It’s THE society, for budgerigar breeders and exhibitors, that caters for the needs of those who live in London, Surrey, Sussex, Kent, Middlesex, Essex and Hampshire.

There are also a number of members from outside our region and overseas – as they believe the society is one of the best in the UK.

Events

The society holds various shows and events throughout the year.

The events and dates for 2010 are as follows.

• Young Bird show and Seminar – 27th June – Smallfield
• Open show – 25th July – Smallfield
• Specialist & Rare Variety show – 10th October – Smallfield
• New Fancier & Beginner’s Day – 24th October – Smallfield
• Sales & Promotional Day – 14th November – The Market Hall, Maidstone, Kent

Our events at Smallfield are held at Centenary Hall, Smallfield, Surrey, which is about three miles from Gatwick airport.

Patronage

We give Patronage in the form of rosettes and various awards to shows in our area as well as a few selected shows outside the area. These awards are for competition amongst our members at these shows. For those who take showing seriously, winning a L&SCBS rosettes is highly prestigious.

News & Information

We believe in keeping in contact with our members and we do this by sending out regular newsletters. These are usually two sides of A4 so they are concise, informative and always up to date with society news and information. These also carry news from our local specialist societies.

The society knows how difficult it is to get help and advice when you need it, so it has set up a HelpLine where a group of experienced fanciers can be contacted by telephone. These fanciers are available for basic non-veterinary advice when it’s needed. Our new members and those new to the hobby find this service extremely valuable.

Exhibition Budgerigars

When showing budgerigars it’s vital to have them with your own rings, which need to carry your own personal ring number. Members can order such rings to enable them to show their birds at any exhibition.

Society Administration

The society is managed by a group of members known as the General Council. This consists of a President, Secretary, Subscription Secretary, Treasurer, Patronage Secretary, Chairman and a committee of up to ten people. These members come from the whole area and meet about eight times a year to manage the society’s affairs.

Join Us !

The L&SCBS is a society with the primary objective of encouraging and supporting people to keep, breed and show budgerigars. If you live in the area covered by the society – you NEED to be a member.

Our subscription rates are –

• Adult – £12
• Husband & Wife – £14
• Senior Citizen & Disabled – £7
• Junior – £5

Further details are available from –

• The General Secretary
  Malcom Parsons
  Tel 01903 246297
  e-mail malcolmparsons@btopenworld.com

• Treasurer & Subscription Secretary
  Paul Tiller
  Tel 01932 860842
  e-mail paul@ptiller.com

For more information about the society see our website at: www.landscbs.org.uk

They had also visited other leading breeders and had now reversed their former opinions completely, including their opinions while at my aviary.

I think their earlier views a few years back were possibly true, but the UK has not stood still and many breeders have attacked very hard and are now breeding super birds – as was shown at the 2009 Budgerigar Society Championship.

The only difficulty is that there are perhaps only a few UK breeders who have great depth of quality to be able to sell really good outcrosses – but that applies to all countries.

GSB: Imports from EU Member States are covered by a General Licence (obtainable from your local branch of DEFRA). This is published which allows you to make an import without having to apply for a specific licence to accompany each individual import. If you want to import budgerigars, the main conditions are:

• The premises of origin must be officially registered by the authorities in the Country of Origin
• The birds have to carry a closed ring
• You, the importer, MUST tell your local Animal Health Office 24 hours before you intend to bring in the birds
• The birds MUST be accompanied by a health certificate signed by an official veterinarian in the Country of Origin within 48 hours of departure, as follows:
  • The birds do not come from an aviary and have not come from an aviary on which psittacosis has been recorded in the past 2 months
  • They have not come from an aviary that has had avian flu diagnosed in the past 30 days
  • They do not come from an area where there has been a recorded outbreak of Newcastle’s Disease
  • N.B. The above three rules also apply to imports from Switzerland (even though it is NOT an EU Member State)

It is inadvisable to return to the UK without having conformed with the easy rules quoted above. To do so risks the birds being impounded / destroyed at the exit port or port of arrival by the authorities and future imports by you will be affected.

How do I import budgerigars into the UK from outside Europe?

GSB: Contact your local Animal Health Office. They will supply you with all the data applicable to the country from which you wish to import – outside the EU (N.B. Switzerland is outside the EU – BUT see the note above re Switzerland).

Particular note should be made about the form of crate design for the transport of budgerigars. If not followed accurately, problems will be encountered at the airports of entry. You will be supplied by Animal Health with such details as are required by the International Air Traffic Association (IATA). If you have constructional problems, then I can recommend Airpets. They will be happy to advise and can make the exact crates you require.

Birds imported from outside the EU must be quarantined for 30 days in a separate Animal Health approved “aviary” at least 400 metres from your own aviary. Veterinary inspections are involved on arrival and at the end, with dropping samples being taken for testing, in between.

On arrival at the UK airport, there are customs charges and sometimes agency fees involved for collection from the aircraft and delivery to the relevant Animal Quarantine Inspection Service (AQIS). The London (Heathrow) AQIS is close to Terminal 4.

How do I export budgerigars from the UK?

GSB: Contact local Animal Health Office and request the documentation applicable to all rules / regulations for the safe export of live birds via the airlines.

Alternatively, you can use an agency – I can recommend Airpets – which saves a great deal of time and worry. An agency will take care of the following:

• IATA construction / you advise the total number of birds travelling
• All applications to DEFRA (Animal Health) for you to export
• Veterinary inspection & approval of the birds before departure

The above agency services can be quoted and passed on to your buyer. It is your responsibility to contact your intending purchaser to obtain a licence from their ministry approving their import. This has to be sent to you and travels with the consignment along with all other data. Sometimes a valuation of the birds is required for customs purposes in the receiving country. Discuss this with your buyer.

It is customary for your buyer to send you the finance in advance before you order crates etc. Be warned that you should check with your bank that your money has been cleared – even via electronic payment which takes three days, or, in the case of cheques allow five days.

You can then arrange personal delivery to the agency, together with all labels (addressed). The agency should also be able to collect from you, if required, with charges levied as appropriate.

Useful links

Animal Health (DEFRA)

• To find you local Animal Health office, go to their website (www.defra.gov.uk/animalhealth) or call their import / export helpline on 0845 603 0807.

Airpets

• Airpets website – www.airpets.com – or call them on 0800 018 5571.