Heathrow

This is a PUBLIC forum... there is nothing to say that information posted must be 'first hand experience'. (Your 3rd hand stories could also be applied to information handed down through the generations... so what your fathers' father told him about breeding etc... Does that mean we can't post this sort of information to help others?!?!) There is also nothing to say that problems with showing budgies, breeding budgies etc... can't be discussed. Isn't this how we LEARN??? This particular topic is a discussion and as posted in the first post... This is just a curiosity question, hoping for open discussion, ideas, etc. It's seem to only be a Public Forum when posts are in agreeance with the moderators!!!!!!!!! Also when the questions is as specfic as "How many birds get sick along the way ?" or "How many good birds go off to the nationals and return and die ?"or "How many successfully breed afterwards ?"or "Is there any facts kept on this situations or do breeders just accept certain losses ? " it is seeking information that to give an accurate picture, needs to first hand knowledge, otherwise more Bullshit stories abound. We dont learn anything from stories that cannot be verified and are heresay!!!!!!

By all means have a discussion about the negatives and POSITIVES of the current national show. This discussion though should be based around hard empirical data - Not so called horror stories. A number of breeders who have had birds represent there state have posted comments in a positive sense. Other posts have been 3rd hand stories. I dont know how anyone could have read you 1st post and not seen the negativity, any discussion should be able to highlight good and bad points and back them up with facts , not heresay or shed talk. Surely this forum is about promoting the Hobby in a postiive light.

Geez Kaz - talk about focus on the Negatives of our National show which is the pinnacle of our great hobby My experience of having birds selected to represent Victorian at the Nationals has been extremely postitive. All my birds that have gone away have come back in as good or better health than before they left, and all have gone on to breed successful for a number of years. The work the team carers do in getting the birds presented on the day is exemplary. I find it hard to beleive that someone would be in position not to send there best possible birds and send lesser birds from a family - there isnt a breeder in the country who has that luxury!!!! I'm sure there would be birds that do dying shortly after going away to the Nationals, but from my experience they are very few and far between, not the "many " in Kaz's post. This could be for a numbers of reasons and the bird may have died anyway. With respect to quarantine, I'm not a big fan of the elaborate procedures that are bandied around on this forum. Mine go back into a stock cage for a few days to week, where i keep an eye on them, then depending on how they fit into the breeding program they may go back into the flight or a breeding cage. To get a bird selected into the national team is a great achievement, considering the myriad of problems that arise with breeding top quality Budgerigars. I think the positive side of our current National show arrangements are FAR outweighed by any negatives that Kaz has bought up.......

Obviously todays friends have a better "eye" for a budgie than yesterday's friends!!! Hence the complete turn around from "poor quality birds" to "birds were outstanding"................. LMAO Shows you should always use your own being there experience and your own eye and judgement and not rely on others. We all look for differing things based on what features we need to buy in to our flocks and we base it also on what we see in our own birds at home. You cant rely on someone else's say so in most cases. or commonly referred to as "shooting one's mouth off"

Obviously todays friends have a better "eye" for a budgie than yesterday's friends!!! Hence the complete turn around from "poor quality birds" to "birds were outstanding"................. LMAO

Well said Pete!!!!! What happened to Splats post from earlier today, seems to have been removed. This type of thing (posts edited or moved or deleted) happens regularly on this forum...... Careful Heathrow, Your walking a thin line, You know you cant say anything against the forum. It's almost "Un-Australian" to say anything against the forum Matt. Some members seem to be able to say what they like and others dont!!!!

Well said Pete!!!!! What happened to Splats post from earlier today, seems to have been removed. This type of thing (posts edited or moved or deleted) happens regularly on this forum......

Quality cant of been that poor if they averaged $350 and top price was over 3k!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I actually add Salt to my birds diet via there softfood fed daily

I think the success thing has broader context - as a society we have become insatiable in the need for INSTANT outcomes. Everything needs to be instantaenous or we dont value it. Breeding Quality Budgies ( and most other forms of livestock) takes a long time, sure people can go to a top breeder and purchase a pair and win shows the next year. But how do they pair those birds the next year, without the assistance of the original breeder and without really knowing those birds. As for people getting disheartened with showing, because "so and so" is showing i think that also reflects on the instant society. The saying of "i show my birds so i can see it beaten by a better bird" definately applies, we show birds to get an idea of where improvemenst need to be made, and then incorporated these into our breeding plan for the next year.

Did anyone go to this auction today ????? How did it go??? What was the quality of birds like and what did they make????

How many people are ready to breed the proposed new classes for the 2013 & 2014 Nationals? Birds shown at the 2013 Nationals are rung with 2012 ring, which we receive on the 1st Sept, nearly 4 months away.

Budgies hate the taste of Wormout Gel

Welcome to the forum Clint Cheers Heath

try the Ross Loats auction -he won the Nationals a couple of years ago with a Clearwing and there is plenty of them in the Auction

National auction catalogue is available online http://www.budgerigar.com.au/National%202011/2011%20National%20-%20Auction%20Catalogue.pdf

Good to hear from you Heathrow. You are correct culling a nuffie budgie that has 3 or 4 okay siblings is no big deal. Losing a heifer calf potentially worth $1200 is a different story not to mention the effect of reduced fertlity and reduced milk production in the seemingly "normal" ones. You also have to consider the long term progress of the breed, When you reduce genetic variation (one of the consequences of inbreeding) you reduce the potential for gentic progress by making the population more homozygous. Inbreeding is a tool that needs to be used sensibly and judicously. Cheers PT The last line is the key, all breeding methods are tools which used correctly can be of great benefit, used incorrectly they are train wrecks.

The risk with pairing so close in Budgies isnt that great - if they turn out to be "nuffies' they get culled, on the other hand you have a cracker Budgie. I assume with Dairy cattle that the risks are significantly greater and would take a lot longer to rectify.

For those that knew Ross he passed away suddenly on 29/3/2011. Ross was a very successful breeder at the National level with quite a few varieties, this sale is a great opportunity to tap into a successful line of birds http://www.bcv.asn.au/Auction.htm

Top 5 Highest prices were $1400 for a Lange Grey Hen $950 for a Edwards GG Hen $900 for Bob Smith GG Spangle $800 for a Scoble Cobalt a couple of birds sold for $700 including a Cinn cock of mine, and a Wally Capper GG cock Lot of birds sold between $100 & $400, there were also some bargains. I recorded most lots, anyone wanting specific prices PM me

I will be there, also have some birds up for Auction

I agree with the Amount of changes that we are making not necessarily being a good thing, In 3 Years we have - Changed the ring issued date, Changed the perch sizes from 12 to 16mm, changed the National show date, 3 birds benched and now they want to add extra classes. Now i dont disagree with some of these changes individually, but collectively its significant. and too much. As for bringing extra classes to the National - i think its being pushed by a small minority of the fancy and isnt something that has just come up in the last 6 months, its being on the radar for a lot longer. As for the consultation part, the BCV conducted a survey into what members wanted with respect to the proposed new classes- and i think i heard that a very small number were recieved back - less that 20. I dont agree with the splitting of the mainstream varieties. And i am happy to leave the Suffused class out at the moment that way i can claim to be unbeaten at the National level with my suffused winning in 2007 and squeak people do try to breed suffused and they are being developed to a reasonably good standard. All this discussion doesnt take away from the difficulty in breeding exhibition budgerigars to a level to be competive at the Nationals.

could have helped you before Christmas Rob all gone now though

More often than not they die from shock a few days later.

Wynnum auction catalogue is available from there website http://www.wrbsinc.com/