Mealy Cock

Quite correct johno, 32 pigeons got the Dickin medal, see you learn something every day it's another story I can tell my patients.

Acording to the RSPB their numbers are in decline, but of course they would say that

Thanks Bakes, did not know of this bird, will amend to include him

Below is a letter I am going to send to the RSPB. Before I send it any comment points to add or take away would be helpful. Thank you for your e-mail. I am somewhat perplexed at some of the things you have stated in your e-mails to me. As my wife and I are bird and animal lovers we are somewhat baffled by your comment, “but by feeding birds in the garden you automatically attract all birds closer to view and as a result you will see nature in it rawest form". So what you are telling use don't feed the birds as we will attract BOP. Yet we see adverts telling people to feed birds over the winter. Just to remind you, the Sparrow hawk attack we witnessed happen in the middle of the road You say “In the British Isles peregrines do not migrate, and the majority stay within 100 km of their birthplace. Then how do you account for the fact they are now living in towns and cities when you stated “areas where cliff-ledges, quarry faces, crags, or sea-cliffs are available. Recently, they have started To use man-made constructions, especially tall buildings This is a contradiction in terms if ever there was one. BOP is now becoming a pest and a nuisance, see attached copy of a local Towns news paper. The Tax payer will have to foot the bill for the repairs, or are the RSPB going to contribute towards The repairs, after all your organisation are the ones that are protecting this bird so surely you have to accept some responsibility. This is a comment I copied off a forum of a genuine bird lover. I notice that they are saying that the White Tailed Eagle has returned to Scotland. NO. They brought it there. Now there are farmers going out of business because this bird is taking their lambs. Not weak or small lambs, big robust healthy lambs. These felons should be removed so that the situation can go back to how it has been for hundreds of years. And the RSPB should be made to compensate the Farmers for their losses. When they introduced the wolf to Northern America the agreement was that if it killed livestock there had to be compensation. The same should apply in the case of the White Tailed Eagle. I cannot see why they have to mess about with things that do not need to be changed. If they stuck to protecting birds properly, I am sure we would all appreciate what they are doing. Now they are very likely to start a war. I say this because there are a lot of people who are not going to sit back and allow the RSPB to dictate how they are going to live. British People have always fought against unjust laws and I think it is going to happen again. I also looked at one of your links of the RSPB web site; I see that you show a video of some kind Of trap to catch BOP as proper gander to support better protection for BOP. Firstly I do not support any form of trapping, poisoning, shooting, baiting of any type of animal Cruelty, but the question must be asked why anyone would want to do such an act, to achieve What, or to gain! Why have the RSPB not show a fair and balanced view seeing both sides of the story, why don’t the RSPB show the death and destruction caused by BOP how they have cost Animal and bird owners thousands of pounds each year, if this type proper gander was to be show on the TV as a documentary the British Broadcasting Authority would have something to say about the biasness of it. I also ask again, why are there forums and discussion groups, organised petitions! From all walks of life who see the other side of the coin, joining together to get a change in the law Or to ask this Government for help, or are all these people wrong and the RSPB is 100% right In what they are doing. To finalise a piece of British History for you, I had the great privilege to meet a man who Trained carrier pigeons during the war, his efforts and that of the pigeons help to save many an Allied lives, they returned home shot at, one bird had and eye missing and still returned home In all there were 16 Dickens medals given out to pigeons, that is the human equivalent of the VC. But do you know what their biggest obstacle was on getting those great birds back to England with those vital messages; THE PERAGRINE FALCON and the Government of the day had the foresight To have the killers removed to give them a fighting chance on getting home. Any comments please

Found this on there web site link, these people will stop at nothing to protect BOP even to the fact of involving the Goverment. Their campaign http://www.rspb.org.uk/supporting/campaigns/birdsofprey/index.asp

This is the second part to my e-mails Thank you for your constructive e- mail However it does not answer some of my questions, example being that Peregrines are territorial birds, that being the case this would explain why they are now nesting in Towns and cities because their natural habitat is full of BOP and have to expanding their areas for food source which must tell you there are too many or they have over killed their feeding ground. Why would people raise concerns over BOP on forums and the like. During World War 1 and 2 there was a cull on Peregrines on the south coast this was to protect Carrier pigeons from being attacked. After the war a preservation order was placed to protect them so the numbers can increase, this in my view has exceeded all expectations and now we have a situation where we have to many.

What the RSPB replied to my latest e-mail, hold on to your hair. The person who wrote this did not answer any of my questions put to him Thank you for the email with regards to the peregrine habitats, Suitable nesting sites restrict peregrines to areas where cliff-ledges, quarry faces, crags, or sea-cliffs are available. Recently, they have started to use man-made constructions, especially tall buildings. Tree nesting occurs only rarely in the UK. Peregrines are widespread in the UK through the western part of England, and in Wales, Scotland and Ireland. In southeast and east England they are found on a small number of isolated sites, though their range is slowly spreading. They reach their highest densities in upland areas of Wales, southern Scotland and northwest England. The UK population was estimated at 1,400 pairs in 2002. In the British Isles peregrines do not migrate, and the majority stay within 100 km of their birthplace. Peregrine numbers declined during the 19th and 20th centuries because of illegal killing by humans, which at times was relentless and widespread contamination by persistent toxic agricultural chemicals such as DDT caused the collapse of the peregrine population in the UK in the late 1950s. These pesticides built up in the food chain and concentrated in peregrines and other birds of prey, causing increased adult mortality, eggshell thinning and reduced breeding performance. By 1963-64 80% of the UK peregrine population had been lost. Only birds in the remoter parts of Scottish Highlands were unaffected. After the banning of these pesticides peregrine numbers slowly recovered, and by the late 1990s reached pre-decline levels over much of their former range. However, in southeast and east of England the bird has been slow to recover, and the range is now contracting again in northern Scotland. Kind Regards,

May I suggest that all that post comments and facts of their own experances e-mail the RSPB the more we can bombard these people the better. I have an old maxim; throw anough crap at a wall some of it will stick.

Yes and I am constructing another e-mail to them now as they have not answered my questions Like why! have Peregrines moved into towns and citys, because their own habitat is over populated

In answer to a lenghthy e-mail I sent, this was the reply from the RSPB. Have these studies been carried out anyone know. I understand it can be distressing to see BOP feed, one cannot really pick and choose the birds that visit the gardens of the UK, but by feeding birds in the garden you automatically attract all birds closer to view and as a result you will see nature in it rawest form. Even though sparrowhawks feed almost exclusively on small birds, they do not affect their overall numbers. Songbirds produce far more young every year than would be needed to maintain the population. All these extra birds will die of starvation, disease or predation before the following breeding season and there would not be enough territories or food for so many. Sparrowhawks simply prey on those birds that would have died anyway. Some pigeon fanciers are concerned that the increase in the numbers of birds of prey, particularly peregrines and sparrowhawks, is posing a significant threat to their hobby. Peregrines and sparrowhawks will kill racing pigeons and can cause injury or disruption to flocks. However, three independent studies into the reasons why racing pigeons fail to return to lofts concluded that, while the proportion of pigeons lost to birds of prey can vary according to region, the numbers are small compared to other causes. An estimated 86 per cent of the pigeons lost each year fail to return for reasons other than predation by birds of prey. Pigeons fail to return to their lofts for a variety of reasons. A UK wide study by the Government's UK Raptor Working Group found that: straying and exhaustion accounted for 36 per cent of losses collisions with solid objects like buildings and windows - 19 per cent of losses collisions with overhead wires - 15 per cent of losses predation by birds of prey - 14 per cent of losses shooting, entanglement in netting, poisoning and oiling - 8 per cent of losses predation by mammals, including domestic cats - 8 per cent of losses. An average loft in the UK houses 73 racing pigeons - the research indicates that a typical owner will lose 38 pigeons each year. Of these, just over five would be killed by sparrowhawks and peregrines while 14 will have strayed, gone feral or died of starvation and exhaustion; seven will have died in a collision, six will have hit overhead wires; three will have been shot, poisoned or oiled, and three will have been eaten by a mammal. Both Pigeon and Dove numbers are doing well and are not declining. Kind Regards,

Safe way I used was to pair the birds up, whilst still got a youngster in the nest, let one of the pair out and so on

I found these birds seem to do well when the sky was over cast and dull, I got my gaskells from Gordon Mc Kay Manchester out of his Pau cock.

Best distance birds I ever owned in the late 60s 70s. mine were bread down from Gaskells and a touch of Bill Ishmaels moss side money spinner, I also crossed them with Barkers and Ameel. Those birds love it when the velocity was getting low. example Yearling darby from Avranches 334mls vel 948 only 8 home on the day, first 2 was mine. Best of luck with them

Many thanks for the advice and offers, it's nice to see there are genuine fanciers on this forum.

I have read on the board about using vitamin supplements that are fit for human consumption. A word of warning to people who wish to use such additives, you would have to make sure the dosage Is correct for the amount of flock to be given. Vitamins can an affect and can have a disaffect if not used correctly The reason I know this is; I went to a patients house to take a person to hospital, the said person looked a Funny colour and very unwell, when chatting I found that the said person had been taking large amounts of all types Of vitamins and supplements, it was found that the person effectively had Poisoned them self.

I am taking early retirement in the next 3 years, I was pricing things up like loft, clock, equipment, purchasing y/b As I don't have room for a stock loft, the total cost comes to around £3,000. How do young people afford to join the sport these days. What I have also noticed that there is no control over prices, example, an ets clock I looked at over Christmas! Come January up it went by £50.00 for no reason. What I have seen is a lot of places seem to charge what they Like which I find is disappointing.

Hi Lindsay It’s the kind of response I would expect from them; however I will after some research send a response As I thought eagle owls were native to this country. As for this comment he made "admire the skill and beauty of this very specialised hunter". I will send my comment as well, one thing I am going to ask is, would the RSPB like to contribute Via the RPRA for the loss of thousands of racing pigeons killed each year that provides bird watchers with a spectacle of seeing birds killed.

THIS IS THE RSPB REPLY. Michael Thank you for the email regarding the birds of prey in your area. Predators like birds of prey in an area shows that the bird population is doing well. If you feel you must deter the sparrowhawk, there are a few deterrents available, although their effectiveness is dependent on the availability of alternative feeding sites for the hawk. Rather than deter them, try to learn to admire the skill and beauty of this very specialised hunter. Bamboo canes on lawn to turn fast approach route into an obstacle course Half-full plastic bottles or CDs hung up in trees to scare the predators away. If feeders are under an overhang (eg under tree branches) hang strings like bead curtain strands a few inches apart around the perimeter of the overhang to slow down the hawk The GuardnEyes scarecrow balloon works by introducing, what the hawk believes to be, a higher level of predation, so that it in turn feels stalked. If alternative feeding areas exist, the hawk may be encouraged to move elsewhere Regarding Eagle Owls, Several pairs of eagle owls, the largest owls in the world, are now breeding in the wild in Britain, according to a new study. But it is unlikely they will ever be considered British birds as they escaped from a large pool of birds kept in captivity. With its prominent ear tufts, 6ft wingspan and its ability to kill birds as large as herons. the eagle owl is one of the most remarkable birds in Europe, nesting from Spain in the south to Russia in the north, but has always been absent from Britain. I hope this has shed some light on your query, thank you for your interest in the RSPB. Kind Regards,

This is a copy of an e-mail I have sent to the RSPB. I was an RSPB member, I am concerned about the levels of birds of prey, practically Peregrine and Sparrow hawks and the devastating affects they are having on other species of birds, more so the pigeon all breeds. When are the RSPB going to reintroduce the Eagle owl And what are the RSPB doing to control this problem

My I suggest you send your pictures to your nearest RSPB office as they claim this sort of thing does not happen In the proximity of humans.

I have on a number of occasions spoken to the RSPB both over the phone and face to face about the ever increasing population of BOP. And how the small bird population is dwindling and the increase in crow and magpies. The RSBP blame everybody but themselves. I have also asked why won't they introduce the eagle owl or the eagle, all kinds of excuses are made as previously mentioned. What I intended doing is when the elections are up and running the first one to come to my door will Gets an ear bashing about BOP and if they want my vote they can earn it.

What the RSPB said many years ago, a fancier wrote to the RSPB about the increase in Peregrines and the affect they was having on pigeon racing, their reply back that was printed in the fancy press was the most ridicules statement I have ever read, it said! Peregrines don't eat racing pigeons. The fancier duly produced evidence in the way of 300 rings found at the foot of a Peregrines nest and posted all the ring numbers, the RSPB had no answers. This however shows the ignorance and arrogance of the powers that be right through to the government of the day. The reason I say this is; because during the first and second world war There was an order to cull Peregrine on the south coast because Over 200,000 carrier or homing pigeons were used by the Allied forces during World War I and II in order to conduct surveillance and relay messages to the front. In fact there was “16 Dickens Medals†awarded to racing pigeons “this is the equivalent to the human VC. After the war a protection order was place on birds of prey, hence the problems we see today Next time you are out and about and you see the RSPB and birds of prey shows, ask them Why they won’t introduce the Eagle Owl back into this country, shock! Horror! Can’t do that They will kill off the birds of prey. I only had one experience with a sparrow hawk and that when I let my birds out one Sunday afternoon I head this bang and all my widowhood cocks had scattered I ran out the loft to see a hawk pinning down one of my birds I flew at the hawk it let go and the pigeon flew low across the fields, I watched the hawk grab my bird and down it went, I ran, hurdle the fence and again ran At the hawk, the hawk let go and sat on a nearby post watching me needless to say I got my bird back With a few bruises under its wing, the hawk never came back. One victory for the good guys!

Food for thought for the critics All my stock pigeons were picked on eye sign, every pair bread winner, 8 pairs. Amounting to 11 firsts 9 seconds, 6 thirds, 4 fourths in 18 club inland races, birdage 450. + winning 6 firsts 2 seconds 2 thirds + four cards to 14th Fed. birdage 2.500 How did I do it?

I would say it's a duel purpose eye, pair it to the other bird if nothing better in loft.

As with ALL drugs they have an expiry date and a date once opened to use by. As said on this forum, use antibiotics with care! Correct dosage and length of time given, must be maintained. Do not treat bird just for the sake of it, or you're heading down a one way path.