All Entries Tagged With: "seed"

The Dicavalli Stud – Henry George

Henry George lives with his wife, Diane in a stunning area just north of Brisbane in Queensland. He is arguably one of Australia’s pre-eminent budgerigar breeders and his results at national level are second to none. For the record, Henry was the driving force to get 4500 birds into Australia from the UK so many years ago and the leader of the first syndicate.

Budgerigar Health Part 1 of 5 – Emergency First Aid

The first response to failing health should be to isolate any sick bird(s) to a hospital cage. The hospital cage should be pre-heated to 25-30 degrees Celsius, possess a perch, fresh seed and have Quik Gel in the drinking water. The floor should be lined with clean paper so that the droppings can be clearly viewed.

Concern over USA & Canada Seed Supplies – Rest of The World Please Note!

All livestock producers, including avian fanciers, are advised to “test” their grain for Mycotoxins (poisonous microfungi substances) for possible seed contamination.

The safest way to protect your budgerigars, is to add a propionic acid powder (such as Monoprop) when loading your seed bins.

Flecking in Chicks – Ionisers – White Ceres – Cod Liver Oil

Cod liver oil is seriously valuable for its vitamin contents as these give health and great energy to the stock, as well as the iodine content for the thyroid – without which budgerigars do not reproduce easily.

Daniel Lütolf – A Breeder Ahead Of His Time

In my time, 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 is Daniel Lütolf in Würenlos, close to Zürich, Switzerland.
Lütolf has [...]

Preparing to Breed

In the last 6 weeks I have been working to get the aviary “winterised”. A very cold one by UK standards is forecast. So, having a cedarwood exterior, it needs treating every three years without fail. That has resulted in it still being as good today as it was when I purchased it in 1971. It would be massively expensive to replace as it covers 1200 square feet (110 sq metres).

French Moult and Why You Get It

I am one of those breeders who believe in the old fashioned tried and tested methods of feeding. When it comes to feeding, it is THE vital factor to success. If it (the feeding) is out of balance by the smallest amount and by that I mean it is changed frequently and has an absence of essential vitamins to support the seed input, then failure will result in the number of chicks bred and FM will arise easily because YOU have allowed to do so!!

Fertility & Feeding

I have found that in my book “The Challenge” fanciers love to read the “juicy bits” but when it comes to the two most important chapters in the whole book – the ones on feeding – they gloss over them. They are the vital chapters because without taking them step by step and understanding what is required, then a failed breeding season is very likely.