by 6 metres. Q13b. What would you change about your setup if you had the chance to do so ? Its all newish so most of it is as I would like it to be. Q14. Do you use preventative medication during and pre breeding season and if so what and why. Pre breeding season doxy treatment and mite/lice treatments to birds in the flights. canker treatment if necessary. Breeders will get calcivet to their water when they are first paired up and during the laying of eggs but not totally the only source of water....calcivet just part of the week. Iodine added to the water here and there also. Q15. What do you see as the greatest asset of being in the hobby and where do you see the hobby heading with so many breeders leaving today? Friendships, and common interests and goals. With people leaving the hobby I feel it ESSENTIAL that those leaving, leave behind them a legacy of important information shared not only the birds they sell off to others. Sadly and often this is not the case. Q16. What would you consider to be the most important value about friendships formed and fellowship within the budgie breeding fraternity ? These friendships often go past just a common bond and people care about others well past meetings and shows. These friendships can be lifelong and mind altering. There are some who dont feel this way...that too is a great pity. Q17. Do you have any thoughts on how to promote the hobby to get more people interested in joining our clubs ? By sharing of knowledge without any thought to what elite group you may have attained within the hobby. Always remember where you have come from and that your beginnings then are someones now..........the future of the hobby depends on the legacy you leave behind or the encouragement you put out there......or not. Q18. What is the benefit of having a national show? The national show is your benchmark.....where the best are there to see and to set your sights on acchieving for yourself. It is also the "mecca" meeting ground for us all. Q19. How would you go about pointing a novice breeder in the right direction to enable them to reach the top bench in around eight years? Dont buy birds from all over. Choose a mentor and follow as much of their advice as they are willing to share. If noone is listening to your questions ......yell louder and be heard. Sometimes people are just busy doing their own thing and not listening all that well. Dont be afraid to talk to the " big guys"in the hobby....they started where you are not so long ago. Q20. What do you do with birds with feather disorders? Wont persist in using any where a family line keep showing feather cysts.....but will use tail-less wonders and french moult survivors. Q21. Who has inspired you the most in the fancy? Cec Gearing and Gary Armstrong locally...further afield Henry George, Clint Ault, Mark Chidel ...worldwide Jo Mannes, Daniel Lutolf, Didier Mervilde, and too many more to mention. Q22. What has been your lowest and highest points in the hobby ? Highest points........just seeing that special chick in a nestbox. Lowest points.......there hasnt been any. Q23. What in your mind was the best bird you ever bought that made the difference in your stud and what approximately was its cost ? The best bird I ever bought was a grey green opaline hen bred by Jan MacMahon ............she is the foundation hen of all my best birds. I call her OMELETTE as she consistently lays 12-13 eggs on an average round and they are all fertile. She cost me $235 at auction and she is worth 5 times that much to me. Q24. If you were just starting out all over again as a novice in todays world, what advice would you dispense based on what you have learnt ? See question 19 Q25. Would you have a philosphy to share that has helped you in daily life with your budgerigars ? Expect the worst.........anything else is a bonus. Take time to sit amongst your birds and just enjoy them. Q26. What has been your favorite mutation or variety that really inspires you ? And what varieties are you specialising in at the moment ? Favourite mutation has always been dominant pieds followed by greywings. I am breeding greywings now ( early days ) and seek to start up a good line of dominant pieds as soon as I can. Q27. Given all of the above, do you have any other tips or hints on how to improve and sustain an exhibition budgerigar stud? Set out to add the features your birds lack by the best outcross you can get your hands on. One good bird at a higher price will save you $$$s trying to acchive the long haul with cheaper budget birds. In saying this one of my best cock birds cost me $19. ( Thanks Gary A :rofl: ) Q28. If there was one main thing you have wanted to say that encompasses your feelings about being involved in budgerigars and clubs what would it be ? Everone needs a hobby or a VICE This is mine.

Seeing is believing. A lot of stuff is said but never proved..............photos would convince the multitudes.

Yes, they do grow back

Pictures please

Its not a budgie.

Liv has linked some of her swings together too

budgieman :rofl: Good to have you here. Love your avatar Sounds like you know what you are doing with your birds too. If you want to post any photos there is a link in my signature that tells you how Cheers Kaz Co Admin PS check out our show breeder interview topics http://forums.budgiebreeders.asn.au/index.php?showforum=104

Mousetrap and occasional BIRTHING CENTRE

INTERVIEW BY ANDY HIND...............budgerigar breeder Northwich, United Kingdom WEBSITE http://hindstudbudgerigars.webs.com/ Q1. AT WHICH POINT IN TIME DID YOU FIRST DEVELOP AN INTEREST IN BUDGERIGARS ? I first started keeping budgerigars 6 years ago after keeping finches and canarys and parakeets for years. Q2. WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST AVIARY/BREEDING ROOM LIKE ? My first aviary was 25 years ago at my parents house, a purpose built 6 foot x 4 foot with a 6 foot x 4 foot outside flight. Q3. WHERE DID YOUR FIRST BIRDS COME FROM AND OVER WHAT PERIOD OF TIME DID YOU CONTINUE WITH THESE LINES ? My first birds came from a good friend colin meachin, I bought 11 birds for a very fair price they got me on the road to breeding my own birds and 1 bird from the 11, a 03 cinnamon yellowface spangle skyblue cock produced some very good youngsters and some of my spangles go back to this bird. Q4. ARE YOUR PRESENT BIRDS FROM THESE SAME BLOODLINES, IF NOT WHAT BLOODLINES HAVE IMPACTED MOST WITHIN YOUR STUD? Todays birds are mainly mannes,lutolf,huxley and marchant, hockaday bloodlines. I aquired birds from various sources and i find these bloodlines have blended well to make my own bloodline. Q5. HOW DO YOU PREPARE YOUR BIRDS FOR THE BREEDING SEASON? I don't really prep my birds for the breeding season as i breed all year round, so i have to provide a well balanced diet all year around using the best seed and softfoods i can get. Q6. DO YOU SET YOUR BREEDING SEASON BY THE CALENDER OR BY SIGNS OF THE BIRDS BEING READY ? I always pair birds when they are ready, i always try to use a proven bird with a maiden bird. Q7. WHEN PAIRING UP DO YOU GO BY PEDIGREE OR VISUAL APPEARANCES OR BOTH? I always pair birds visually first then i go to my record books to study the pedigrees of each bird. Q8. HOW CLOSELY DO YOU MATE YOUR BIRDS AND WHAT RELATED MATINGS HAVE BEEN THE MOST SUCCESSFUL? Over the years i have tried all related pairings and i would never pair siblings together or parents to children, i have had good results using cousin to cousin pairings and uncle to niece and vica versa. I try to outcross every other year and pair related birds together the next and it does work. I sometimes pair grandfather to granddaughter or grandmother to grandson, but both birds have to be visually superb, and i always outcross the youngters from this pairing when they are ready. Q9. WHAT VARIETY MIXES DO YOU USE FOR IMPROVEMENT IF ANY OR IS IT BEST TO BEST? I have simple rules for my pairings, firstly i only breed for quality not quantity. i always pair spangles to normals and normal cinnamons, i pair pieds with normals,cinnamons and opalines. Any opaline greys,greygreens and greens are used with the lutinos and albinos. Q10. HOW MANY CHICKS AND ROUNDS DO YOU ALLOW YOUR BIRDS TO HAVE? I always treat each bird as an individual, some hens are tired after only 1 round and some just love breeding and rearing youngsters, i have just sold a hen that reared 14 rounds for 67 youngsters, i tried to stop her once as i thought she must be tired out, but she went ill in the flight, so i paired her back to her original cock and she happily reared 6 youngsters straight away. so it pays to study each bird closely when they are in the breeding cage. They tend to let you know when they have had enough. when results start to worsen. Q11. WHAT FEATURES ARE THE HARDEST TO PUT ON A BIRD AND HOW DOES ONE GO ABOUT ESTABLISHING THAT FEATURE AND RETAINING IT, THE DIRECTIONAL FEATHER, STRAIGHT BACKLINE, SHOULDER & LENGTH? I have found that width and directional feather on the head is hard to put on a bird, but we also must remember that lesser birds will carry these traits in the blood, this is where stockmanship comes in, knowing the backgrounds of all the lesser birds to use with the best visual related birds. Q12. WHAT IS YOUR FEEDING PROGRAMME DURING THE BREEDING SEASON AND DOES THIS DIFFER DURING THE NON BREEDING SEASON? My feeding programme is the same all year round, i use johnston and jeff mixed millet,plain canary and scottish type 88 tonic seed. I sometimes give them a small dish of parakeet seed in the flights for a treat. I make fresh softffod everyday using fresh chopped carrot,brocolli,corn on the cob,fennel,beetroot and celery. there is always at least 3 of these ingriedients, along with optimal start 25 eggfood, rolled human grade oats, hormoform and a small amount of insectivorous food is also added. I use murphys minerals, trilcot grit and iodine nibble blocks. As treats i use apples,oranges,corn on the cob and pomegranates. Q13a. PLEASE DESCRIBE YOUR CURRENT AVIARY DESIGN, SIZE, FLIGHTS, BREEDING CAGE DESIGN AND NUMBER OF CAGES ETC? Q13b. WHAT WOULD YOU CHANGE ABOUT YOUR SETUP IF YOU HAD THE CHANCE TO DO SO ? My current birdroom measures 24 foot x 9 foot, i have 28 breeding cages and 2 flights, each flight measures 8 foot x 3 foot and breeding cages measure 24 x 15 x 12 inches, i have never been a fan of large cages or flights as i find it makes the birds too scatty, wild and scared of people, i feel to be exhibition birds they must be steady and not afraid of people. I find my set up is perfect for me and i never try to manage more than i can keep. Q14. DO YOU USE PREVENTATIVE MEDICATION DURING AND PRE BREEDING SEASON AND IF SO WHAT AND WHY. I use versele-laga oropharma tricho-plus at 1 teaspoon per 2 litres of water for 7 days, this is the only safe preventative medicine i use and is an excellent product with a high safety margin, and can be used wether the birds are breeding or not. Q15. WHAT DO YOU SEE AS THE GREATEST ASSET OF BEING IN THE HOBBY AND WHERE DO YOU SEE THE HOBBY HEADING WITH SO MANY BREEDERS LEAVING TODAY? The greatest asset of the hobby is the birds themselves, but i feel for beginners and novices because they get ripped off by there idols with birds they are led to believe are stunners and will breed stunners, todays prices are crazy, the people who charge these prices don't realise they are killing the hobby. My pet hate are the people who advertise birds for beginners to champions, does this mean a beginner is not worthy of buying a good bird and he can only buy the rubbish? We must treat all fanciers the same irespective of there status, this is why i tend to let the better sales birds go to beginners for sensible prices. Q16. WHAT WOULD YOU CONSIDER TO BE THE MOST IMPORTANT VALUE ABOUT FRIENDSHIPS FORMED AND FELLOWSHIP WITHIN THE BUDGIE BREEDING FRATERNITY ? I feel there is a great social side to the hobby with lots of very genuine helpful fanciers and these are the people that help you through the rough patches. We must encourage beginners and youngsters into the hobby as i fear it may die out before long. Q17. DO YOU HAVE ANY THOUGHTS ON HOW TO PROMOTE THE HOBBY TO GET MORE PEOPLE INTERESTED IN JOINING OUR CLUBS ? I think clubs and societys should push there clubs more in the way of advertising and reaching out to schools,colleges to get the youngsters involved in the hobby more. Q18. WHAT IS THE BENEFIT OF HAVING A NATIONAL SHOW? The benefits of a national show are to meet up with old friends and see what sort of birds the nation is producing from allover, plus making new friends. Q19. HOW WOULD YOU GO ABOUT POINTING A NOVICE BREEDER IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION TO ENABLE THEM TO REACH THE TOP BENCH IN AROUND EIGHT YEARS? I have a number of beginners and novices that come to me on a regular basis, i help them all with birds and advice to the best of my ability, but i draw the line at going to there birdrooms to pair there birds up for them as i think its unfair and unjust. Sometimes its better to make your own mistakes and learn from them. Theres an old saying STOCKMEN ARE BORN, NOT MADE! Q20. WHAT DO YOU DO WITH BIRDS WITH FEATHER DISORDERS? It depends how bad the feather problem is and how good the bird is, if i decide to keep a tailess wonder i always use them with a bird with a full set of feathers, and i make sure i do the same with the youngsters. most of the others are given away to whoever wants them. Q21. WHO HAS INSPIRED YOU THE MOST IN THE FANCY? A number of people have inspired me, mannes, lutolf and a few others, i have gathered information from so many sources and used them all to form my own method, which is a culmination of many great fanciers methods. Q22. WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR LOWEST AND HIGHEST POINTS IN THE HOBBY ? My highs are when a super youngster appears in the nestbox and the lows are when they die for no apparent reason. Q23. WHAT IN YOUR MIND WAS THE BEST BIRD YOU EVER BOUGHT THAT MADE THE DIFFERENCE IN YOUR STUD AND WHAT APPROXIMATELY WAS ITS COST ? I have bought a number of birds over the years, but 1 bird that gave me some superb youngsters was a 04 skyblue cock with no tail from my good friend trevor wilcox for £30, bargain. Most of my best birds now go back to this bird. Q24. IF YOU WERE JUST STARTING OUT ALL OVER AGAIN AS A NOVICE IN TODAYS WORLD, WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU DISPENSE BASED ON WHAT YOU HAVE LEARNT ? I would not change anything really, you have to make mistakes to move forward. thats life. Q25. WOULD YOU HAVE A PHILOSPHY TO SHARE THAT HAS HELPED YOU IN DAILY LIFE WITH YOUR BUDGERIGARS ? When things go well and your winning, enjoy it and when things go wrong and your losing, sort it out. This is what true fanciers do. Q26. WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR FAVORITE MUTATION OR VARIETY THAT REALLY INSPIRES YOU ? AND WHAT VARIETIES ARE YOU SPECIALISING IN AT THE MOMENT ? I am very fond of spangles and dominant pieds, but i have normals,cinnamons and opalines also. I have started to build a lutino and albino family this season with pleasing results. Q27. GIVEN ALL OF THE ABOVE, DO YOU HAVE ANY OTHER TIPS OR HINTS ON HOW TO IMPROVE AND SUSTAIN AN EXHIBITION BUDGERIGAR STUD? I would say try to enjoy building up your stud, spend time at shows and at peoples birdrooms. Try to work on 1 or 2 features a year and make your own mistakes and decisions. Q28. IF THERE WAS ONE MAIN THING YOU HAVE WANTED TO SAY THAT ENCOMPASSES YOUR FEELINGS ABOUT BEING INVOLVED IN BUDGERIGARS AND CLUBS WHAT WOULD IT BE ? Enjoy your birds and good luck to everybody.

INTERVIEW BY MARK GULLEY, CORNWALL U.K. ................thankyou Mark WEBSITE http://www.budgerigars-southwest.co.uk/ Q1. AT WHICH POINT IN TIME DID YOU FIRST DEVELOP AN INTEREST IN BUDGERIGARS ? my interest started after my step daughter won a budgerigar at a local cbs show where we had just gone to view the various birds as at the time i had a mixed collection of finches and parakeets Q2. WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST AVIARY/BREEDING ROOM LIKE ? i had a 8 x 6 wooden garden shed very basic with an outside flight Q3. WHERE DID YOUR FIRST BIRDS COME FROM AND OVER WHAT PERIOD OF TIME DID YOU CONTINUE WITH THESE LINES ? my first exhibition birds came from a couple of local fanciers edgar swan & colin williams followed by some lutinos from the late dennis curtis upon the advice of my good friend brian reese. there were still traces left until a couple of years ago. the curtis birds are still quite strong in my stud Q4. ARE YOUR PRESENT BIRDS FROM THESE SAME BLOODLINES, IF NOT WHAT BLOODLINES HAVE IMPACTED MOST WITHIN YOUR STUD? most of my birds can now be traced back to birds from dennis curtis brian reese and lee marshall also recently i have introduced blood from the freakly and ainley stud hopefully these birds will help carry me forward Q5. HOW DO YOU PREPARE YOUR BIRDS FOR THE BREEDING SEASON? they are given a higher proportion of tonic seed and softfood,mineral blocks etc. i always choose my cocks first and then the hens ,the nest box is blocked for a week Q6. DO YOU SET YOUR BREEDING SEASON BY THE CALENDER OR BY SIGNS OF THE BIRDS BEING READY ? usually by calender to get chicks hatched by christmas eve in time for the ring issue Q7. WHEN PAIRING UP DO YOU GO BY PEDIGREE OR VISUAL APPEARANCES OR BOTH? i start with visual then check pedigree Q8. HOW CLOSELY DO YOU MATE YOUR BIRDS AND WHAT RELATED MATINGS HAVE BEEN THE MOST SUCCESSFUL? have paireed father daughter, mother son i like half brother sister pairings and also uncle niece these seem to give good results Q9. WHAT VARIETY MIXES DO YOU USE FOR IMPROVEMENT IF ANY OR IS IT BEST TO BEST? i think best to best is the main way to go, variety is not really an issue Q10. HOW MANY CHICKS AND ROUNDS DO YOU ALLOW YOUR BIRDS TO HAVE? i keep them going as long as they are fit i do like to get at least 2 rounds Q11. WHAT FEATURES ARE THE HARDEST TO PUT ON A BIRD AND HOW DOES ONE GO ABOUT ESTABLISHING THAT FEATURE AND RETAINING IT, THE DIRECTIONAL FEATHER, STRAIGHT BACKLINE, SHOULDER & LENGTH? i dont think any of the features are easy to establish, at the moment im trying to improve width of face & directional feathering Q12. WHAT IS YOUR FEEDING PROGRAMME DURING THE BREEDING SEASON AND DOES THIS DIFFER DURING THE NON BREEDING SEASON? the only real difference is that i feed a higher proportion of tonic seed Q13a. PLEASE DESCRIBE YOUR CURRENT AVIARY DESIGN, SIZE, FLIGHTS, BREEDING CAGE DESIGN AND NUMBER OF CAGES ETC? my current shed has 28 breeding cages made from melamine around 24x15x18. i have 1 half flight with storage and 2 stock pens the shed is about 20 feet by 10 feet timber construction insulated and clad internally with plastic Q13b. WHAT WOULD YOU CHANGE ABOUT YOUR SETUP IF YOU HAD THE CHANCE TO DO SO ? i would have a bigger shed Q14. DO YOU USE PREVENTATIVE MEDICATION DURING AND PRE BREEDING SEASON AND IF SO WHAT AND WHY. the only thing i do is worm the birds with ivermectin Q15. WHAT DO YOU SEE AS THE GREATEST ASSET OF BEING IN THE HOBBY AND WHERE DO YOU SEE THE HOBBY HEADING WITH SO MANY BREEDERS LEAVING TODAY? for me the best side of the hobby is the social interaction, i tend not to think about people leaving i feel a lot of people tend to look to much on the dark side i like to have a brighter outlook Q16. WHAT WOULD YOU CONSIDER TO BE THE MOST IMPORTANT VALUE ABOUT FRIENDSHIPS FORMED AND FELLOWSHIP WITHIN THE BUDGIE BREEDING FRATERNITY ? just that friendship you can never have too many good mates Q17. DO YOU HAVE ANY THOUGHTS ON HOW TO PROMOTE THE HOBBY TO GET MORE PEOPLE INTERESTED IN JOINING OUR CLUBS ? i think as much is being done as can be , internet magazines shows etc etc Q18. WHAT IS THE BENEFIT OF HAVING A NATIONAL SHOW? it brings everyone together from all corners of the country and further Q19. HOW WOULD YOU GO ABOUT POINTING A NOVICE BREEDER IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION TO ENABLE THEM TO REACH THE TOP BENCH IN AROUND EIGHT YEARS? get a mentor and listen to advice never be afraid to ask Q20. WHAT DO YOU DO WITH BIRDS WITH FEATHER DISORDERS? fortunately i dont have many, i usualy give them away as pets Q21. WHO HAS INSPIRED YOU THE MOST IN THE FANCY? interesting question for me i think its jeff attwood i would say he covers everything that good about the hobby and has a vast knowledge Q22. WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR LOWEST AND HIGHEST POINTS IN THE HOBBY ? highest point winning best beginner youngbird at the area society show and my first own bred cc lowest losing a great looking chick is a regular one Q23. WHAT IN YOUR MIND WAS THE BEST BIRD YOU EVER BOUGHT THAT MADE THE DIFFERENCE IN YOUR STUD AND WHAT APPROXIMATELY WAS ITS COST ? i dont think there has been one special bird yet but theres been a few good ones, ive not yet paid a fortune for a bird but one day i may have to Q24. IF YOU WERE JUST STARTING OUT ALL OVER AGAIN AS A NOVICE IN TODAYS WORLD, WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU DISPENSE BASED ON WHAT YOU HAVE LEARNT ? stick to the mainstream varieties until youve learnt the ropes dabbling with the rarer stuff can run away with you and lose your quality, i speak from experience Q25. WOULD YOU HAVE A PHILOSPHY TO SHARE THAT HAS HELPED YOU IN DAILY LIFE WITH YOUR BUDGERIGARS ? never give up Q26. WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR FAVORITE MUTATION OR VARIETY THAT REALLY INSPIRES YOU ? AND WHAT VARIETIES ARE YOU SPECIALISING IN AT THE MOMENT ? i have a soft spot for texas clearbodies. at the moment im concentrating on the mainstream varieties Q27. GIVEN ALL OF THE ABOVE, DO YOU HAVE ANY OTHER TIPS OR HINTS ON HOW TO IMPROVE AND SUSTAIN AN EXHIBITION BUDGERIGAR STUD? i think you need to pick a couple of constantly winning fanciers to get you main stock from and pay attention to your birds relations blood will show in the end Q28. IF THERE WAS ONE MAIN THING YOU HAVE WANTED TO SAY THAT ENCOMPASSES YOUR FEELINGS ABOUT BEING INVOLVED IN BUDGERIGARS AND CLUBS WHAT WOULD IT BE ? a group of people from various walks of life brought together by a common bond that otherwise would never have met

Mark Gulley http://www.budgerigars-southwest.co.uk/ Chris Snell http://hem.passagen.se/c_snell/index1.htm

Terrific !!! When do I pick them up ???

Ken is doing his best to win her over from me too She has fit in very well around here and is top cat too

Yep....its the part budgies rub on the bars of cages and stuff JB...........you notice it more on pale budgies

More interviews flooding in...........UK, USA and EUROPE as well as AUSTRALIA. Will post as received. Have used FACEBOOK

Heathersage Exhibition Budgerigars http://www.heathersagebudgerigars.com/ Emerald Exhibition Budgerigars http://www.emeraldbudgerigars.4t.com/ Jos Reynders http://www.irishbudgerigar.com/ Barry Lloyd http://www.btb1budgerigars.com/index.htm

Wonder what happened to the pink budgie