Newbie 08
118 posts
Feb 08, 2009
8:00 PM
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---------- I just start back raising July 2008. When I first settled my birds first week in August I was flying them all out of my loft had no kit box. I was boosting all my birds in the air verse just letting them fly out of the loft on their own. I would put the A team in one of two 2X2X2 aivery I had attached to the main loft that had traps back to the loft which I would block and boost the B team from the loft. Although I was boosting them they all would go straight up and fly never just flying to the roof and landing. I always flew 2 teams of 10 birds A & B and both teams would kit really well together rolling very nice and always flew for at least 30 to 45 min. when the B team would land on my roof I would open the main door of the loft and they were back in the loft no later then 5 mins after they landed every time. I would feed the B team as soon as they were all in 10 table spoons of wheat. As they were eating I would close the loft door and then boost the 10 bird A team from the aivery. Around 10 mins before the A team were ready to land I would take the 10 birds from B team and put them in one of the aivery and block the trap that lead back into the loft. Once the A team landed I again would open the main door to the loft and they also were back in the loft in lest than 5 mins after landing. I learn from this site that the control is in the feeding. I would feed them as well 10 table spoons of wheat. After the A team finshed eating I would unblock the trap on the aivery and let the B team trap back into the loft and i was done for the day. I flew my teams 5 to 6 days a week with one maybe 2 days off from August to Nov 2008.There was alot of handling of the birds. I've been locked down since Nov 8th due to BOP attacks. Since then I have built two nice kit boxes 3X3X3 with 16 perches on each side which will hold 32 birds per box and trap doors this time. I have transferred 7 of the 2008 kit birds I flew last year as well as 8 new hatch 6 week old squeakers into one of the kit boxes to train my new hatches because by the time I start flying again middle to the end of March I will have about 23 birds in the kit box to fly 16 squeakers from 2 rounds of 5 pairs I paired up and 7 older 2008 kit birds I flew last year. I have already started the process of hanging a wire cage to the kit box with the trap closed and leaving the 15 birds in the wire cage most of the day to get familar with the new kit box which I painted red. Then right before It starts to get dark when they are good and hungry I open the trap to the kit box and whisle and they start to trap back into the box to eat. I will continue this process for the next month until I turn them loose. Is boosting the birds a bad thing and should I just open the main door of the kit box and left them fly out on there own verses boosting them like I use too? I don't want any of the birds to start getting in the habit of flying out the kit box straight to my roof and just sitting there. That why I started boosting them when I flew them before as well as to have control over who flew on each team. They would alway go straight up both teams every time without a problem. I have 8 more new hatches at 1 week old that I will be adding to the kit box in 4 more weeks with the 15 that are already in there.. I guess my question is boost or no boost?
~~~~~~butch
Last Edited by on Feb 08, 2009 8:18 PM
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Bill C
225 posts
Feb 08, 2009
9:30 PM
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Butch what is boost? To Scare them out? Flag them up? I have no idea? Bill C
Last Edited by on Feb 08, 2009 9:30 PM
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Newbie 08
119 posts
Feb 08, 2009
9:32 PM
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throwing them up one by one
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~~~~~~butch
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Bill C
226 posts
Feb 08, 2009
9:37 PM
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I read again and understand. I always have a few that have to be boosted out to get out flying. If they all want to stay in there is usually BOP around and I had not payed attention to the silent birds songs in the neighbor hood.
I like having several kit boxes to fly out of so you do not have to put young birds with older birds. Even the same year. I will fly the first two rounds together and then the next to together untill they are all over 5 or 6 months old then put them together.
A few young birds landing on wire, tree or kit box and not going up to fly can pull a few others out of the kit just like out birds do.
If they are young birds in training I would fly them seperate and let them sit on the kit box the first few days out with out boosting them, just so they get used to flying around the yard and feel safe that the kit box roof is the safest place to land and sit. Bill C
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Bill C
227 posts
Feb 08, 2009
9:41 PM
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If boosting is thowing them by hand then I never do that. They fly out and want to fly most all the time. The whole group at once but sometimes I take my hat and wave it inside the kit box if they are younger birds that get nervous having been chased by a hawk, then I scare them out and make them fly. Bill
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Newbie 08
120 posts
Feb 08, 2009
9:51 PM
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I think I'm going to boost the 7 older ones up and let them start getting back in kitting form. Once they are up I will open the kit door and let a few come out on their own to get use to being outside and to fly around the yard until they get use to feeling safe and trapping back in successfully. I know I'm going to have to be patient with the young ones. I will do this daily until they all have come out and trapped back in. I notice from when I flew my kit birds before once they went up they would not come down until they have flown at least 30 mins. So I hope by the young not going up or maybe just flying around the yard or from the roof they willnot bring the older ones down. If this starts to happen i will just work with the young until they start to fly a bit then i will put the older ones back up with them. I've have the eight squeakers in the kit box with the 7 older 3 young cocks and 4 hens for almost 2 weeks now and they seem to be doing well fending for themselves and defending their own perch boxes.
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~~~~~~Butch
Last Edited by on Feb 08, 2009 10:06 PM
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PR_rollers
GOLD MEMBER
2453 posts
Feb 08, 2009
10:59 PM
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Good post Bill..always love your post..
Hey Butch I see your back with your cap B lol..
what I do at times is if I have a few younger ones to break in I let them out chase them out that is when the old birds or first group is coming down this way the first group will fly maybe another ten or 15 minutes but they will fly lower then when they first went out and the young ones stays with them and learn to drop together . now any young bird that decides to drop early I let them hang on the kitbox till the others are closer and chase it up and they soon will learn what you want from them and that is to fly together and land as a team together.and quickly trap inside and given a treat for that ..peace..
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Ralph
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Newbie 08
122 posts
Feb 09, 2009
8:37 PM
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LOL Ralph yea I put the cap back on just didn't look right.If these last new hatches from the 2nd round all survive I'm going to have 16 young to start training the 2nd week in March. I like the ideal of chasing the the young out when the old birds or first group is coming down.how many young would you suggest to chase out to start off until I get them all at least flying. I will start off with the first round of young being that they are 6 weeks older than the second round.
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~~~~~~Butch
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RodSD
182 posts
Feb 09, 2009
8:44 PM
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Learn a new word today. How did that word came to be?
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Bill C
230 posts
Feb 09, 2009
8:57 PM
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Now I understand what you are doing. You are flying older birds in the same kit box as a few young squeakers in training.
I think you are doing it right to throw the older birds up to get them flying first and then you let out the younger birds.
The best way would be get another kit box if you can. My first year I had one kit box and by the time I got more young birds I had built another one and in mid summer I built a third one. It makes life so much easier for me. Good luck! Bill
Last Edited by on Feb 09, 2009 8:57 PM
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Newbie 08
124 posts
Feb 09, 2009
9:29 PM
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Thanks Bill yep I am definitely going to need another kit box. I going to have a double box built next month same as the single box I have 16 perch boxes on each wall 32 birds per box. this will give me room for 96 birds. I'll have much more flexability. You guys are awesome thanks for everything. Can't wait to get the young in the air they all come off some pretty decent pairs. I'm going to concentrate on the 80/20 rule keeping the best 20%. I have 8 Ruby's 4 hens and 4 cocks that will be ready to pair up around June. I'm going to get just one round off of them this year. And make them my main focus for year's breeding. The birds I've breeded this year are purely experimental. Best hens to best cocks no pedigrees like the Ruby's. but looked really good the 3 months I flew them. They were all 08 young when I bought them in early July maybe 12 to 15 weeks.
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~~~~~~Butch
Last Edited by on Feb 09, 2009 9:33 PM
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Bill C
232 posts
Feb 09, 2009
9:49 PM
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Hey butch since you are in Norhtern Calif will you be comming to the NCRC roller show? There will be a free lunch and I might get stuck with cooking if Ken cannot find a cook.
There will be some raffle items also and I think we will have a kit box for raffle. I will let everyone know for sure in a week or so. We have aprx 75 members and we had put out in our bulletin that we need one built for the show. So hopefully we will get one or two guys to do it. You could get a new one right away! Bill
Last Edited by on Feb 09, 2009 9:50 PM
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