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Thanks Kaz and nubbly. I only have 24 babies in the flight and about 24 in the nest. But yes the violet line is coming on nicely. All year I have only bred about 50 birds but most of them are vary good good but still very depressing getting clear egg after clear egg.

Grey cock out of my violet nest, full brother to my violets these 2 hens are the violets and the grey cock above sisters This violet is from the next nest and so is this violet cinnamon opaline Yellow DF spangle full sister to my white ones from last year Violet Spangle son of one of my viloets I bred last year His sister cobalt spangle The 2 together and his other sister violet opaline, there were only 3 in the nest Here are some babies I have more to put on will do it tomorrow I hope, I hope I haven't bored you all to tears with my pics

Congratulations, Neville!! Lovely photo :rip:

:hi: and your birds are very colourful

Very nice GB you are doing a great job love this little girl she has great potenal and the grey green and your spangles are very nicely mark.

Your hen looks double factor spangle to me although she could also be lacewing. I can see some colour on her. Some advice As for breeding cinnamon spangles for showing if you really intend on showing these birds you best not to try and breed cinnamon spangles as judges do not like them. IT WASHES OUT THEIR COLOUR and it is hard for them to win. Mind you cinnamon is taking over in my aviary and I have never tried to breed cinnamon but all cock birds that I have bought and bred are mostly split cinnamon. When I started out 4 seasons ago I had every breed under the sun plus a bird from here and a bird from there but when I really decided to get serious I was told to focus on the dominant breeds and leave the harder ones till I get to know everything I am doing. Which is what I did. Plus I focused buying my birds from 2 breeders after working out a line I wanted. It has all paid off as I have been doing well in the shows for a beginner

Try peas corn and carrot and silverbeet. I have never had a budgie that won't eat these.

Very cute but gosh they do look very big , poor mum

and :hi: Bianca to the forum, you will find it really friendly on here. I love the names of your budgies can't wait to see their photos.

Yes Gb it is their diploma and unbroken capped show 43rd ANNUAL DIPLOMA SHOW Sunday 25thOctober 2009 NORTHLAND SECONDARY COLLEGE 62 Murray Road, Preston – Melway Ref: 19 B12 Includes Previous Year & Current Year Rung Young Birds & UBCs Phone Entries: 60c per entry (max. $10.00). Friday 23rd and Saturday 24th October James Bader - 9336 1601 between 7.00pm and 9.00pm. Entries on the day: $1.00 per entry (max. $10.00) CLOSE AT 9.30 am. ON THE DAY ENQUIRIES: James Bader 0413 159 305 UPGRADED TROPHIES for 2009 Show. VARIETY trophies for BOTH UBCs and Young Birds Reasonably priced morning tea and lunch available. SPECIAL BEGINNER TROPHIES Variety Awards for Best Beginner Section UBCs and Young Birds

Yes I was thinking of going to the Easteren District show on the 25th October but no, the violet hasn't capped yet and the older ones are still molting . Geoff advised me that if I was to go, take the young birds from last year with the red rings the ones that I have been winning with but some are still in the breeding box and if I take them out they will go into a moult. So I guess I will have to wait until next year.

I know this is late GB but I am glad you had a great time, hope to see you there at the Adult shield in March 2010. Rob Marshall book is great and I have been reading the Challenge by Gerald Binks great book but it is only on loan

TRIMMING VENTS by KELWYN KAKOSCHKE, AUSTRALIA The purpose of trimming vents is to remove the bigger feathers, which may get in the way during mating resulting in infertile eggs. The technique in Australia was first used on Jacobean pigeons which have so many feathers that they can't be bred unless you do this. THE TECHNIQUE Firstly hold the bird with the cheek patches extended under the little finger, place the bird so that it is upside down, making sure it only bites your clothing and nothing else. Place your thumb carefully over the vent, parting the fine feathers until you find the vent itself. Place your thumb actually on the vent and trim around your thumb with a sharp pair of scissors. This way you can't accidentally cut the bird on the vent without cutting yourself first, so don't worry if you see blood because it must be your own. We trim both hens and cocks but whilst you may remove the entire feather from the hen it is most important that on the cock bird you leave the little feathers which radiate around the vent, these are the "sperm guide feathers". This way you remove all the feathers which may come between the cock and hen when mating. THE REASON WHY A show bird these days can't be short behind the leg, in the old days although the birds were big they were all short and cut off behind the vent. Nowadays with that nice carrot shape and all the other desirable features you need to select the correct feather. A good show bird is carrying maybe twice as much feather especially around the vent than they did 10 years ago. The problem is that by achieving a better bird you create further difficulties. IT'S THE AUSSIE WAY I've been doing it for 10 to 15 years in fact I think everybody in Australia does it now especially with the bigger birds. By KELWYN KAKOSCHKE

Sorry kaz was coming but I woke up with a stomache ache so I guess I should stay home Oh well next time

Ouch bet that hurt. Yep if I get in the car tomorrow and go for a pleasure drive should be there by Saturday How many birds should I bring Oh I like UDL ouzo and love munchies

Do you want me to fly over and help

Their great GB

Oh, I forgot to mention, each of my breeding cages has pay TV installed and hardwired to the Discovery channel WAY too much excitement to pluck! I will have install that for them

That could be the case Kaz but any other year I would have one or two feather pluckers and they did it every time but this year I had every nest do it which I don't blame stress or boredom as these are normally good mothers that have never plucked before. Since the salt they have stopped almost 100% . Every year up until now I have always put in a salt and mineral lick block with molasses that cows lick which the birds seem to love and this year I i haven't so I do believe the salt has something to do with it.

Because the breeders from our club like Geoff Gardiner who is a very experienced breeder does it. When a hen plucks they think it is because they have a lack of salt in their diet. When i say pluck I mainly mean picking the down or what ever you call it. My hens are picking right up until the feathers come through the babies look like bald eagles. So Geoff told me to soak the silverbeet in a bucket of water with a hand full of salt every 3 weeks and it seems to be working. I also put a teaspoon in their wet food twice a week.

I have had a lot of feather pluckers this year but dofferent than you Kaz mine have been plucking as they get their down and once they grow their feathers they seem to leave them alone BUT I have had a couple of hens who want to go down again attack their young like yours. It's a pain. I have a hen that I was planning on taking to the shield and the night before selection the hen plucked her silly but know blood. I have been soaking their silverbeet in a hand full of salt in a bucket of water over night before giving it to them the next day, I do this every three weeks.

Interesting Renee. I actually have never had a leg problem that could be genitic but I have had a a couple with splayed legs over the years. This year so far only one with splayed legs.

Congratulations Vickykh "Caitlin Rose" what a lovely name , she is absolutely beautiful :ohmygod: