Canker

[Guest Owen]

Anyone can see canker when it is the thick cheesy stuff in the throat. But if you want to find wet canker which is the one that ruins your bird for racing, you have to use a microscope. And if you want to give your birds Old Mother Hubbard's treatments without checking you are kidding yourself.

Most up to date pigeon flyers are using microscopes these days because they know that if their competitors are on top of the diseases they will have to do the same if they want to compete. Those who want to carry on guessing will inevitably fall behind. And then they will complain about overfly or favioured loft position or some other imagined unfairness.

Pigeon racing is like any other sport, you have to keep up. If you don't, there will be very few that will feel sorry for you. In the area where I live the younger dynamic Fanciers are winning most of the time. The one's that used to win are languishing at the bottem of the results sheet. They have a bit of encouragement by getting in to the result now and again but it gets less all the time. One modern thinking young man has been winning most of the young bird prizes this year. The Old Hands are wondering how he is doing it. It is because he uses the facility of a microscope and understands what medication is needed and how to give it to the birds properly. After that it is good pigeons worked hard. The bad news for the old thinkers is, that there are already quite a few of the younger men hard on the heels of this young man and that can only mean that they will be left behind again. I think that the days of blind treatment will be over soon because it is not the best way to get the birds into form and keep them there.

[Guest strapper]

keep guessing , i told thomasd about this months ago but i dont know if he,s using it

and it,s very cheap .

 

carbonate of soda

[Guest kev d]

good guess strapper , yes it works try it and see and i will keep using my

old mother hubbard,s treatments it works for me so that all im botherd about

i fly my pigeons for enjoyment win or lose i only send what i think is fit and healthy

birds .

[dudley]

in this day and age you have to treat ,you know what they say prevention  is better than cure,ken.

[peterpau]

in this day and age you have to treat ,you know what they say prevention  is better than cure,ken.

 

I don't see this as necessarily true either. Some lofts will be prone to kanker and not others. Some will need to treat, should your birds be in a damp environment you're gonna have to.

 

 

[greenlands]

 

carbonate of soda

Hi Paul,

        That's probably why we never saw much wet canker years ago,my late father always put bi-carb in the water every Sunday.If the birds weren't flying well round the lofttrough the week they got a mixture of bu-carb and epsom salts Thursday. ??

Lindsay

 

 

[gooner]

what dosage do u use for the bicarb os soda please

[Roland]

had some great birds of a guy. Done well. In all his years he had hardly if ever treated. Motto being if poorly and other not ... get shot. Breeds great immune and constitution.

Any hada dozen off him and he told me never to treat for canker etc. etc.

But after a few weeks I did.... gosh worst thing I ever did. they went down like flies.

Was remarking to another great 'Wizard' just this past Sunday and related this to him. Shaking his head he said, You went and distroyed the immune system. Birds are great at healing and taking care of themselve... you open the flood gates... soon be that they rely on these 'Uppers' too readily.

Yes of course there are times when you need to assist a mite I guess. By nature knows far more than we ever will. indeed we don't even know, let alone understand nature.

like lice etc. these are great for feathering ... this country cleans them up, others abide the natural good they do.

[Roland]

They used to use the match stick head.... Sulpher..

 

 

[chickadee]

always treat when pigeons are healthy never wait untill birds r showing signs or u r season is over

 

Why would anyone want to treat healthy birds, surely it is better to opt for preventatives rather than cures to keep your birds healthy :-/

[Guest strapper]

good guess strapper , yes it works try it and see and i will keep using my

old mother hubbard,s treatments it works for me so that all im botherd about

i fly my pigeons for enjoyment win or lose i only send what i think is fit and healthy

birds .

 

to be honest it was aguess...dont know why i choose bicarb... it just came into my head...someone once said i might be a medium....i said no chance.....i weigh too much for that! ;D ;D ;D

[ch pied]

 

to be honest it was aguess...dont know why i choose bicarb... it just came into my head...someone once said i might be a medium....i said no chance.....i weigh too much for that! ;D ;D ;D

and a good guess,

the bi - carbonate of soda , will keep the thrico & heximatita in check . as will .

iodine

copper sulphate

flower's of sulpher

 

 

[chickadee]

good guess strapper , yes it works try it and see and i will keep using my

old mother hubbard,s treatments it works for me so that all im botherd about

i fly my pigeons for enjoyment win or lose i only send what i think is fit and healthy

birds .

 

How much bicarb do you use per litre?

[stan p]

tea spoun to 4 pints

[Guest kev d]

hi there, i use one heaped tea spoon per drinker but you have to do it every week

52 weeks a year . cheers kev

[jimmy white]

it maybe worth mentioning , theres many different types of canker , over 20 at least,,

[grizzal]

hi there, i use one heaped tea spoon per drinker but you have to do it every week

52 weeks a year . cheers kev

 

Is this once aweek only or ? if more what days do u recommend

[Guest gladdo]

id threat them and itwill give them a boost alright but do it today or early in week... do today and tomorrow...ideally start on sundays...gives the bird more time to come around mate...mikey ...

[Guest kev d]

 

Is this once aweek only or ? if more what days do u recommend

just once aweek

i do mine every sunday once aweek is enough no more .

 

 

[grizzal]

just once aweek

i do mine every sunday once aweek is enough no more .

 

 

thanks

[Guest bakes]

i give my pigeon's harker spartrik tablets after giving tablets they have 3 days multi vits in there water

 

all the best.

[tommy.walsh]

hi

looking for help i have 25 pigeon im only after startig up with pigeons what will i use to get rid canker i belive in using garlic 3 times a week will it this help or jst keep it under control..i am also givng them a 3 in one treatment.coccidiosis an trichomonosis...

[dwh]

get them tested and go from there whatever you need (if anything) will be recommended

[Guest lenwadebob]

I read so much about the do's and dont's of treating pigeons for various illnesses it is becoming laughable. Get back to basics. Overcrowding, dampness and bad ventilation are the biggest causes of all the illnesses our birds get. I would suggest that the vast majority of losses come from lofts that have one or more of the above three criteria, because birds are sent racing that are not in peak condition. The vast majority of us will get 100% returns from 'blow homes' and easy races, but when the going gets tough the unfit birds fall by the wayside and fanciers start making all the excuses under the sun as to why their birds are missing. Start looking at your own management system and what you can do to improve the way you care for your birds, and the environment in which you keep them.

There was a thread on here recently about a good friend of mine, Ron Sampford, and the way he keeps his birds. A small, dry, well ventilated loft, few birds kept, good feeding, clean water, a scraper in his hand every day, and he has few losses and is as good as any fancier around when the going gets tough.

[gorsy bank lofts]

have used bicarb for years once per week,dont treat for anything if i can help it, then its usually birds i have brought in that need it.

also bicarb is good for ybs, which i never have is this because i use it ? dont know but will always keep using it.

 

atb lyndon