how do i no when there ready

[pigeon princess]

Hi my young birds are on the house roof trapping welland a coulpe of them do a few laps of the house ive had them 3 weeks so three weeks or so maybe 4 sinse they left the nest when should i expect them to start flying round i dont want to rush them imjust getting a bit orried that there not going to go just mess about on the roof

[Guest strapper]

Hi my young birds are on the house roof trapping welland a coulpe of them do a few laps of the house ive had them 3 weeks so three weeks or so maybe 4 sinse they left the nest when should i expect them to start flying round i dont want to rush them imjust getting a bit orried that there not going to go just mess about on the roof

 

i think they maybe just getting their confidence...i wouldnt worry about them on the roof quite yet.

when they all can fly confidently then you should make them fly..at least off the roof.

[Guest Owen]

On the roof! What are you doing letting them on the roof? Judging by what you are saying, your birds will be flying very shortly. My concern is that now that they have started to use the roof as a staging post, they will continue to do it. Every time they get a bit nervious or they decide to delay coming in to the loft, it will be on the roof with them. Worse still, once a group of birds start to use the roof, any future birds will follow on and the roof will become a normal way of life for them. I can just see, in my mind's eye, you shaking a tin and calling them while they just sit there and look at you. And this could easilly happen after a race. Then there are the neighbours to consider. I reckon you will soon become unpopular with them if you let your pigeons sit on the roof making a mess.

[Guest Mav]

Dont hold back Owen, Tell him!!!.

[Guest pigeon82]

my birds sit on the roof and have never had a single complaint the neighbours here dont mind them my birds love house hopping but never go any further than the house either side unless theyre scared by summit but thats good neighbours i have they dont care there exact words were the birds were here before we moved in so we have to live with them but pigeon princess dont worry about birds being on house roof they love it if i want mine to fly i throw a tennis ball or football up keeps them up for 20 mins

[peterpau]

Could be worse. My birds want a drink when they come back from racing. We have flat rooves all round so they get a drink on the house first. Still never have been in to sprinting. ;D

[marmite]

mine always hit the roof as loft is in close to house but its how u teach them to respond to your call or whistle that really matters ybs need teaching you call they come straight in or no grub for them they soon learn so dont lose time on race day then but must b srict with them atb clive

[cowman]

i always let my young birds sit the house roof to start with so they get a better look around once they are all flying and they pitch on the roof i use water balloons or a long pole with a flag on to get them off the roof after a couple of days they all hit the loft rather than the house .

[slim45]

Keeping birds off the house roof and only trap on the loft is not easy and I think a lot has to do with your loft location and position in connection with house roofs.

if your garden is small and the loft is close to the roof its hard to keep the birds from using it but if your loft is far enough away from the house roofs then you have a chance. in our old house all our birds landed on the roof before trapping but at our current house they always land on the loft 1st time.

Back to the young birds flying,the longer they stay hanging around the loft roof the more comfortable and safe they will feel about sitting there,but when they are at a point were they need to be taking off and flying a bit we let them out and scare them ONCE only, use a ball or a flag whatever get them in the air and let them land when ready don't chase them again after that, do this every time you let them out chase them once and they will start to build up the time in the air and eventually kit together.

  

[Guest IB]

I don't think anybody's loft will be closer to their house than mine, my kitchen light when on sheds enough borrowed light in my aviary to bring my birds out from the loft into the aviary when its still dark. Despite closeness to the house, my birds still land inside my aviary, through an open door. That is except one OB that lands on my house roof, and he's allowed to do that because he is blind on one side, and he'll come down on his own a few seconds later. He also flies solo, so he has no influence on what my other birds do.

 

But my young birds when they first get out are allowed to go up on my house roof for the first week or so. I do that because I think it lets them get a good look around their home patch long before they are on the wing. When they do take off in the early days, my OBs are usually out too, and they'll bring them down onto the loft.  One or two YBs might still land on the roof,  so if that is happening when the others are landing on the loft, and its the same birds going to the roof, that's when I lob a ball on the house roof beside them. Need to do that 2/3 days at most, and they go to the loft, their roof days left well behind them.

 

[Guest IB]

Hi my young birds are on the house roof trapping welland a coulpe of them do a few laps of the house ive had them 3 weeks so three weeks or so maybe 4 sinse they left the nest when should i expect them to start flying round i dont want to rush them imjust getting a bit orried that there not going to go just mess about on the roof

 

Sorry for the questions, it's to help identify what stage your youngsters are at:

 

Are they all the same age, and how long ago did you first let them out of the loft?

 

Do they all go for a fly as a group, or is it just one or two that are going for a short spin, doing a solo round the loft?

 

When they do go for a spin, do they normally land back on the loft?

 

Are there any flying well that go to the roof as soon as you let them out?

 

 

[sher]

hi, i had last year one y/b go on roof all the time when let out, the others flew well and landed on lofts, i put it in the bin 8)

[pigeon princess]

On the roof! What are you doing letting them on the roof? Judging by what you are saying, your birds will be flying very shortly. My concern is that now that they have started to use the roof as a staging post, they will continue to do it. Every time they get a bit nervious or they decide to delay coming in to the loft, it will be on the roof with them. Worse still, once a group of birds start to use the roof, any future birds will follow on and the roof will become a normal way of life for them. I can just see, in my mind's eye, you shaking a tin and calling them while they just sit there and look at you. And this could easilly happen after a race. Then there are the neighbours to consider. I reckon you will soon become unpopular with them if you let your pigeons sit on the roof making a mess.

 

well i posted the other day about scaring them off the roof and people said dont, not when there still this young i did scare them the other day and there not so strong on the windg and landed on the house at the back i cant go around chucking stuffon peoples roof

[Guest IB]

Sorry pigeon princess, I opened a quote on your reply to my post, then hit browser back button to cancel my reply, and have ended up deleting your post too. First time that has happened to me.

 

I note from your reply to Owen that you feel your youngsters are still not strong on the wing, so I think you are right not to chase them just yet, as they could try to go beyond their strength and end up injured. If you don't have any old birds that can bring them straight down onto your loft, maybe try reducing their feeding and call them straight down as soon as their feet touch the house? Next day, call before they land etc.