nubbly5

OH NO! I let 2 disreputable people into my aviary on Saturday............

Thanks guys! Here's hoping for a good 2011/2012 season....... Sounds like there are a few problems going around fingers crossed that we have a smooth one this year. Last year wasn't much cop but the quality was there so I shouldn't complain.

I'm saying cobalt pied is a boy and the other two are girls.

So my last update of this thread before I start a new one for the coming season. I had an emotionally taxing year last year and I did lose sight of my birds for a while there. Never the less I have a few very nice youngsters from the season the two above plus this fellow - full brother to the green fellow. A super grey boy again grandson of the bird that came 10th at the Tassie Nats. Also this fellow. He is a split lacewing (different from the bird I showed in my last post). I love his directional feather - just an all round nice bird. Good size too. Son of 3rd place Nats lacewing. I also ended up with a good number of very usable fallows and some really strong hens. Some of which you can see when I start my new breeding season thread.

That's exactly how you tell that it's opaline..................... usually

Some really good birds in there fordmob. Looking forward to seeing pics of the youngsters!

Said it in one Kaz. Splat the pied or mottled markings on the pied can also affect the cere so if you imagine a cere with pigment removed by the pied gene you have the pink/purple cere - can occur in patches too so some of the cere can be blue whilst parts of it (that bear the pied markings) remain pink.Even on this bird there is a tiny bit of blue in the centre of the cere the rest of it is pied out.

Look the same as fertile eggs at first but show no blood vessel development after several days of incubation. After a while a fertile egg will look darker sort of and an infertile egg will still look freshly laid. Addled eggs often get dark and discoloured. I think there are several threads that will give you this sort of info.

Chlamydia is not the cause of yellow belly in chicks. DIS yes. Poor fertility and hatchability - prime identifiers of Psittachosis. Yellow belly - ecoli, staph or strep infection. Attained through yolk sac. Lincospectin treatment seems to be getting good reviews for treating this. Dunno myself though.

Yeah Kochy, if we haven't all made the same mistake........ It's a real balancing act between culling too hard (so you don't have enough backups) and culling to light (so you are carrying and using rubbish birds). A bit of trial and error and believe me I've seen some seasoned experts make the same too hard culling mistake!

Love it! I'd also like to see a shirt that says "Nothing sucks seeds like a budgie"

Well if they are already hanging around and making a pest of themselves, they've probably worked out that the easy meal comes from your budgies! Maybe the steak diversion is a good plan anyway - you know fill it up so that the budgies don't look so interesting.

Sorry justplainnuts I didn't read the rest of your post before. I've tamed many baby budgies over time and although I know a few people here will disagree I have found boys to be more pliable and willing pets than females and GENERALLY males bond better and talk better than females as well. Females TEND to be more aggressive and aloof. That's not to say that female budgies will not make great pets and I'm sure there are some out there that buck the GENERAL trend. But starting young you have the best chance of success. Check out all the threads on hand taming and you'll pick up some ripper tips.

Me thinks GIRL.

We have multiple Boobook Owls around. They nest nearby and in summer you can hear them all calling to each other. 2 have multiplied to what i think was at least 5 last season. Saw one the other evening but we usually close up the budgies at night and when we don't it's usually only the stupid young birds that have not worked out not to roost on the wire, that get got. The hawks, goshawks and harriers are more of a problem. Think I'll try the steak idea next time they are a problem!

My drinker set-up. http://forums.budgiebreeders.asn.au/index.php?showtopic=25037&st=0&p=297026&hl=+nipple%20+drinkers&fromsearch=1entry297026

Also a good way to change the light falling on the bird to check for a) suffusion/colour b ) eye colour if your unsure. I personally would be pretty offended if that was me in the video and I had picked the bird up to get some better light on it and was suddenly suspected of favouring a bird because of who bred it. Oh AND I don't want anything in front of the bird when I'm judging it. We had a look at the English drinkers and I was not happy with it obsuring the birds outline when it was on that particular perch. The ones we have now are bad enough.

Hmmm I've got mealworm colonies for the frogs. Might try and give the budgies some.

Mould can happen in the paddock as the seed is maturing if the weather is humid. Cattle and sheep get staggers from mould toxins on ryegrass seeds still on the stalk. Not usually anything to do with how you store the seed.It's why I rarely soak anything (except quinoa).

Looking forward to the pics Matt.

Melamine here too. Still messy in regards to seed chucked everywhere but easy to clean and disinfect. Dried on pooh washes off easily. Down side is they do harbour mite in the crevasses but you can deal with that. The only all wire cage I've ever had though was a holding cage but I did find it actually harder to clean that the melamine. My birds (and me) prefer Triple J.

For breeding purposes I always try and keep more hens than cocks but it doesn't always work that way. The general advice is 2 hens to one cock but that's in a exhibition stud with sexs separated other than at breeding time.

Ahhh yes, I remember now!!!!

Well I started the MAMMOTH task of cleaning out the breeding room ready for this season. I thought I might have some time to choose some pairs and take some picks of some of last years youngsters but got very little time before it was getting past the birdies bed time. But here are 2 boys that have been catching my eye for a little while. This fellow is the grandson of a green of mine that came 10th at the 2008 or 2009???? Nats. He is lovely and much stronger than his dad so I'm glad to be going in the right directing with this family. He's got an amazing blow which is something I'm very keen on. And he releases his cap very naturally even in the show cage - me likes! Another young boy that I've had my eye on is totally different in style and from a different family altogether. Very neat (cinnamon helps that though) not as long feathered but very nice directional feather and a big bird. I've been working really hard to get more size into the stud and it's paying off. Want more length in the facial feather though and more mask. When I get more time this weekend, I'll get to and take some more pics. Got some really lovely hens to show you.

Ooooh Daz! I like your tip there, never even thought of it before but seems so obvious. I'll be trying that with any stupid feather plucking hen this season. Millet sprays help but not always and with really stubborn feather pluckers I've resorted to moving chicks and culling the hen. I have a family of clearwings that feather pluck like B*stards!