Widowhood Cocks

[kev43]

what are your veiws on feedin widowhood cocks,,, either in boxes or in a tray on the floor ?

[Guest triballofts]

hi i always feed mine in there boxes in pots also all the stock birds as well cocks when seperate and both when paired

[rick]

i feed mine in the boxes the idea behind it is to strengthen the bond with there box espeacialy young cocks, first time ive tried it though so i shall see.

[kev43]

i feed mine in boxes but was toyin with idea ov feedin them in a tray nxt season  

[wilkins]

i feed in a tray they tend to eat all the mixture this way, but i give treats in the box

[kev43]

i feed in a tray they tend to eat all the mixture this way, but i give treats in the box

 

that was way i was thinkin cos i noticed last saeson they were just pickin so nxt season i will feed in a tray and give titbits in the pots in boxes

[rick]

do they not eat all the mix out of the pots then?

[K J Young]

i feed mine in the boxes this year , but next year am going to feed on the floor as per wilkins, and not showing the hens before the race

[kev43]

do they not eat all the mix out of the pots then?

 

sumtimes they did some times they didnt they just picked what they wanted  

[Guest mick bowler]

I always liked to feed in trough, it adds to the competition in the section, after all you want the cocks racing each other,  as well as to their boxes and hens. Also pick your poolers out when feeding this way  

[sapper756]

During the pairing up and racing season, I feed them in their boxes, however once split up for the winter they are hopper fed

[Guest Owen]

I need my cocks to all be confident and bonded to their box. The last thing I need is a lot of fighting which leads to bullying, injuries and demotivated individuals. I find that bullied cocks will mope about and will not work properly at exercise and are poor racers.  I find that they exercise much better this way and will compete with each other. I do things this way because I only race 6 some weeks and I need them all to try.

The best way to achieve this, I have found is to lock them up in their boxes. They are fed and watered individually in pots. By doing things this way, I can treat every cock as and individuals and feed them according to what they may be doing in the current week.

Another big benefit is that I can see straight away if one of them goes off form. I check the droppings every week and because they are kept seperate I can check each one separately, if I want to. If a bird has a hammering it gets peace and quiet to recover without the risk of another bird taking advantage of his low condition and jumping all over him. And because they are used to being locked up, they never fret to escape as would be normal with birds that are used to their freedom in the parting.

It works for me, and it suits me, because I want to compete with the mob flyers with my very small number of very good cocks. The down side is that every year I have to decide which birds to keep and which have to go. I find this very hard because my lads have become friends and, who wants to dump their friends?

This year 2 have to go. But I have been lucky to find them good homes where they can go and, hopefully, help another Fancier by breeding some above average pigeons for him.

[gorsy bank lofts]

feed in boxes then you know who is eating what grains when racing, if leaving food as a whole i would say they are being fed too much. :-/

[Guest Owen]

gorsy bank lofts,

I think that there are many versions of widowhood. And pigeons get used to the system that their owner decides to use. I always feed and water mine in pots on the boxes. Mine are given a  little bit more than they will eat before they are let out for exercise. I leave them for about ten minutes to eat while I go off and see to other birds. When I get back ten minutes later, off they go. I then close the doors behind them and clean up and empty the pots. When I have finished the cleaning I peep out to make sure they are not in sight and, if the coast is clear, I go off to the house for my breakfast and shower before work.

When they have had there fun, I walk to the loft and drop the landing board ready for them to go in. I will place some hemp seed or, one only, peanut into the closed side of the box. The important bit of all this is, to be on the ball when they enter their box. It is very important to close them in without fuss and without upsetting them while they are preoccupied with their tidbit.

The real problem can be on a Thursday morning. I find that I have to allow plenty of time because they can sometimes be wound up like clock springs and they will be a problem to drop. This is especially true of yearlings. But the real problem arises if a stray hen turns up. But then I'll leave that to your imagination. On race days they are great. They never swing around and waste time. They trap really well. But that is a product of the type of training I give them, I think.

[pjc]

Owen, how much do you feed before excercise?

[Guest Owen]

pjc

I give them just a bit more than I know they will eat. I set my measurement by how much they leave. When you start off doing this, you may be best to give them, say, half their ration. Then as they get used to what is expected of them increase the amount until they are like mine and are fed all they want before they go out. I don't have to do this, because the older cocks are fine and they will help me with the yearlings. Feed them on feed grade barley (not malting barley) or the best depuritive until Wednesday and then strengthen the feed. The barley is not a grain that pigeons like much, so they tend not to overeat. And by useing the barley they will be all the more keen on the tidbits you give them in their boxes. Besides, you will not get very far racing with overwieght pigeons.

Another tip I can give you is regarding the hens. I have read that some say that you should show the hens at the training stage. I never do. I keep the nest pans out of sight and I place the pans into the boxes a couple of minutes before they are basketed. Once they get used to it, you will have them wanting to get into the pans while you are still holding them. The pans that is.

If you show the hens to the cocks, the cocks will not want to exercise. And the main reason why they will beat the hide off other pigeons is because they can become very fit by the fact that they will fly with real energy at home or from a training toss. Showing them the hens will spoil all that. A lot of people complain that their cocks will not exercise. Now you know the reason why most of them have their minds on other things. On race days, mine have the hens waiting but they are only there for about ten minutes. The quicker they are taken away the better for the cocks. Give them a pinch of seed and back to the barley.