A BREEDER AHEAD OF HIS TIME

By Gerald Binks

 

Since starting the Budgerigar World magazine in 1982, I have interviewed hundreds of very good breeders in their aviaries in many parts of the world all have contributed good ideas. Occasionally I come across a few breeders who seem to think more deeply than their contemporaries. One such breeder appeared recently when I went to see Daniel Lütolf in Würenlos, close to Zürich. Lütolf has that special eye that sees far ahead of the current ideal representations of the day. He sees what is beyond what is currently being bred and winning on the show bench. Harry Bryan in the UK had that ability, as does Jo Mannes in Germany and Henry George in Australia, to name a few.

 

Lütolf is 35 years of age and has been breeding birds since he was 11. A great deal of time and money was spent with little success until he purchased birds from Heinrich Ott, a top Swiss breeder. Heinrich Ott treated him very well, selling him stock, which bred superbly and produced his early winners. The pedigree background to Heinrich’s stock was based on Omerod and Sadler blood. Lütolf’s career is as a teacher, he teaches senior pupils in maths, geography and history. He travels extensively, going overseas to far off places so that he can pass on his experiences to his pupils, but he never forgets his birds at home and the friends at home whom he trusts to look after his birds safely, and he gives a big thank you to them.

 

The Lütolf aviary is split into three levels because of the steep gradient of his home. It is modest in presentation, but the birds are exceptional in quality...but difficult to buy if you strive for the best. Lütolf realised early, that he needed to design a bird to be ahead of others. This came from his ability to carve and paint. „I like big birds in proportion to their length. I knew that the 8 1/2 INS, small Budgerigar, in today’s exhibition world (216mm) was useless“, he said. „All top birds of today require a longer 91/2 ins (241mm) length to get the bird in balance, coupled with the shoulder substance that is required. The shorter length results in a bird with no substance and is completely out of date if you wish to win on the show bench, irrespective of your chosen variety”. He continued, “It is your choice, as a Beginner into which direction you go as you breed and as you create YOUR designer bird. You have to focus on that and set higher standards every season. I have always selected birds with big feet, but careful in my choice of breeding hens. I select birds with very big bone structure that are thick in the neck area. Interestingly, such birds create a problem that many of us are familiar with. This is the problem of today’s rings being too small for the bigger birds of today, and such rings have to be cut off before serious damage is done! Every year I was forced to cut off rings. I now get rings allocated officially that are larger in diameter at 4.4mm. They are perfect and there are no further problems for the birds and are accepted on the show bench.THE COLOURS

The colour range that Lütolf has is broad. There are Spangles, all the normals and some wonderful Violets, Olives, Lutinos, Texas Clearbodies, Yellows, Dilutes and Recessives. All mouth watering quality. He is now starting to attack the Clearwing variety. “To improve any variety” says Lütolf, “you have to pair them at the start to your very best birds. This is what Reinhard Molkentin did, followed by Jo Mannes with the very small Spangles that arrived in Germany years ago. To improve the recessive varieties, Clearbodies and Lutinos, I pair them to Spangles. The Spangle variety will improve such varieties considerably. Always remember that if you want to improve a rare variety you have to pair them to the best you have and if necessary go out and find super bird mo matter what its colour happens to be.”

 

PAIRING

Unlike the majority of breeders today, Lütolf breaks away from the conventional way of pairing normals together. He mixes many colour factors together continuously. Buying a pure bred is therefore difficult, but if the quality is in front of you, you take a different view. He never breeds two super birds together, or inbreeds, to avoid any feather problems or cysts. Nature does not select pairings as we do as fanciers. Lütolf also watches the mixed sexes and ages of the birds in the flights. The practice of having the sexes separate in different flights, he feels, encourages homosexuality and the following effect of cocks being afraid of certain hens that are perhaps aggressive by nature. Hence infertile eggs. If he sees a pair making up, then the chances are they will go straight into a breeding cage – and they breed. Lütolf is also critical of the standard practice we follow of pairing our Greens together and our Skyblues together and so on. He believes in mixing the colours, but in addition he uses the grey factor frequently, across the colours, a view held by Harry Bryan but not Dr. Alfred Robertson of South Africa, the well-known breeders of their period. To support his views, Lütolf will buy an outcross, breed with it and very often sell it immediately. It has left its blood behind and served its purpose.

 

LIGHTING PERIODS

The breeding room has a very powerful extraction system and recently a superb timed spray system developed by Sigbert Pestringer, to remove dust. The aviary always feels fresh. The lighting routine is interesting. Lights come on at 07.00 hours. The birds emerge to excrete and mate. They go off again at 13.30 hours and come on again at 15.45 hours. This follows a resting period that the observant will see easily in their own studs. At 15.45 hours they again mate with the light coming on until 23.30 hours.

 

FEEDING

Avoiding discussion about the normal feeding procedures, Lütolf prefers to feed natural products as well as seed etc. Hormova is the only manufactured product used together with various natural vitamin sources. Water is often changed twice daily to which is added a small dash of vinegar and lemon. “This lowers the possible rise in bacterial infections”. When breeding, the canary seed is increased. When not breeding, the millets have the upper hand. He feels that small sunflower gets the stock too fat.

We now come to vegetables. The range is very extensive and remarkable. Everything comes from the local market. Lütolf checks that none have been sprayed with pesticides and he uses natural food only.

Fennel, peppers, carrots, blackberries, broccoli, cauliflower, uncooked beetroot, grape leaves, tinned maize, and parsley to name most of them. All are chopped and desiccated, and when finished, some 10mls of olive oil is added and mixed in. Apple slices are dropped onto the flight floor. I wondered what else olive oil could be used for ? “When chicks turn white for no reason I give one drop to the beak and they return to normal colour. However I do not know why” he added. “The credit for this belongs to Reinhard Molkentin, not myself. Continuing, soaked wheat and oats are fed on alternate days. Tree branches are always in the flights and changed regularly.”

 

CONCLUSION

Please accept these Lütolf birds are very big and my concluding comment is that the Daniel Lütolf “quality of birds in depth”, in the top range, is one of the best I have seen anywhere in recent years.

 

 

AN INTERVIEW WITH DANIEL LUETOLF - SWITZERLAND By ROB DUNSTAN

 

This Interview was Emailed to me without any introduction to Daniel. The only result I got from enquiries was "He is near the top on the World scene and may even be the next Mannes". I tought that made the article worth printing and I have copied his advertisement from the Budgerigar World as an appropriate introduction.

 

1. DANIEL, YOU HAVE CERTAINLY SET THE WORLD ABUZZ WITH THE QUALITY OF BUDGERIGAR YOU ARE BREEDING, WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO COMMENCE IN THE HOBBY?

 

A. AS A CHILD I WAS FASCINATED WITH ANYTHING TO DO WITH FLIGHT, I WANTED TO BE A PILOT.

FIRST I LOOKED AT LARGER TYPE BIRDS, THEN AROUND THE TIME I WAS 12 YEARS OLD I GOT A PAIR OF CAGE BIRDS FROM MY RELATIVES. FROM THESE BIRDS I SOON GOT YOUNGSTERS. THIS WAS DUE IN PART TO BUYING A NEW PAIR OF SHOES. WHEN I RETURNED HOME WITH MY NEW SHOES, I TOOK THEM FROM THE BOX AND PLACED THE BOX IN THE BIRD CAGE. THE HEN LAID EGGS, HATCHED AND REARED THE YOUNG IN THE SHOE BOX. I ALSO BOUGHT SOME MORE BIRDS, MAINLY IN NICE COLOURS LIKE VIOLET AND LUTINO.

 

Q2. WHERE DID YOUR FIRST BIRDS COME FROM AND OVER WHAT PERIOD OF TIME DID YOU CONTINUE WITH THESE LINES?

 

A. WHEN I WAS 15 YEARS OLD I MET HEINRICH OTT FOR THE FIRST TIME. I GOT MY FIRST REAL SHOW BIRDS FROM HIM. AFTER SOME YEARS WE BECAME GOOD FRIENDS, WE ARE STILL GOOD FRIENDS TODAY.

BIRDS FROM THE STUDS OF EMIL SCHWEIZER AND JANOS PECE FOLLOWED. JANOS WON THE PRIZE FOR THE BEST BIRD OF SWITZERLAND TWO TIMES. I HAD THE LUCKY CHANCE TO GET TWO BROTHERS OF THIS BIRD. JANOS PECE GOT HIS BIRDS FROM HANS RUOSCH. HANS RUOSCH BOUGHT HIS BIRDS FROM JOSEPH SPECK, VERY WELL KNOWN IN THOSE TIMES. THE BIRDS FROM JOSEPH SPECK WERE BASED ON THE FAMOUS OLD STUDS OF SADLER, ORMEROD, FINNEY, MOFFAT, LANE & SON AND MRS MOSS.

THE COMBINATION OF OTT BIRDS, WHICH HAD VERY LARGE FEATHERS AND THE VERY FINE AND ELEGANT PECE BIRDS TOOK ME A BIG STEP FORWARD.

 

Q3. ARE YOUR PRESENT BIRDS FROM THESE SAME BLOODLINES, IF NOT WHAT BLOODLINES HAVE IMPACTED MOST WITHIN YOUR STUD?

 

A. YES, I STILL HAVE THESE BLOODLINES. UNTIL 1996 I ONLY HAD BIRDS FROM SWITZERLAND. AFTER 1996 I GOT BIRDS FROM RALPH JENNE, RICHARD KUHR, JOSEPH MANNES, KURT VOGT, BERND STEGEMANN AND IN THE LAST SOME YEARS REIHHARD MOLKETIN.

 

Q4. HOW DO YOU PREPARE YOUR BIRDS FOR THE BREEDING SEASON?

 

A. ALL OF MY BIRDS FLY IN THE MAIN FLIGHTS TOGETHER. BARHEADS, YOUNG BIRDS, ADULT COCKS AND HENS. THE REASON FOR THIS IS THAT THE YOUNG BIRDS SEE THE WHOLE BEHAVIOUR OF THE ADULTS, LIKE MATING AND SOON LEARN WHAT TO DO. IF THE SEXES ARE KEPT SEPARATE THEN WHEN THE YOUNG BIRDS GO INTO THE BREEDING CAGES THEY NEED TO LEARN WHAT TO DO. THIS WASTES TIME AND IS THE CAUSE OF MANY INFERTILE EGGS. I FEED THE SAME DIET ALL YEAR ROUND SO THERE ARE NO CHANGES IN THE DIET. I CUT THE VENT FEATHERS; I DO NOT PULL THEM OUT. I JUST CUT THEM SHORT, NOT BACK TO THE SKIN LEVEL.

 

Q5. WHEN PAIRING UP DO YOU GO BY PEDIGREE OR VISUAL APPEARANCES OR BOTH?

 

A WHEN PAIRING UP I LIKE TO LET THE BIRDS SELECT THEIR OWN PARTNERS WHERE

POSSIBLE IN THE AVIARY. WHEN I SEE TWO BIRDS PAIRED UP IN THE AVIARY, I PLACE THEM IN SHOW CAGES TO ASSESS THEM FOR COMPATIBILITY, IF ALL LOOKS FINE I HAVE A LOOK AT THEIR PEDIGREES AND IF THEY ARE NOT TOO CLOSELY RELATED I PUT THEM DOWN TO BREED. WHERE POSSIBLE I DON’T!!! PUT BEST TO BEST. OTHERWISE THE RESULTS MIGHT BE FEATHER DUSTERS.

 

Q6. HOW CLOSELY DO YOU MATE YOUR BIRDS AND WHAT RELATED MATINGS HAVE BEEN

THE MOST SUCCESSFUL?

 

A. THE CLOSEST I MATE MY BIRDS IS COUSINS, (YOU ALSO DON’T MARRY YOUR SISTER!!!), IT IS THE SAME WITH BUDGERIGARS. I DON’T USE LINE BREEDING AS I FEEL THIS BRINGS TOO MANY PROBLEMS IN PARTICULAR FEATHER PROBLEMS. IT MAY WORK FOR A FEW YEARS, BUT EVENTUALLY YOU WILL HAVE PROBLEMS. I LIKE BREEDING WITH OLDER BIRDS AT THE AGE OF 3 TO 4 YEARS OLD OR EVEN 5 YEARS OLD. I PREFER TO PAIR AN OLD PARTNER WITH A YOUNG ONE.

 

Q7. WHAT VARIETY MIXES DO YOU USE FOR IMPROVEMENT IF ANY OR IS IT BEST TO BEST?

 

A. I BREED NORMALS, OPALINES, SPANGLES, PIED, RECESSIVE PIED, DILUTES, CLEARBODY, CINNAMON AND THIS YEAR I HAVE STARTED WITH CLEARWING. AT DIFFERENT TIMES I HAVE PUT SPANGLE TO EVERYTHING, I STILL DO. IT DOESN’T MATTER WHAT THE COLOURS ARE AS LONG AS THE BIRDS ARE SUPER BIRDS. THE HEN DOESN’T HAVE TO BE A SUPER BIRD, THESE HENS BREED FAR BETTER NORMALLY AND YOU CAN MAKE A SELECTION AT THE END OF THE BREEDING SEASON WHEN GETTING 10 OR 15 CHICKS FROM ONE COUPLE. THE SELECTION IS PROBABLY THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IN THE HOBBY. I SEE MANY BREEDERS THAT SELL THEIR WRONG BIRDS. THEY ALL JUST LOOK AT THE PHENOTYPE (visual quality) AND NOT THE GENOTYPE (pedigree). SO THEY LOSE EXACTLY WHAT THEY WOULD NEED. I ALWAYS BRING IN NEW BLOOD SO AS NOT TO GET TOO CLOSELY RELATED BIRDS. IF I CAN BUY A SUPER BIRD I DO, BUT THEY DON’T HAVE TO BE BECAUSE I OUTCROSS AND THEN CROSS BACK AGAIN. IF THEN, THERE IS NO QUALITY, THEY GO, UNLESS THEY ARE FROM A SUPER PAIR.

 

Q8. HOW MANY CHICKS AND ROUNDS DO YOU ALLOW YOUR BIRDS TO HAVE?

 

A. SHOW HENS HAVE TWO ROUNDS OF EGGS AND RAISE 3 TO 4 CHICKS. IF THEY LAY AGAIN, THE EGGS ARE TRANSFERRED. THE COCKS BREED FROM OCTOBER TILL MAY OR JUNE, IF THEY STAY IN CONDITION.

 

Q9. 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?

 

A. I HAVE FOUND THAT IT IS THE NORMAL THING TO HAVE SMALL BIRDS WITH GOOD HEAD QUALITIES OR BIG ONES WITH SMALL HEADS. MOST TIMES IF BIRDS HAVE GOOD LENGTH THEY DON’T HAVE THE HEAD QUALITIES. THE BEST WAY TO FIX THIS IS TO PUT THESE TWO TYPES TOGETHER AND SLOWLY IMPROVE BOTH LENGTH AND HEAD. I THINK IN THE FUTURE THE MOST IMPORTANT FEATURE IS DIRECTIONAL FEATHER.

 

Q10. YOU HAVE GOT AN EXCEPTIONAL DEPTH IN YOUR STUD, QUALITY OF DIRECTIONAL FEATHER ABOUNDS. PLEASE GIVE A SUMMARY OF HOW YOU HAVE GOT THE BIRDS TO WHERE THEY ARE TODAY AND CAN FANCIERS GO TOO FAR?

 

A. THIS QUESTION I FEEL HAS BEEN MOSTLY ANSWERED IN THE PREVIOUS QUESTIONS BUT 5 YEARS AGO I USED MOSTLY CINNAMONS AND DILUTES WITH GOOD RESULTS, THEN IT ALL CHANGED WHEN I BROUGHT IN THIS BIRD, AN OPALINE GREY GREEN HEN. SHE WAS A GRAND DAUGHTER FROM THE OLD OPALINE GREY GREEN COCK BORN AUGUST 1997. HE WAS MY VERY BEST BIRD I EVER BRED, BUT HE WAS A FRENCH MOULTER AND SO I COULD NEVER SHOW HIM. FROM THIS BIRD I HAD 47 CHICKS IN 3 YEARS WITH

DIFFERENT HENS. GENERALLY I BRED SOME OUTSTANDING BIRDS IN THE NINETIES AND GOT THESE BIRDS TO BREED AS WELL. BREEDERS GO DEFINITELY TOO FAR IF THEIR BIRDS GET FEATHER PROBLEMS AND CYSTS OR CAN’T FLY ANYMORE. ALWAYS REMEMBER WE ARE BREEDING BUDGIES, NOT CHICKENS!!!!!!

 

 

 

 

 

Q11. WHAT IS YOUR FEEDING PROGRAMME DURING THE BREEDING SEASON AND DOES THIS DIFFER DURING THE NON BREEDING SEASON?

 

A. I HAVE MY OWN SEED MIX. EVERY SECOND DAY, SOFT FOOD AND SOAKED OATS.

SOFT FOOD CONTAINS 8 EGGS BOILED (SHELLS INCLUDED IN MIX) AS MANY ORGANICALLY GROWN VEGETABLES AS ARE AVAILABLE (CUT UP SMALL) OLIVE OIL WEIZEN OIL (WHEAT) HONEY (FOR POLLEN CONTENT) ALGAN (SEAWEED) THIS IS FED TO ALL BIRDS BREEDING AND NON BREEDING.

 

Q12. PLEASE DESCRIBE YOUR AVIARY DESIGN, SIZE, FLIGHTS, BREEDING CAGE DESIGN AND NUMBER OF CAGES ETC?

 

A. I HAVE 60 BREEDING CAGES. 2 FLIGHTS, ONE UPSTAIRS AND ONE DOWNSTAIRS. MY AVIARY IS TWO STOREY.

 

Q13. DO YOU USE PREVENTATIVE MEDICATION DURING AND PRE BREEDING SEASON AND IF SO WHAT AND WHY.

 

A. YES, TETRACYCLINE PASTA AND BAYTRIL

 

Q14. 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?

 

A. I FEEL THIS GENERATION OF BREEDERS IS TOO OLD. WE NEED YOUNG BREEDERS AND WE NEED TO GIVE THEM AS MUCH ASSISTANCE AS THEY REQUIRE, WE ALSO MUST ENSURE THAT THEY GET IT.

 

Q15. WHAT IS THE BENEFIT OF HAVING A NATIONAL SHOW?

 

A. THESE ARE THE BEST SHOWS FOR ME. WE GET INTERNATIONAL JUDGES AT THESE SHOWS. IT GIVES YOU A BETTER IDEA OF HOW YOU ARE GOING. ALSO I LIKE THE COMPETITION. I TAKE PART IN THE THREE BIGGEST SHOWS IN SWITZERLAND AND THE EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP IN KARLSRUHE.

 

Q16. HOW WOULD YOU GO ABOUT POINTING A NOVICE BREEDER IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION TO ENABLE THEM TO REACH THE TOP BENCH IN AROUND FIVE YEARS?

 

A. I SUGGEST IT WOULD TAKE A LOT LONGER THAN 5 YEARS TO REACH THE TOP BENCH. NEW BREEDERS SHOULD BUY CHEAP BIRDS FIRST AND WORK WITH THEM, HANDLE THEM AND LEARN FIRST. READ EVERYTHING AVAILABLE AND ASK QUESTIONS OF THE EXPERIENCED BREEDERS. EXPERIENCE AND KNOWLEDGE ARE THE KEYS. THEN BUY EXPENSIVE BIRDS, IF THEY BUY EXPENSIVE BIRDS FIRST AND THINGS GO WRONG, THEY GET FRUSTRATED AND LEAVE THE HOBBY. ALWAYS REMEMBER IT IS A HOBBY, NOT A BUSINESS.

 

Q17. WHAT DO YOU DO WITH BIRDS WITH FEATHER DISORDERS?

 

A. FRENCH MOULTERS CAN BE USED, ONE OF MY BEST BIRDS EVER WAS AN OPALINE GREEN COCK (FRENCH MOULTER) BUT A MAGNIFICENT BIRD OTHERWISE. HE BRED A LOT OF EXCELLENT CHICKS WITH NO FEATHER FAULTS. IF YOU DO USE THEM, THEY MUST BE OF THE BEST QUALITY. AND IF YOU GET CHICKS FROM THEM WITH FRENCH MOULT, STOP BREEDING WITH THE PARENTS, CLEAN OUT THE NESTING QUARTERS THOROUGHLY, WAIT FOUR MONTHS AND START AGAIN. IF FEATHER PROBLEMS CONTINUE, DON`T USE THEM AGAIN!

 

Q18. WHO HAS INSPIRED YOU THE MOST IN THE FANCY?

 

A. DEFINITELY HEINRICH OTT .

 

Q19. LAST BUT NOT LEAST, GIVEN ALL OF THE ABOVE, DO YOU HAVE ANY OTHER TIPS OR HINTS ON HOW TO IMPROVE AND SUSTAIN AN EXHIBITION BUDGERIGAR STUD?

 

A. KEEP THE BEST CHICKS, ESPECIALLY MANY HENS, SELL THE REST. MIX THE COLOURS, MIX THE FACTORS. EXAMPLE OPALINE GREY GREEN/BLUE AND CINNAMON COCK WITH A COBALT CINNAMON SPANGLE HEN, DARK GREEN OR GREY GREEN OR OLIVE X LUTINO. VIOLET X ALBINO (NO SHEEN).

ALL BIRDS SHOULD FLY WELL AND HAVE ALL FEATHERS FOR SHOWING. SHOW BIRDS MUST BE IN PROPORTION. IT IS BETTER TO HAVE A SMALL BIRD IN PROPORTION THAN A LARGE ONE THAT IS NOT.

KEEP ALL THE BABIES FROM YOUR BEST BIRDS, ALSO IF THEY LOOK LIKE RUBBISH. LET THE BIRDS CHOOSE THEIR PARTNERS; YOU‘LL GET MUCH MORE FERTILE EGGS TRY TO CREATE YOUR OWN STYLE OF BIRD THAT EVERYBODY WILL RECOGNIZE IMMEDIATELY. KEEP THE BIRDS CLEAN, CHANGE THE WATER AT LEAST ONCE A DAY. BUY BIRDS WITH GOOD BACKGROUND. IT MAKES NO SENSE AT ALL TO SELL YOUR BEST BIRDS.

 

DANIEL, THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME ON THE TELEPHONE, IT IS ALWAYS GREAT TO TALK TO YOU.

DANIEL TOLD ME HE FELT HONOURED TO BE THOUGHT OF FOR AN INTERVIEW, I AM SURE THE HONOUR IS ALL OURS.

 

 

Visit the Luetolf Website

http://www.daniel-luetolf.ch/index_english.htm

Edited January 24, 200718 yr by Bubbles

Daniel Lütolf

 

WHERE POSSIBLE I DON’T!!! PUT BEST TO BEST. OTHERWISE THE RESULTS MIGHT BE FEATHER DUSTERS.

 

Very interesting article, I have heard Joe Mannes speak also very highly of Daniel.

 

It is interesting on his comment about FDs. Feather Dusters first occurred in the same year across England and Europe. There was thought at the time that it might have been caused by radio activity or a viral infection. I believe that many still are unsure of the real cause.

 

Many agree that best to best is a no no.

 

Also the closest that he breeds is Cousin to Cousin. This is interesting that a breeder of Daniel’s standards doesn’t line breed. I have found it is very rare in the Show World.

 

A very good Cinnamon Dark Green Hen

Edited March 25, 201015 yr by KAZ