Lee Pycroft
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Posts posted by Lee Pycroft
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thanks speedwaybaz, will try that, may need a bigger shed then lol... Good excuse to extend my set up, well, that's how I'll put it across to the wife :-)
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Thought it was time for an update folks for those interested. I have put a few pairs together and been very successful (or lucky) and I have breed exactly 20 birds the last few weeks. Had to send off for some more ZFS rings. I say lucky as a few experienced breeders I know haven't had the best of starts, maybe down to the warm days but very cold nights?.
I have recently let the new babies out into the flight which was great to watch, watching them fly properly for the first time, have a bath for the first time and them exploring their new home!
The one downside to all these new additions is going to be the "DECISION"... The decision on what to keep and what to sell. I sold one pair the other week and it was difficult to let them go. Is this normal or am I just being a soft wuss? lol
I 'm waiting for the most recent babies to colour up and decide which of them to keep. The two I let go were nice looking birds but not the biggest! I will see what the remaining 18 look like before making a decision on them!
Just a question on size for those with the knowledge, how long does it take for them to reach full size. After 4 weeks they seem to have reached their adult size? will they get any bigger after that?
Here's a picture of 6 of my most recent babies. I great start to my first ever breeding season. It's so enjoyable, I'm hooked :-)
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Sounds great Tony, really happy for you! Think most people start off with 2, but 40!!!!! Amazing lol.. Good luck with them, I'm sure you'll enjoy keeping these wonderful birds. Think you'll need to keep the cocks and hens separate or you'll need more than one shed lol... That 40 will soon become 200 :-) What type of mutations did you get? Any pictures of your flock?
Have fun Tony and keep us updated!
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Think they are making up for all that time without a bath, I now have 4 drowned rats and a soggy cage!
told yer you'll need a towel lol :-)
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This is one of my birds trying out the breast stroke
Emmy
er, hellooooo... why's this not in the photo comp? ;-)
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I have the opposite problem, keeping them out of the bath in the outside flight!
Doesn't seem to alter their bathing habits if it's cold or sunny!
As Emmy says, give them a spray, also, if the water is too deep and they can't touch the bottom with their feet they won't bath in it...
As the temperature increases I'm sure they'll start using it, get a blanket ready as the water goes everywhere lol.. I have two in a cage indoors, they have alteast two baths a day.. I refresh the water every morning with tepid water!
I'm sure once they discover bathing you'll have the problem i have ;-)
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I would put them in, I put 6 babies in mine last year, after about an hour of arguing and flying about they all settled and had no problems!!! Think the only time you would have problems if there is lack of spaces ie perches for them to sit/roost on, then I think they would fall out more...
Let us know how it goes!
Good luck.
Lee
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Thanks Emmy, my understanding of it (probably wrong might I add) I'll have two pairs of birds like this:
Black Cheek Cock paired to a CFW hen ( pair 1)
CFW Cock paired to a Black Cheeked hen.. (pair 2)..
then in 12 months I'll breed the babies from pair 1 with the babies from pair 2 as they'll be spilt for black cheek? and I should get some mutations which will include black cheeked CFW???
Wrong??? help? lol
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Glad someone has asked this question as it's going to be my first attempt at what I would call "proper" breeding to get a certain mutation.
I went to the Stafford Show yesterday with Merv Shields, and he told me that he is going to have a go at producing some black cheeked CFW's... I have no doubt they'll be wonderful as he has already bred some awarding winning black cheeks and CFW's, which despite my desperate requests he won't sell me lol...
With this in mind I bought a good sized black cheeked cock bird yesterday which I'll pair with my biggest CFW hen... I have several big CFW's cock birds but only have a small sized black cheeked hen! Shall I use her? or try and get a bigger sized hen, as I'm after size and colour? Then breed their babies to get BCCFW's?
As I say, it's going to be my first attempt so will see how it goes...
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Hi to you up there in Hartlepool ,Northeast!
Used to visit Hartlepool alot during the early 90's watching stock cars, the race track/stadium is now a big supermarket now :-(
Welcome to the forum.
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Hi Mike,
Welcome to the forum.
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Welcome Phil.
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I've named most of mine as well but now I've so many and the poor wee things are getting confused (me too) next thing we need to create: name tags to fix around their necks.
Thanks for the explanation Lee I've got one silly pair who are building a nest on the tiny ledge where they go in/out from the outside flight.
Emmy
That's spooky Emmy... On Thursday last week I went to put some stuff in the bins before letting the birds out! Well stone me if they weren't already out???? rather confused as the wire was in the closed position.. So went into the avairy to find that "tag team zebra" had built a nest in the recess of the flap using basically anything they could find off the avairy floor such as millet sprays!!! In doing so they had propped the door open and got out into the flight lol
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Lee those are re just wonderful photographs each and every one showing beautiful birds the photo I really like apart from the 1st one, is where the birds are flying out from the 'cat flap' That would be a difficult shot to capture but worth the effort. (It was a cat flap you put in wasn't it?) if it is how do you manage to open and close it - I may have missed that bit in your post.
You need to give yourself a BIG pat on the back - those birds are very lucky
Emmy
Thanks for your kind words Emmy.. When I fitted the cat flap I attached a steel wire to it.. I fed the wire through several eyelets (bag of hook and eyes from BnQ) cost me 99p.. The wire goes across the top of the flight then outside where it's attached to a key-ring metal hoop! I pull the wire and hook the hoop over a hook and it raises the flap and stays in place via the hook.. As night falls the birds return to the inside aviary (helped by putting fresh millet in) and I just unhook the loop and the flap closes! :-)
Will post some pictures when I get chance.. xxx
PS, If Andy and Dave H are reading this, yes they all have names, all named by my 6 year old daughter, apart from two CFW hens which I called Pepsi and Shirley lol
PSS, My fav picture is the one of the pied!(4th pic) We have called him scruff,he's been like that for months, no change, think he's stuck in mid moult lol.....
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So I've finished glazing the remaining two windows (which are only temporary for winter) and let the birds out.... They love it... Here's a few piccies of them playing out lol..
Freedom
Hope you like?
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Brilliant!!! birds everywhere lol... re breeding and control of.. I think its best to cage breed if you want to be able to sell some birds on. Buyers like to know what they are buying, no nasty surprises when they hatch lol spilt for this split for that etc.. I'm learning (slowly)
Blind dates lol luv that!!! Don't know about you but most of my zebbies have naturally paired off so will keep them as they are when i decide to breed them!!! ;-) It's funny how when night falls they all have their certain part of the aviary to sleep!!!! I have two CFW's, both brothers and both huddle up in the grit dish at night, why they have chosen there is beyound me as there are loads of spare perches!!! lol
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lol Emmy, glad the bird bath is still proving popular with your birds..As for my shed, only a 5x7 foot one sadly, so basically just an aviary for them to sleep and eat!!! I did put provisions in the design to add some nestings boxes at a later date but I have decided to do away with the idea of ever "Aviary" breeding!!!
So, I have purchased two breeding cages and put them indoors(in my utility to be exact) and no it hasn't gone down well with the wife lol... Currently have two pairs, 4 eggs in one so fingers crossed!!!
Will rotate my pairs giving all my birds a chance of breeding and i can better control the type of birds i want!!! I'll keep the birds i like/want and sell the ones i don't want.... Going to learn how to breed properly before getting more serious about it all...
Might need to buy another shed for that, I bigger one lol..
Thanks for the comments everyone....
ps... there is always something you forget or wish you have done differently but that's the challenge I enjoy!! Working things out, sometimes as you go! Want to be able to sit and watch them as they are very relaxing to watch and funny at times! As for TV! what's that? don't really bother with it, as you say, usually repeats or soaps... nah, rather clean the avairy floor lol
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1st of September!!!! By heck, it's been a while since I updated this topic..lol..Sorry.. So for those interested I begunwork on the outside flight at the back end of the year, late November to be precise, and yeah it was cold then too....
I have took pictures during the construction and hope you like them? Any questions or suggestions gratefully received!
The first spade went in here, the holes for the foundations to hold the frame in place! 8 altogether!
The Front frame!
We now have a front, back and side! The back and the side have been covered with felt to prolong the life of the flight and protect the wood from the elements!
Connected to the shed..
Panelling the front, I also fitted mesh behind the panelling for extra security!
Amazing what a bit of paint does eh!
The safety porch so I can enter the flight without risking birds escaping!
I can stand in here, close the door and drink my brew watching the birdies.. Peace! :-)
Roof done, guttering done, decided to attach a water butt in order to water the garden in the summer!
Inside the safety porch. Going to fit a fold away seat eventually..
A view from within the safety porch... Bird bath was an ebay bargain, and the entry/exit to the flight from the indoor
aviary is via the cat flap top left!.. This is operated via steel cable from outside the aviary!
Another internal view!
Pea gravel on the floor, £2.50 a bag.. Cheap as chips!
Closer view of the cat flap and the perches around the entrance!
View from the other end, the two topiary balls, £6.99 Home bargains, solar powered and light up at night! lol
The tree stump is my other seat so I can take pictures of the birds as I'm keen on my photography!
Birds eye view from top perch!
Two Meshes! For extra security I have meshed the outside and inside of the flight!
Lot's of ivy to give it hopefully a more natural look!
I was hoping to let the birds out this weekend, but with plunging tempersure's they'll stay in another week, so guys what do you think?, they always look nice before they have been soiled by the Zebbies lol..
One last thing to do, As it is still cold and windy I'm in the process of building two small square frames with see-through plastic attached to slot over the two main openings/windows! They will only be temporary until the weather improves!
At the moment the 2 openings/windows are uncovered and the 3rd filled in with some twin-walled polycarbonate which I got free of a mate who is in the building trade.He was demolishing an old conservatory! He gave me three of the roof panels and I've used one so far to seal the last window as you can see below.
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Happy Birthday fella, hope your having a great day!
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Hi Lee,
A combination of things, increasing light, controled heat to keep the shed a balanced temperature, I feed carrs herbal supplements with a vitamin and wheat germ supplement and an additive to the water, always used supplements just about tried them all.
Nick
Cheers Nick, mine must just be randy little beggers then! ;-) more eggs here than Cadburys at Easter lol....
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Sorry to ask a naïve question but what have you been doing re conditioning to breed?
The reason I ask is this, I have two hens in the house and I've had to take the nest box out to stop the constant laying of eggs! But still I find them on the bottom of the cage or in the food dish! They just won't stop! Is this because unknowingly I'm conditioning them by what I feed them?
They have the usual seed (Foreign finch) refreshed daily, millet spray say twice a week.. There is a vitamin block in the cage along with a cuttlefish (which they both love).. During a week I'll give them fresh water cress once, a scoop of fruit patee, and a scoop of egg food! They have a dish full of grit which they use!
I do this as I want to make sure they're getting everything to keep them healthy! They get their water changed twice daily and the water in their bath also changed daily as they have atleast two baths a day!
Would you suggest during the months when I want them to rest and not bring them into "breeding condition" that I just give them seed and none of the other stuff? I feed my Zebbies who live in my avairy in my shed the same! !!!
Thanks for any advice given!
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welcome to the forum Melanie...
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I'll third that lol... bought two pairs of Dave earlier on in the year.. All doing well and quality looking birdies.. Oh, and I bought a cock Penguin too of him the other week at Stafford.. Welcome to the forum, where about's in sunny Manchester are you?
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You made of money? lol..... wouldn't buy a thing from them! Complete Rip Off! To say it's a big National company with the power and means to buy in bulk, their stuff is, as Paul says, EXPENSIVE!
Example being Millet Spray! My local pet shop sells them by the sealed bag at £1.50 each! You get ten in a bag, yes ten and they're about 16-18 inches long and chunky! In "THAT" shop,their bags have about 6/7 very thin and short sprays in them, and are about 6/7 inches long at best, and priced at nearly £4.....
I'll stick with my little local pet shop, if you can buy in bulk somewhere do so, but as for buying from them, keep your money in your pocket mate! :-)
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How To Upload Photos
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As mentioned, photobucket is the best way, and it's simple too.
You will have to join/sign up but it's free.
Upload a picture, just click browse and search your drives,memory cards etc, once it's uploaded to the site, click on the picture you want, when it appears, on the right is 4 boxes, click on the bottom one, it will normally say copied when you click on it, then open up the page on here where you want to post it, click paste, it will ask you do you want to allow access to your click board, click yes, and hey presto, done. If your still struggling, pm me and I'll give you my number and talk you through it.