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well after reading a few posts my partner and i have decided to try Vit E this year.  but our problem is that we cant figure out how much to give the birds.  the smallest pill i saw on the shelf was something like 200ui or something like that.



edit:
you know... everytime i say my partner i feel like i really need to say my Flying partner.  as my life partner, my wife!, is not really into flying pigeons.  hmmm maybe i should find another word for flying partner and then i wont have to worry about it.   haha

just before pairing, i usualy mix wheatgerm oil in their feed, thats packed with vit E,or buy a bag of groats, and mix the wheatgerm with that,as its more absorbant, than most grains

I give mine alfalfa pellets ( rabbit pellets ) as they have lots of vit E I just mix a few in with regular feed ( 5% )  they seem to eat them just fine I also have given them vit E oil on food they also make a vit e safflower oil I have seen it at drugstore

has anyone given them 200ui gel pills?

Symbro

You can spend a lot of your hard earned bucks by buying everything that is on the market for your birds and a lot of this that isn't really necesary.

I use wheatgerm oil more or less every day on the feed, to mix in The Chisholm trail Health Products.  I've been using chisholm trail for 5 years now and I find it contains all the necessary vitmamins and trace minerals needed for my birds.  I do give them extra minerals though, i.e. Kilpatricks Black Grit and chalk Blocks. Another way of giving birds the necessary minerals is to dig some sod up from your garden, the birds love it.

Hope this helps

I have read that vitamin-e can keep older birds fertile for 1 or 2 more years, i have a cock born in 1998 (the father of my family) and i would love to get some more youngsters from him in the coming season, this year he only filled 1/3 of his eggs.

So anyone tried it and what was the result?

And how much and how often should i feed it?

HI HOGNI
it will do no harm to try vitamin e but try cliping his feathers under his tail around his bits they may be getting in the way when he treads the hen

good luck
paul

Yes vitamin E can do wonders, feed plenty of sunflower seed, wheatgerm oil and a bit of hemp for good measure, he will tread for england then for a bit and could well help the fertility in the short term

Vet's Tips for Fanciers tells you about using vitamin E and some other things to prolong breeding life.

We use Colombine Fertoil every year prior to pairing up up  

Dont cut the feathers around the vent unless You are certain You know what You are about , there are guide feathers here , remove these & You are sunk .

Try the Vitamin / Wheat Germ Oil approach first ...Blue Smarties (if You find any) are the best to kickstart an Old Cock .

Steve..

Some alternative pointers from p235 of Wim Peters book Fit to Win 11:

(1) He suggests timing is a factor - if the hen an old cock is up with is a fast layer, say 6/7 days after first introduction, he may be too slow for her. He suggests reverse is more frequent - the hen is a slow layer, cock drives for 10-14 days and besically loses interest.. end result in both cases is infertile eggs.

(2) Some canker and worm treatments can cause temporary infertility [not clear if in cocks, or cocks & hens?]. He doesn't say for how long, but lists Benzimidazoles (albendazole, mebendazole,etc) 5-nitroimidazoles ( metronidazole, dimetridazole, ronidazole, carnidazole) nitrofurans, pyrimethamine and amino-nitrothiazole, as having caused problems. He recommends none of these products are used (prior to pairing-up).

Quoted from superstar

Yes vitamin E can do wonders, feed plenty of sunflower seed, wheatgerm oil and a bit of hemp for good measure, he will tread for england then for a bit and could well help the fertility in the short term

Chickadee, get down to the chemist for some of that

Quoted from Mark Palmer

Scientific research has proven that fertility is boosted by a combination of Vitamin E and Selenium.

Individually the two elements work, but together they work so much better.

I have also heard good reports about the Blue Smarties - does anyone know why ?

Mark Palmer.

Thanks for that Mark, do you know anything about how much is ok as vitamin-e is not a water soluable vitamin.

And what is it about the blue smarties, can anyone explain please.

Blue Smarties - All to do with the E numbers I think...   Unsure why, or who discovered it, but seen it work a dozen times.

Quoted from Mike Lycett

Blue Smarties - All to do with the E numbers I think...   Unsure why, or who discovered it, but seen it work a dozen times.

I heard this before but cant see why except as you say maybe because of the E no used for the colouring on it all the other ingredients used are the same in all of them think it is E133 Brilliant Blue FCF they use for it which is a blue synthetic coal tar dye so how it works cant work out couldnt find any properties its got that would do anything only its banned for use in lot of countries like Belgium France Germany

the reason smartys are used ,chocolate ,is an afrodeciact for sex ,smarty are the proper size to pop over the pigeons throat never found any difference with the colour they all worked 3 every night for a week normally does the trick  

Quoted from sammy

the reason smartys are used ,chocolate ,is an afrodeciact for sex ,smarty are the proper size to pop over the pigeons throat never found any difference with the colour they all worked 3 every night for a week normally does the trick  

IS THAT YOU OR THE BIRDS SAMMY

BOTH  

I don't recall ever seeing anything advertised for birds, that was made from chocolate. Wasn't it also supposed to be poisonous for dogs?

Trim the feathers round the vent,make sure the birds arent too fat[,you could use depurative for 3 weeks before pairing] during which time administer the wheatgerm oil over the feed,then you have done all you can.