Daz

It's just above the rump, lower back.

Yes the standard is very strict for the cages. The hand hold is for carrying. we can also stack the cages on top for storage. Most of the regualations regarding show cages is to standardise the exibits. all the cages look exactly the same. The only difference is the bird inside, which is being judged. It will interest you to know that there is no water allowed in that drinker before judging. This is for 2 reasons. The bird may bath in it and wreck it's chance for winning. The other is that people could cheat. If I was to try to cheat I could approach the judge and offer money but he would have to know which one is my bird. I would have to "mark" the cage in some way for him to know. I could add a different colour seed or sand in the cage (not allowed), I could put a different colour water in the drinker (no water is allowed in the drinker), I could mark the cage with a cross or tick or something (not allowed). So as you can see it is very inportant to keep a Standard for the cages to stop the possibilities of cheating. Even that sticker on the bottom right must be there. In some states of Australia the sticker is on the left, but for the nationals the stick must comply with the main regulations. When you briong the birds in to be judged, you hand them to the stewards and they inspect the cages for markings. If the cage is damaged and not in good order they can reject it.

There are many factors to consider if you are aiming to breed the ultimate budgerigar. The art of breeding a show-winner lies in your ability to combine all of these in a single bird. Let us discuss the points which are necessary to make up the formula for breeding a show winner. These are not necessarily in order of importance. The Head This can be sub-divided into categories: Width of Head - The Ideal bird should have sufficient width between the eyes i.e. when you look at it from the front, you should not be able to see the eyes. Width of Face - This term should not be confused with width of head - a budgerigar can have a good width of head and a narrow face, we term this 'pinched'. When viewed from the front, the area next to the beak on both sides, as well as below the eyes, should be full and not hollow. Frontal - There is nothing more spectacular than a budgerigar displaying good frontal-rise. When viewed from the side, the forehead should commence at the cere, lifting outward and upward. Top-Skull - This is one of the most difficult features to breed into a budgerigar. It is the distance between the eye and the top of the head. A good specimen should display sufficient height above the eye. Back-Skull - Another very important aspect. You will see that the top birds at shows excel in this feature. It gives that extra bit of class and finish to a winner. This is the distance between the eye and the back of the head. Beak - It must be well tucked in and only slightly visible when viewed from the side. When viewed from the front it must be well set into the face. Birds displaying this characteristic usually have the 'downward look' which is so important in an exhibition budgerigar. Eye - Although the current Ideal describes the position of the eye to be central in the head, most of the top breeders are now breeding birds with the distance to the front of the cere from the eye 25%, and the distance behind 75%. Mask - This is the lower picture frame of the face of the bird, and together with the spots add the finishing touch. It should be wide, deep and clear. Spots - There should be six large, round, evenly spaced throat spots, the outer two being partially covered by the cheek patches. The spots should be placed within the mask, just inside the lowest point so that the outline of the mask is just visible. Neck - Must be short and thick when viewed from the front, back or either side. Shape The shape or outline of the bird should taper gracefully from the nape of the neck to the tip of the tail, with an approximately straight back-line and a deep, nicely curved chest. The wings should be well braced, carried just above the cushion of the tail and should not cross. There should be seven primary flight feathers and the length of the wings should be approximately 90mm (3 3/4 inches). Common faults in the shape of the budgerigar include: Broken backline Hump on the neck Hump on the cushion Hollow back Protruding chest Crossed wings Drooping tails Falling away behind the perch The body of the Ideal budgerigar should carry through behind the perch in a graceful sweep, and the tail, which consists of two long feathers, should be carried in a straight line with the body. Size The ideal length of a budgerigar is 216mm (8 1/2 inches) from the top of the head to the tip of the tail. The body should also be full and not show any signs of hollowness or any excess weight and should be well proportioned. Deportment This is generally called 'type', which means the way in which the bird sits on the perch, or the style of the bird. The ideal show-bird should have a proud, fearless look and ideally, should pull its head slightly back, as well as having a downward look. A real 'showman'. The position on the perch should be steady and at an angle of 30 degrees from the vertical. Legs And Feet These should be straight and strong, with the two front and two rear toes and claws, firmly gripping the perch. Markings And Colour Wavy markings on the cheeks, head, neck, back and wings should be clearly visible. The colour should be clear, level and of an even shade. I have described the "Ideal Budgerigar" that we all would like to breed, but you must remember that there are not many of them around. So when you are endeavouring to buy a bird and it does not show all these features, you must not be over critical. Certain characteristics are not desirable in a show-bird, but are very important in a stock-bird, such as coarse feathering and long flightedness. A bird may also excel in one feature and fail in another, but it is entirely up to the breeder to put the jig-saw puzzle together in building the "Ideal Budgerigar". Information by Johan Theunissen

I finished the bench during the week. and will start the flights today.

Too many people buy expensive birds and are not happy with the outcome. Lose interest and leave the fancy. As novices you need to start low and work up.

I should finish this off. After the show the birds are brought home and placed in a clean stock cage with a High carbohydrate suppliment to the water. I give them also fresh vegatables and oats to build up their strength. They stay for 2 to 3 days to build strength before going back to the flight. ....and the trophies are put on the mantel place

Cinnamon crossed with an Albino or Lutinos results in a lacewing. But can dilute the body colour and size of the birds. You can get a better results from crossing a cinnamon hen with a good grey cock. The resulting hens will hopefully have the feathering of the cinnamon but not the sex gene. These hens can then be mated to good lutino and albino cocks to give the feathering and size. Grey to albino and violet to lutino are good pairings for colour.

Well that sounds promissing. Let us know how it goes.

That depends on what colour the hen is. If she is green she could be split to blue which means if you pair her to a blue cock you should get blue chicks. If you pair her to a grey green you will get green, grey, grey green and blue.

Hi Danieru, strange no one has answered you. being your first post. Budgies lay between 3 to 10 eggs. average isabout 5 to 7. 1 is laid approximately every other day. By now the first and second one could be candled to see if they are fertile. To do this shine a small but bright light behind the egg, you don't need to touch it. If it is fertile there will be a red or dark red glow through the egg. If it is not fertile it will have a yellow or yellowish glow. after 14 days old a fertile egg will have no glow at all. This is how I now candle the eggs. If you clean your hands well in disinfectant you could lift the egg and shine the torch through the eggs and see the chick develop inside. I can't tell you the odds of the eggs being fertile that is up to the hen and cock.

Bea is right. As soon as people see the ground colouring in the wing they presume it's an opaline. This is not always the case. It is usualy a badly marked Spangle. This is a Spangle Opaline Grey Green Hen

Much has been written about the sex linked factors and how they affect breeding expectations. However, most publications tend to become too involved, and except for a few who persevere with the subject, many beginners lose interest and pass it over. With this in mind, the following information is presented for those who want just a basic working knowledge of the subject. First, however, we must very briefly cover the basic genetic make-up of a budgerigar. Like all living creatures, it has a certain number of pairs of Chromosomes.There are thirteen pairs to be precise. These chromosomes carry all the features that the bird possesses, i.e. shape, stance, size, feather type, spots, and so on. One pair of these chromosomes however are known as the sex chromosomes because these alone control that factor and it is this pair that we are concerned with when it comes to the sex linked features. A cock bird has two 'X' type sex chromosomes. A hen bird has one 'X' and one 'Y' type sex chromosome. As the young only received one chromosome from each parent, you can see that it is the hen that decides the sex of the young, as the cock can only pass on an 'X' type chromosome. Features that are said to be sex linked, can only be carried on the 'X' type. For the sex linked feature to be visible, it must be carried on both of the 'X' chromosomes in the case of cock birds, but only needs to be present on the one 'X' chromosome, when it comes to the hens. If a cock bird only carries the feature on one of the chromosomes, it is said to be split for that particular sex linked feature. With hens, if the bird does not show the feature visible, it cannot pass it on, no matter how it has been bred. THE SEX LINKED FEATURES At present there are six colours that are known to be sex linked; that is, carried on 'X' chromosome. 1. Albino 2. Cinnamon 3. Lutino 4. Opaline 5. Fallow 6. Slate The last two are quite rare nowadays, so most fanciers are only concerned with the first four. Having disposed of the basic genetic principles, let us now get down to the facts when it comes to breeding. All you need to know is what you can expect to result from the pairing of these sex linked birds. The percentages of each possible outcome that you will obtain, can only be verified over a vast number of pairings. In fact it is doubtful if you could keep the birds alive long enough to even accomplish the necessary number of matings. As you can see, quoted percentages are purely academic. RULES If both parents are visual normals, then, if any sex linked young turn up in the nest, they will always be hens. A visual sex linked hen must always be used if sex linked cocks are required. Although a split cock paired to a visual hen will produce visual sex linked cocks, there is no guarantee, so to be sure you should always use a visual cock as well as a visual hen. Let us now consider the four sex linked features that are of most concern. 1. Cinnamon 2. Opaline Both of these only have a modifying effect on the birds basic colouration. 3. Albino 4. Lutino Both of these mask completely the basic colour. Albino masks the blue series of birds and the Lutino masks the green series. Further, if Lutino is paired with Albino, the Lutino will completely mask the Albino feature, providing there is no blue in the background of the Lutino. RECOGNITION IN THE NEST BOX Recognition of young sex linked chicks at the early stages of development can be made as follows: Cinnamon Up to 5 days old they have plum coloured eyes; after this they can be identified by the fawn coloured down as distinct from the darker normal coloured down. Opaline The down on these chicks is much lighter, being white in colour. Albino/Lutino Other than having white down they also have red eyes. Information by S.B. Richardson

Thanks All. Some changes needed today. The night light was too bright and they stayed up partying all night. So I am looking for a dimmer bulb. I will start to put the training/show cages in today and design the flights.

Well the birds are in. And hopefully settled. Next is the flights.

Sco-tie it's not good to have air conditioners in the breeding room. they dry out the eggs. It is best to have an evaporative air conditioner. **UPDATE** Wire is on the windows. Sheeting and Electrical is complete. Stands for the cages are completed. I am going to move the birds back in this afternoon, when cooler. Next week i'll start on the flights.

The right time to remove chicks from their parents is always a tricky decision to make. They are watched carefully when they first leave the comforts of the nest box, and only when I see that they are feeding themselves properly do I take them away. More importance is put on their ability to look after themselves than their actual age. When removed from the breeding cage, they are placed into a large stock cage, usually twenty birds at a time. This is a critical time in their life, as a good rate of growth must be maintained if a chick is ever going to fulfil its potential as an exhibition bird. During this period it is essential that a varied and nutritious diet is provided. My chicks are fed on a good seed mixture which includes Trill and H amp; S Clarke's seed - the final mix consists of 75% canary, 25% millet and a small amount of groats. I find this mixture is ideal for use all year round. The rearing-food I prefer to use is EMP, slightly dampened with water. It is made available in finger-drawers for the breeding cages, and small dishes on the floor in the stock cages and flight. Dry brown bread is also fed daily to the young chicks and to the stock housed in the flight. They probably play with just as much as they actually eat. Corn-on-the-cob and carrots are fed weekly but not on the same day. Fresh tap water is always available, with no vitamins added. Once the chicks have been housed on their own for two to three weeks, they are transferred to my large inside flight. I would not be happy to see unmoulted birds in an outside flight at the time of year most of us do our pairing and breeding, I feel it would be far too stressful for them. It is my opinion that they develop much better if housed in a large inside flight rather than if kept in stock cages for long periods. Once these young birds go into the inside flight they need to be checked regularly. Any that are looking off-colour and fluffed-up should be returned to stock cages to strengthen themselves. Never leave your youngsters with minimal attention during this period as they may become ill and weak very rapidly - and normally it will be a good chick this happens to! People who can devote more time to their birds at this and at other times of the year have a much better chance of success on the show bench - this is a seven day a week hobby! Information by Steve Robertson

Sailorwolf, what do you mean "It still has its little umbilical cord " that is not good. that means that the yolk had not receaded to the chick before hatching. It wasn't going to make it anyway. I am sorry for you lost. I just read this post.

Strangely enough the Breeding season also coincides with the show season...

The best time to pair up is March to October (Australia). The proper breeding season is December to April but it's too hot in the aviaries/breeding rooms.

Hi FGM I use Passwells Budgie starter in my softfoods. But at the very worst use egg and biscuit and mix with grated carrot to make a crumbly mixture. give 2 table spoons per breeding pair per day. This is better than nothing.

Hi jjg yes I am in Warner near Strathpine.

Hi FGM not too conserning but it looks like JJ has been playfully plucked. I would have expected more down feathers. The hen is problibly doing it. I would increase the protien and calcium and keep an eye on him. There are feathers maturing and areas of no feathers. How old is he

Does he have a white tail Nerwen?

Very good Hath.. I picked up some tips there. Three to four days to show I start the team on Vetafarm SPARK ELECTROVET to start increasing their stamina, energey and help them cope with the stress. They will be on this after the show to bring them dowm. I continue to spray. Day before the show. Assessment of the birds and the show cages. Any repairs on both are done. The Cages can not be marked in any way so any scratches are dealt with. Birds are hand washed again and any pin feathers are gently attended to with a clean tooth brush. Flight, Vent and tail feathers are checked. After the birds are dried, clean white caps have baby powder applied and excess is dusted off. Training is the show cages continue in the morning only. As I have only a few Show cages I don't want to reclean the cages again till after the show. Any bird that doesn't meet my required standard should be left at home.

That is sooo true. Some very good advice from Hath. Hope to see you tomorrow. FGM