C.J.
118 posts
Apr 19, 2006
5:53 AM
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O.K. here's another question. How many of you use the open loft breeding concept? How many pair them up in nesting boxes? How many use fosters?
I personally choose the pairings by locking them in nesting pens but I also use fosters to maximize the outcome.
C.J.
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Santandercol
34 posts
Apr 19, 2006
6:22 AM
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This is my first season with Rollers,and I'm using the open loft system.Have Show homers using one pair to foster my rollers so far lucky everyone is mated naturally with ones I wanted to mate with.Need to build a young bird loft for my show homer squeaks.as it's getting crowded in the breeding loft.Rollers all stick up for themselves tho', as the show homes seem quite laid back.Nobody seems to want to cross breed yet?!Cheers!!!
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Kellinos
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nicksiders
530 posts
Apr 19, 2006
7:20 AM
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Six pair of breeders; a modified open breeding loft(I have a small operation with just a few breeders - easy to control). Do not use foster system anymore.
These six pair give me about 100 birds a year of which about 20 survive the cull roster the first year. I breed year round with some breeders (click pairs).
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C.J.
120 posts
Apr 19, 2006
7:53 AM
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nicksiders how long is your breeding season to get so many young without fosters?
C.J.
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Shaun
350 posts
Apr 19, 2006
8:50 AM
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I'm just into my second year and am breeding from 8 pairs, plus one foster pair, just to give me a bit more output. I have an open loft, for no real reason other than I much prefer watching the birds' antics, as opposed to keeping them confined. At this stage, I'm not too fussed as to who the parents are, as the main idea is to kick out as many youngsters as I can, fly them out, then select future breeders from the best in the air. Having said this, I've not seen any squatting of hens for cocks other than their own, so I'm confident enough as to which parents the youngsters come from. The main disadvantage I see of an open loft system (apart from the possibility of illegitimacy) is catching the buggers. Occasionally, I have to get them all in their nestboxes, to give the loft a good clean, or suchlike. It takes me an age to round them all up, as they're not tame. It's mayhem for 5 minutes, with me having to grab and often miss, or just catch a bird by its primaries; I swear a lot during this exercise.
Shaun
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upcd
238 posts
Apr 19, 2006
8:55 AM
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Greetings, I breed from both. Open and cages. 50 pairs and different breeds. Can breed all year in So Cal. But shut down in fall to winter for moult and rest time.
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fhtfire
418 posts
Apr 19, 2006
9:14 AM
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I mainly use and open loft system. I do have nest boxes that can be closed up. If I am trying a new pairing, I will close them up until they lay the first round...then I will open the door and they will enter the open loft world. I am breeding from 7 proven pairs at this time and one new pairing that I pulled from the A-team. I run a pretty tight ship as far as space goes. As for fosters...I will use some of my proven breeders if need be. I try and keep a balanced amount of birds from every pair in the kit boxes....If I want to breed any rounds out of a certain pair I will use some of my proven breeders as fosters. I breed anywhere from 25-100 birds a year..depending on perch space. If I have real good year...well the next year I will not breed as many. As far as the next boxes go...I do have 4 pair that I will never split up and they are in the standard "two nest box for each pair" set up. The newer pairs or pairs that I may change up are in the type that you can close the landing board.
As far as cock jumping another hen....well...I know what comes out of most of my pairs...especially the ones that I will not split..for example...My Blue Bar Cock and Black hen...produce nothing but blue bars and black offspring...My Baldy and Blue grizzle...produce a certain type of offspring...so I can pretty much tell if another cock had jumped a hen. I really do not think that a cock jumping hens happens as much with older established pairs...I have yet to see another cock jump a hen from a well established pairing...I am NOT saying that it does not happen...I am just saying that I have never witnessed it. I have witnessed it with my barn pigeons as a kid. Anyway..that is my system. I too...like to watch the birds act out there natural instincts....and if one of my good cocks...jumps another one of my good hens...well I will not lose a day of sleep over it.
rock and ROLL
Paul
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MCCORMICKLOFTS
477 posts
Apr 19, 2006
11:49 AM
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I use the open loft method pretty much. I put my Horner pairs in one loft, my B.E. family in another and my Reed birds in yet another. I do have about five or six pairs in individuals which are key pairs or just pairs that I ran out of room in the open lofts.
Brian.
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nicksiders
531 posts
Apr 19, 2006
11:55 AM
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C.J.
I basically breed year round.
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maxspin
27 posts
Apr 19, 2006
12:22 PM
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I breed out of an open loft. Six pairs of breeders in one loft, and six pairs of fostersin another. I use the plastic nest fronts (Widowhood) this allows me to lock in the cock to establish nest boxes, and also lock the hen in the cocks box to establish pairs. The nest boxes are too small to lock down for the season.
Keith
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Mount Airy Lofts
196 posts
Apr 19, 2006
12:53 PM
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I am using an Individual Breeding Pen system right now. The reason is that I am still at the beginnings of my breeding program.
My fosters are in a open loft enviroment.
Once I have established enough breeders, then using an open loft system can be had. When it does happen, no more foster pairs. Straight breeders!
I want to make sure who the parents are to my future stock birds. At this infant stage of founding my family, Individual Breeding Pens is a must.
Thor
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Opinionated Blowhard
33 posts
Apr 19, 2006
4:25 PM
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I basically breed year around--or whenever my wife wants to. Kevin.
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Velo99
379 posts
Apr 19, 2006
4:29 PM
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Gee,
this is kinda like a progressive pot on bingo night.
last year I ran a Semi open loft. Like a lot of you I paired them up in a lockdown then opened it up. I started off that way this season due to an opportunity to get some good pedigreed birds for a few months.Anyway,after the finals I am partially dismantling my kit and going to a poly/foster using three related hens and one cockbird. In turn I will use a foster pair per hen. I plan on running three rounds this season and three next season them re-pairing with another hen and two daughters. One hen will win the position of the most MAMA hen.
I also have some Navarro chicks I am working with now. Juan hasn`t put anything new in his family for eight years I think. I have bred three pairs from Pensom based lines. Only one came out recessive,the others are looking good already and haven`t even hit the air.
I also have some Taylors I am holding for f4 hybrid vigor. They are deep rollers. Waiting til just the right time to tweak them into the project in a few years.
Just remember peds don`t fly. I felt that I would do my part and keep some pretty straight Pensom birds in my loft to preserve them.
MTC
v99
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rust never sleeps
45 posts
Apr 19, 2006
5:54 PM
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I use individual breeding pen's. I have to know what pairs or stock birds are producing the fastest deepest performing pigeons. Also i do not color code there legs with bands. My rollers, i prefer the exaltation i get when i see one come into the roll/spin, rushing over to handle that roller that just went inside the kit box and i look up his or hers band number. or what birds/pairs i need to move out that don't produce.
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on a roll
27 posts
Apr 19, 2006
7:44 PM
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To the beginners, you can if you have room in the breeder loft for breeeder pens, all you have to do is lock a pair up for ten days or till they lay there eggs then turn them out till,there squabs are 2-3 weeks old then lock the pair up again till they lay again this way there will be no mistake to who the cock is, then out again. I CALL IT THE HAPPY BIRD LOFT.
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rollerpigeon1963
79 posts
Apr 19, 2006
7:49 PM
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I have individual breeding cages. But I also use a open loft for my foster birds. Foster birds are some of the birds that you hold over from the year before. Like I breed them in Jan-April. See the hawks are so bad here that we lock them up and wait until they pass on. And that is usually around the end of April. So I can use the older holdover birds as foster birds. And when I don't need to use the holdover birds I allow them to raise a few rounds of there own. As a test!!!! It has proved to be a good idea. Then in may use the same birds as fliers until it is lock down in the fall.
So if they raise a round it wont hurt just fly them out and see what ya get.
Brian
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jerries loft
6 posts
Apr 19, 2006
9:25 PM
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i pretty much have always had a open loft breeding pen.I only breed 4 pairs and 2 fosters i breed 50 pigeons a year.
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